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Government is consulting on material updates to National Policy Statements EN-1 (overarching energy), EN-3 (renewable energy infrastructure) and EN-5 (electricity networks). National Policy Statements are at the heart of the fast-track bespoke planning regime for nationally significant infrastructure projects under the Planning Act 2008.  The changes reflect Government’s current energy priorities set out in the Clean Power Mission and cover: Low carbon infrastructure, now linked to the Government’s Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, is deemed a Critical National Priority (CNP) and thus benefits from a presumption in favour of consent.  Energy from waste projects no longer benefit from this policy. Centralised Strategic Network Plans are to set out a coordinated and long-term approach for planning transmission infrastructure, and their future conclusions are endorsed in the National Policy Statements. Electricity Transmission Design Principles are to provide greater clarity on the type of transmission assets to be used in different environments and appropriate mitigation. Guidance is provided for onshore wind, now that it is to be brought back into the DCO regime. Inter-array wake effects are to be assessed for offshore wind. In this Insight we explore how these changes might accelerate infrastructure consenting.

On April 28, 2025, EPA Administrator Zeldin issued the Agency’s most comprehensive statement since Trump’s inauguration regarding how EPA plans to address PFAS compounds under a variety of ongoing regulatory programs (“EPA Statement”).  The EPA Statement signals a continuation of many of the Biden EPA’s priorities and actions regarding PFAS, also while noting efforts to refine the scope of some of those actions.  EPA’s Statement confirms that the Agency plans to continue forward with several existing PFAS related regulatory and enforcement initiatives including drinking water, site investigation, chemical reporting, air emissions, and biosolids.  Importantly, the EPA Statement confirms that EPA intends to designate a lead official to manage PFAS efforts across various programs and agencies as detailed below.  Once that appointment occurs, the general policy declarations in the EPA Statement are likely to be translated into more concrete actions and rulemaking by the Agency.

In Sze Fung Engineering Limited v Trevi Construction Company Limited [2025] HKCA 278[1], the Hong Kong Court of Appeal (“CA”) ruled that the “back to back” wording in that case was not a “pay when paid” clause, but governed only the timing of payment.