Environmental Permitting: Consultation on Local Authority Fees and Charges Rates

Date of issue: 23 Jan 2026
Action required: Responses by 6 March 2026

Overview

This consultation sets out our proposal to revise environmental permitting fees and charges scheme rates for industrial sites in Wales regulated by local authorities under the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 (the EPR). The proposal updates the amounts charged for environmental permitting by local authorities, to reflect inflation.

We are seeking your views to help inform an update to current rates, which were last updated in 2016. The proposal reflects the rate of inflation since 2016, up to the financial year 2026/27.

How to respond

Post:     

Chemical, Radioactivity and Industrial Pollution Prevention Policy
Environmental Protection Division
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ

Further information and related documents

Large print, Braille and alternative language versions of this document are available on request.

Contact details

For further information:
Environmental Protection Division
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ
Email: environmentalprotectiondivision@gov.wales 

This document is also available in Welsh.

UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)

The Welsh Government will be data controller for Welsh Government consultations and for any personal data you provide as part of your response to the consultation.

Welsh Ministers have statutory powers they will rely on to process this personal data which will enable them to make informed decisions about how they exercise their public functions. The lawful basis for processing information in this data collection exercise is our public task; that is, exercising our official authority to undertake the core role and functions of the Welsh Government. (Art 6(1)(e)).

Any response you send us will be seen in full by Welsh Government staff dealing with the issues which this consultation is about or planning future consultations. In the case of joint consultations this may also include other public authorities. Where the Welsh Government undertakes further analysis of consultation responses then this work may be commissioned to be carried out by an accredited third party (e.g. a research organisation or a consultancy company). Any such work will only be undertaken under contract. Welsh Government’s standard terms and conditions for such contracts set out strict requirements for the processing and safekeeping of personal data.

In order to show that the consultation was carried out properly, the Welsh Government intends to publish a summary of the responses to this document. We may also publish responses in full. Normally, the name and address (or part of the address) of the person or organisation who sent the response are published with the response. If you do not want your name or address published, please tell us this in writing when you send your response. We will then redact them before publishing.

You should also be aware of our responsibilities under Freedom of Information legislation and that the Welsh Government may be under a legal obligation to disclose some information.

If your details are published as part of the consultation response then these published reports will be retained indefinitely. Any of your data held otherwise by Welsh Government will be kept for no more than three years.

Your rights

Under the data protection legislation, you have the right:

• to be informed of the personal data held about you and to access it
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For further details about the information the Welsh Government holds and its use, or if you want to exercise your rights under the UK GDPR, please see contact details below: 

Data Protection Officer:
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
CARDIFF
CF10 3NQ
e-mail: dataprotectionofficer@gov.wales 

The contact details for the Information Commissioner’s Office are: 

Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF
Tel: 0303 123 1113
Information Commissioner’s Office website

This is a consultation by the Welsh Government on proposed revisions to Local Authority fees and charges in relation to environmental permitting.

The primary goal is to revise Local Authority fees and charges rates for environmental permitting, to reflect inflation.

Permits help regulate activities that could harm the environment and human health, such as emissions from industrial plants, waste disposal, and water discharges. They set limits on pollutants and require measures to minimise environmental impact.  Under the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 (the EPR) operators contribute to the cost of regulation in line with the "polluter pays" principle - which means that those who cause pollution are responsible for covering the costs of managing it.  The EPR require that when revising a scheme, so far as practicable, the fees and charges payable are sufficient to cover expenditure by a regulator.  

This consultation impacts Local Authorities and businesses regulated as an ‘Installation’ class of regulated facility under the EPR.  Specifically, Part A(2) and Part B installations, small waste incineration plants (SWIPs), and solvent emission activities. In Wales, Local Authority fees and charges schemes were last updated in 2016. This followed a more comprehensive update in 2015 which introduced substantial changes, in particular to the list of processes benefiting from reduced fees. Prior to this, fees and charges were uplifted in 2010, though reviews were undertaken annually between 2010 and 2015.

Current fees and charges rates, having not been updated since 2016, are believed to be insufficient to allow Local Authorities in Wales to recover the costs associated with undertaking their regulatory responsibilities under the EPR. The shortfall in cost recovery (between the cost to Local Authorities and the amount they can recover) can result in delays in issuing permits and reduce compliance and enforcement activity, leading to negative environmental impacts and increased levels of pollution.

