England’s planning rulebook has taken a quiet but important step for nature. Regulations made on 20 May 2026 bring part of Schedule 5 of the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 into force from 21 May 2026, with one exception in paragraph 14(2). The practical effect, set out in the explanatory note to the Regulations, is that Ramsar sites in England now receive the same treatment as European sites when assessments are carried out under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017. For readers outside planning law, that means internationally important wetlands now have clearer statutory protection in the decision-making process.

Ramsar sites are wetlands recognised under the 1971 Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, first signed in the Iranian city of Ramsar. The Regulations describe them as wetlands of international importance, and the new legal change moves that status into the day-to-day machinery of English planning. This matters because statutory wording changes behaviour. Where a development proposal could affect a protected wetland, councils, public bodies and applicants now have a more defined legal test to work through. It does not stop development by default, but it does mean the ecological value of these places must be weighed with greater care and consistency.

For communities living near estuaries, marshes, reedbeds and other wetland habitats, the shift is more than technical. These sites support wildlife, shape local character and often sit at the centre of long-running arguments about where growth should go and what should be left undisturbed. By placing Ramsar sites on the same footing as European sites for Habitats Regulations assessments, the Government has narrowed a grey area that campaigners and planners have wrestled with for years. In simple terms, the law is now clearer about how these wetlands should be considered before consent is given.

The new protection is not fully retrospective. Regulation 4 sets out transitional provisions so that some projects already far enough through the system will not be pulled into the new rules. The changes do not apply where planning permission was granted before 17 August 2020. They also do not apply to certain schemes proceeding under a general consent where the relevant date fell before 21 May 2026, the day the new provisions came into force. For section 73 permissions, the key date is the date of the earlier permission rather than the later variation. For prior approval routes, the relevant date depends on when approval was given, when it was decided that approval was not needed, or when the decision period expired.

That transition clause will matter to developers with legacy schemes, because it limits the immediate reach of the reform. It also gives planning authorities a clearer dividing line between older consents and future proposals. For new projects, though, the message is straightforward. If a proposal touches a Ramsar site in England, the environmental case will need to be assembled early, with proper assessment rather than hopeful assumptions. For local authorities and community groups, that creates a firmer basis for asking hard questions, improving scheme design and pushing for avoidance or mitigation before harm is locked in.

The instrument was signed by Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook and is the third commencement regulation under the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025. An impact assessment was produced for the wider Act, underlining that this is part of a broader recasting of the planning system rather than a stand-alone measure. For Eco Current readers, the significance is clear. England has chosen to give internationally important wetlands a more secure place in planning law. It is a measured change, not a dramatic one, but it offers something environmental policy often needs: a clearer rule, a stronger test and a better chance of catching damage before it happens.