AssetSphere at the Royal Bath and West Show
Alex Orttewell, Julie Chandler and Kitty Campbell of AssetSphere attended the CLA breakfast on the first day of the Royal Bath & West Show, with Defra minister George Eustice as the main speaker.
Changes to Permitted Development Rights
On the 6 April 2018 Housing Minster Dominic Raab announced changes to the General Permitted Development Order of the Town and Country Planning Act 2015. These new permitted development rights relate to conversions of agricultural buildings to residential dwellings and new agricultural buildings.
New Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards affect landlords
The new legislation for Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) comes into effect from the April 1 2018. Landlords will therefore need to ensure that changes are made prior to the regulations coming into force.
Changes to rules for Ecological Focus Areas
The European Commission has published updated greening rules, including changes to Ecological Focus Areas (EFA), which will come into effect from 1 January 2018.
The challenge of a prolonged Brexit for farmers
The government remains positive that we will leave the European Union in March 2019, and a ‘transitional agreement’ will be put in place to allow the UK to disentangle itself from EU regulations and rules. This entanglement is most evident within the domestic agricultural policy, leaving farmers rightly concerned about what the future holds.
Public Rights of Way
Section 31 (6) of the Highways Act 1980 enables landowners to acknowledge the existence of public rights of way (PROW) across their land, and allows landowners to prevent new PROW being established by ‘presumed dedication’.