To adjust for inflation, since they were last updated in 2016, we propose that a 44.29% uplift is required to the fees set out in the current Welsh schemes. This builds on the approach taken in previous years, that a 25/75 goods/labour cost split is representative of the costs involved in the delivery of regulatory functions in respect of the relevant facilities, where the major expenditure relates to staff time (more on this below).

The proposed fee increases aim to improve cost recovery for Local Authorities, to support better resourcing and so quicker decision-making on permits for industry. The fee increases remain modest per-permit and are necessary for maintaining effective environmental regulation.  

We are seeking your views on this proposal.

The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 (referred to as “the EPR”) provide an integrated framework for the regulation of activities that could harm the environment or human health. They require operators of certain types of regulated facilities, including industrial installations, to obtain permits which set conditions permit holders must meet, including controls on pollution, and provide ongoing supervision by regulators of facilities which could harm the environment.

Controls apply to a range of activities, installations, operations, plant, and processes undertaken by businesses or individuals in twelve classes of facilities. This includes installations, waste operations and water discharges, amongst others.

In Wales, under the EPR the regulator is either Natural Resources Wales (NRW) or the Local Authority, depending on the type and size of facility. With regards to industrial facilities (the focus of this consultation), NRW has responsibility for regulating larger industrial installations (which tend to be more complex and higher-risk), such as power stations and large chemicals plant. These are known as Part A(1) installations. Local Authorities have responsibility for:

• medium-sized industrial installations (known as Part A(2) installations) such as brick manufacturers, glass manufacturers, and timber treatment processes,
• small-sized industrial installations (known as ‘Part B’ installations) such as animal and vegetable processing sectors, dry cleaners, and petrol filling stations,
• small waste incineration plant (SWIP) - any kind of contained, engineered piece of equipment designed to burn waste, but at a very small scale, and
• solvent emission activities – commercial/industrial activities that gives rise to emissions of organic solvents.

This consultation relates exclusively to the above Part A(2) and Part B installations, small waste incineration plant and solvent emission activities that are regulated by Local Authorities in Wales.

Currently, the fees payable to Local Authorities by regulated businesses are set out in schemes made by Welsh Ministers under the EPR.  In accordance with regulation 66 of the EPR, the schemes set out costs payable to Local Authorities, such as permit application fees and an annual subsistence charge (plus any other exceptional fees included in the schemes, such as a fee for varying or transferring a permit to a different operator).

There are two schemes for the fees and charges in Wales, a Part A(2) Scheme and a Part B Scheme. 

Equivalent Local Authority fees and charges schemes are also in place in England, made by the UK Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Defra is intending to consult on an inflationary uplift to the English schemes in the coming months.

Although the Welsh Government is consulting separately, the approach to uplifting the schemes has been developed in close collaboration with Defra to ensure consistency and fairness between England and Wales.

Regulation 66 of the EPR allows the creation, and subsequent revision of, a scheme prescribing fees and charges payable to a Local Authority or NRW.  When making or revising a scheme, the fees and charges must, so far as practicable, be sufficient to cover expenditure by the Local Authority or NRW. As explained above, the proposed uplift of fees and charges only relates to those payable to Local Authorities in Wales.

Under the current schemes, operators of regulated facilities must pay to obtain an environmental permit from the Local Authority. This is done by submitting an application. If granted a permit, the operator must act in accordance with the conditions set out in the permit to protect public health and the environment, including limits on allowable emissions and ongoing monitoring requirements.  A subsistence fee is also payable by the operator for costs related to routine regulation of the permit site. The permit remains in place until it is surrendered or revoked.

The Local Authority is required to ensure that regular monitoring of permit conditions takes place, and appropriate enforcement is taken against operators who fail to comply with the requirement to obtain a permit, or any defined permit conditions.  

The EPR aim to impose no more than the appropriate regulatory burden on any activity, keeping permitting costs to a minimum, while ensuring that the environment and human health are properly protected. So far as practicable, the fees and charges schemes are intended to allow local authorities to sufficiently recover the costs of carrying out their functions under the EPR.

Action is required because Local Authorities are generally unable to adequately recover the costs they incur in carrying out their regulatory responsibility at the current rates. The Welsh Government has received representations from Local Authorities concerning increased costs of regulating industrial emissions in the face of rising inflation.

Deficits in cost recovery can result in under resourcing and loss of skills within Local Authorities, which can impact efficiency in issuing permits, to the detriment of operators. It can also result in cross subsidisation from other Local Authority budgets, meaning staff and financial resource required for permitting may be drawn from other areas, which could compromise other Local Authority services.

