Lord Fuller slams government over Norfolk solar farm bids

The sudden spate of applications for huge solar farms in the county, fuelled by the Labour government's desire to lower the price of energy and hit net zero targets, was raised in the House of Lords by Conservative peer Lord Fuller.

A spate of applications for solar farms in Norfolk has sparked concerns (Image: Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA)

It comes amid growing concerns that Norfolk land for growing food could be lost due to the government's zeal for solar power.

'You cannot eat a solar panel'

Lord Fuller (Image: Roger Harris / UK Parliament)

Lord Fuller, former leader of South Norfolk Council, said in the House of Lords: "You cannot eat a solar panel, yet very soon, a large proportion of our most productive and versatile farmland could be covered by them.

"Earlier this month, I tabled a written question asking the government how much land was being considered for solar farms under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) programme and the answer came back that just two farms of 1,400 hectares were being considered.

More solar farms could be built in Norfolk (Image: Mike Page)

"In the last few days, the Eastern Daily Press has reported proposals for 7,000 hectares of farmland for solar panels in Norfolk alone, and I know that other members have the same experience in other parts of the country.

"The government has quite simply lost control of the numbers."

He said the NSIP programme, which enables decisions on such schemes to be fast-tracked and made by government ministers, is being "abused by the aggregation of a large number of small proposals into one".

There are concerns agricultural land will be lost to solar farms (Image: Brittany Woodman)

Lord Fuller, founder and chairman of Great Yarmouth-based fertiliser manufacturer Brineflow and a director of Suffolk farm management company Sentry Ltd, called for the government's upcoming land use strategy to explicitly stop conversion of high-quality agricultural land graded 1 to 3.

He warned: "Britain will starve if all we have to eat are solar panels."

READ MORE: Norfolk's massive solar farm boom ignites farmland debate

Minister promises 'strong protections'

Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Image: Chris McAndrew / UK Parliament)

Baroness Hayman of Ullock, minister in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), said: "I reassure the noble Lord that estimates suggest ground-mounted solar used just over 0.1pc of land in 2022, and we expect any future rollout to take up a very small amount of agricultural land.

"The large solar farms that I have information about are not on any grade 1 or grade 2 agricultural land, as far as I am aware.

"However, the noble Lord makes the very important point that the land use framework will be critical in how we manage what our land is used for. Is it used for energy, housing or farming, and so on?

"We expect the Green Paper to be published for consultation in the new year and I urge all noble Lords to read it and take part in the consultation."

People in Norfolk are worried about the solar farm proposals (Image: Denise Bradley)

She added: "The government recognise that food security is national security.

"We will champion British farming and protect the environment, and we are committed to maintaining strong protections on agricultural land to ensure our mission to deliver clean power will not come at a cost to food production or security.

"We are confident the rollout of ground-mounted solar will not affect UK food security."

'Deeply disturbing'

Norfolk has become a major solar energy hotspot, with five projects revealed in the last 10 weeks which, if approved, would cover a total of 17,000 acres of countryside.

Solar farms are planned for the area around Long Stratton (Image: Mike Page)

The biggest planned solar farm for the region - and the largest in the pipeline in the UK - would be in Gissing, near Long Stratton, where 900 megawatts of power would be generated across approximately 5,000 acres.

There are also proposals for East Pye, which would cover 2,700 acres around several villages close to Long Stratton.

Noventum Power is seeking permission for one near Long Stratton, which could span roughly 2,500 acres.

The Droves and High Grove solar farms would be close to the A47 in Swaffham (Image: Ian Burt)

Two more Norfolk developments have been proposed; High Grove, a 4,000-acre scheme near Dereham and Swaffham, and the Droves, spanning 2,800 acres on an adjoining site.

Norfolk County Council leader Kay Mason Billig (Image: Norfolk County Council)

Kay Mason Billig, Conservative leader of Norfolk County Council, has previously branded the applications "deeply disturbing" and a "creeping abuse" of the countryside.

South West Norfolk MP Terry Jermy (Image: Roger Harris / UK Parliament)

Terry Jermy, Labour MP for South West Norfolk said there was a need for a debate on the issue to consider different land types and the need to preserve good quality farmland.