Britain's biggest environmental quangos and Net Zero rules face the axe to help jolt UK economy back to life

Published: 00:37 BST, 5 October 2026 | Updated: 00:38 BST, 5 October 2026

Britain's biggest environmental quangos could be scrapped as part of a new Tory war on red tape designed to boost growth.

Shadow Chancellor Andrew Griffith will unveil plans to 'abolish' the Environment Agency and Natural England to help streamline regulations that are 'acting as a drag anchor on our economy'.

The Conservatives will also formally throw their weight behind plans for a third runway at Heathrow, which are in the balance after Andy Burnham failed to commit to back them.

Mr Griffith will argue that 'the biggest deregulation project in a generation' could help kick start the sluggish economy, drive investment and cut prices.

He will claim that cutting red tape and Net Zero rules driving up construction costs could slash the price of a new house by up to £50,000 and boost supply.

And he will commit to scrapping Labour's new 'grocery tax' on packaging, removing a £1.5billion levy on business and consumers. 

'No one else is coming to save our economy,' he will tell the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham. 'Only we can inject reality, tell the hard truths and make this a country we are proud to hand on to the next generation.

'Our task just got bigger. We face a Prime Minister that wants to return Britain to an imagined past. A socialist fever dream of the 1970s. Cheaper homes, lower taxes, and less red tape. This will be the most ambitious deregulation project in a generation.'

Conservative Party Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Andrew Griffith applauds in the main hall on the first day of the annual Conservative Party conference in Birmingham

The Shadow Chancellor will also vow to do 'whatever it takes' to end decades of delays over a new Heathrow runway, adding: 'We're all in for growth'.

He will commit to a major programme of tax simplification to ease the regulatory burden on business and individuals. And setting out her own 95-page statement of intent yesterday, Kemi Badenoch vowed to 'remove the job-destroying measures in Labour's Employment Rights Act'.

Tory communities spokesman Katie Lam told a conference fringe meeting last night that Labour's Renters' Rights Act also 'has to go'. It has been blamed for driving up rents and cutting supply of rental properties.

But there was confusion last night, with sources saying Ms Lam had been talking about challenges faced by landlords rather than making a fresh policy commitment. However, Ms Lam backed a crackdown on the planning system and regulations blamed for holding back house-building.

The Environment Agency and Natural England are two of the UK's biggest quangos, with a combined annual budget of £2.7billion.

Tory sources said that they would be replaced by a 'more streamlined regulatory system'.

A source said Natural England's 'nutrient neutrality' rules for new developments had prevented the construction of 160,000 homes.

To cut the price of a new-build home, the Conservatives have planned to ditch the Future Homes Standard and house building rules coming into force next year, which will mean developers must include low-carbon heating technology such as heat pumps or district heat networks.

Abolishing stamp duty on property purchases, already a Conservative Party policy, is thought to be part of the plan to push house prices down further.