To comply with regulation 66 of the EPR, fees and charges should, as far as practicable, reflect the cost of regulating an industrial activity and be set at a rate that enables the regulator to recover costs.

We propose to uplift the current fees and charges rates to reflect the rate of inflation since the schemes were last updated. We have calculated that, since the last increase in 2016, an increase of 44.29% is required.

This approach has been developed in close collaboration and engagement with the Department for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (Defra) in the UK Government.

It is recognised that this may be perceived as a significant increase, however inflationary uplifts have not been applied for several years meaning current fees and charges rates are much lower than they should be.  This uplift therefore reflects inflation covering nine financial years. In comparison, NRW has continued to regularly review and update its fees and charges for Part A(1) installations.

The information captured as part of the impact assessment (see below) suggests that whilst the increased cost for individual operators is considered modest, the proposed fee increase will provide a significant uplift in income to Local Authorities which will allow them to better meet their expenditure. This would limit the need for cross-subsidisation and help to bring Local Authority permitting back into line with cost recovery requirements under the EPR.

Regulation 66 of the EPR requires that fees and charges, where practicable, must cover regulatory costs. The polluter pays principle requires those responsible for pollution to bear the costs, rather than affected individuals or the wider community. Operators will have benefited from the absence of fee increases over the years. Additionally, well-funded permitting provides tangible advantages, such as:

• encouraging best practices that improve efficiency, conserve resources, and enhance cost control;
• reducing administrative burdens and improving safety, potentially lowering insurance costs and mitigating legal risks;
• enhancing business reputation, which may boost customer confidence and profitability.

The proposed fee increases aim to improve cost recovery for Local Authorities to support better resourcing, leading to improved compliance and monitoring, providing businesses with more certainty. Quicker decision making of permit applications could also result in businesses facing fewer delays, providing them with more assurance and potentially leading to facilities being opened at a faster pace.

In undertaking this consultation, we would like to understand whether the increase would pose challenges to the continued operation of installations and whether the increase in annual cost recovery could improve the service provided by Local Authorities.

This consultation only seeks views on a proposed inflationary uplift to current (2016) fees and charges schemes in Wales. This does not consider the current approach to the content, structure or activities defined in the schemes, nor does it seek to make any operational, policy or practical changes.

However, in the longer term the Welsh Government plans to work with Local Authorities, industry, Defra and NRW to fully review the current model for setting fees and charges. This is likely to be a long and complex process. Therefore, in the short term, an uplift to the current fees and charges is proposed to bring them in line with inflation to ease the pressure on Local Authorities and help them recover costs incurred in issuing and regulating permits. This is consistent with the requirements of regulation 66 of the EPR, in relation to cost recovery by regulators.

The proposed 44.29% uplift represents what we believe to be the cumulative increase in inflation since 2016.  The precise approach, including our calculation of inflation for each financial year, is set out in ANNEX 1.

In terms of approach, we have estimated that the majority of expenditure is associated with staff resource and therefore have applied a continued split of 75% labour which has been calculated using data from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) and 25% goods which has been calculated using data from the Gross domestic Product (GDP). This is consistent with our approach in previous years.

The OBR is an independent body that analyses the UK’s public finances and provides economic and fiscal forecasts including the impact of inflation on public wages. The GDP is the total value of goods and services produced in the UK. The GDP deflator tracks the measurement of inflation in the UK and changes in GDP each quarter and is the broadest measure of domestic price movements, as it comprises the prices of all domestically produced goods and services in the economy. We have used the OBR rate and a weighted average of the GDP deflator because wages in the public sector have not risen proportionately with the private sector.

The formula used to calculate the inflationary percentage uplift for each financial year is:

(0.75*OBR rate%) + (0.25*GDP Deflator %) = Total Uplift (%)

We propose the current rates (published in 2016) should be increased by 44.29% (rounded up or down to the nearest pound). Table 1 below gives an example of the range of old rates and the proposed range of new rates for each scheme. The precise fee or charge within the proposed new range will be determined by the size and complexity of the installation, as assessed by the Local Authority regulator, and will be subject to some exceptions detailed in the schemes and in individual permits.

* The transfer fee varies depending on the risk level of the permit and whether it is a full or partial transfer, full details are set out in the draft schemes published with this consultation (Annex 2 and Annex 3).

Other fees and charges, listed in the schemes may apply and will also be subject to the proposed inflationary uplift. 

The proposal is that the new rates will come into effect from the date the new schemes are published. Where invoices for annual subsistence charges have already been issued by Local Authorities:

1. any applications for new permits, variations or transfers received on or after the date the new schemes are published should be charged at the new rate. Those applications received before this date should be charged at the previous rates;
2. the increased rate of annual subsistence fees should be applied to the full 2026/27 financial year. Where operators have already paid subsistence fees for the 2026/27 financial year, Local Authorities should aggregate the additional fees and apply them to the invoice for the 2027/28 scheme year to recover the fees owed under the new rates.

Local Authorities in Wales are responsible for the regulation of more than 850 activities. The number of new applications is historically very low so any uplift is expected to mainly impact the level of subsistence fees.

An economic impact assessment has been conducted to assess the financial impact of an inflationary uplift of EPR annual subsistence fees for Wales using data submitted by 20 out of 22 Local Authorities. This is the most recent available data as of 31 March 2024, so some small variations may have occurred since, and whilst it is not a complete data set as returns were not received from some Local Authorities, the data is considered representative.

The estimated high level cost implications for businesses and income increases for Local Authorities is detailed in Table 2 and supported by explanatory text below.

The annual uplift per activity will be determined by the type of installation and the risk rating (low, medium and high) as defined in the published Risk Methods and will fall within the range of £34 to £975; the lowest increase will apply to small simple installations/SEAs, and the higher costs will apply to medium-complex installations and SWIPs. For example, the annual subsistence rate for simple Part B activities such as operating a low-risk Stage I PVR (Petrol Vapour Recovery) will have a small increase of £34 per year from £76 to £110. The annual subsistence charge for a high-risk Part A(2) activity would increase by £975 from £2,202 to £3,177.

The range of the potential total cost impact to businesses in Wales is estimated to be £152,762 (low risk activities) - £348,387 (high risk activities). In reality, most installations regulated by Local Authorities are either low or medium risk, with only a small number falling within the high-risk range. The potential increase in annual income per Local Authority will vary between authorities, depending on the number and types of activity they regulate.

As highlighted earlier in this consultation, feedback from Local Authorities has suggested that the existing schemes may not always be clear or easy to apply, and that a more fundamental review of the way fees and charges are structured could be beneficial. We plan to engage with stakeholders from local authorities and regulated sectors when we review the Local Authority regulated EPR process. If you are interested in participating in one of these panels, please email us at EnvironmentalProtectionDivision@gov.wales, including your name, contact information and confirm whether you are an operator or regulator. We will aim to engage with as many people as possible, but it may not be possible to include everyone who registers an interest. To help us include a good cross section of stakeholders for engagement, it would be helpful if operators could also include a short summary of the facility operated, and local authorities could summarise their experience and role in EPR and the name of the specific Local Authority.

Your name:    

Organisation (if applicable):

Email / telephone number:

Your address:

Question 1

Do you agree or disagree that an uplift to Local Authority EPR fees and charges under regulation 66 of the EPR is required? If you disagree, please explain your response.

• strongly agree
• agree
• neither agree nor disagree
• disagree
• strongly disagree
   
  Free text box

Question 2

Do you agree or disagree with our proposal to apply an uplift in line with inflation?  If you disagree, please explain your response.

• strongly agree 
• agree
• neither agree nor disagree 
• disagree 
• strongly disagree 
• don’t know

Free text box

Question 3

Do you agree or disagree with the method used to calculate the uplift to fees and charges, based on inflationary changes?  If you disagree, please explain your response.

• strongly agree 
• agree 
• neither agree nor disagree 
• disagree 
• strongly disagree 
• don’t know

Free text box

Question 4 (operators only)

Do you believe the proposed inflationary uplift will have an impact on your ability to operate your permitted facility?  

• strongly agree
• agree 
• neither agree nor disagree 
• disagree 
• strongly disagree 
• don’t know

Question 5 (Local Authorities only)

Do you believe the proposed inflationary uplift will have an impact on your ability to regulate permitted facilities?  

Free text box

Question 6

What, in your opinion, would be the likely effects of the proposal on the Welsh language?  We are particularly interested in any likely effects on opportunities to use the Welsh language and on not treating the Welsh language less favourably than English.

• Do you think that there are opportunities to promote any positive effects?
• Do you think that there are opportunities to mitigate any adverse effects?  

Question 7

In your opinion, could the proposal be formulated or changed so as to:

• have positive effects or more positive effects on using the Welsh language and on not treating the Welsh language less favourably than English; or 
• mitigate any negative effects on using the Welsh language and on not treating the Welsh language less favourably than English?

Question 8

We have asked a number of specific questions. If you have any related issues which we have not specifically addressed, please use this space to report them:

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