WIREDGOV

The Government has accepted techUK's call for data centres to be given the ability to 'opt-in' to the NSIP regime.

On 15 October 2025, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning, Matthew Pennycook MP, laid before Parliament the draft amendment to the Infrastructure Planning (Business or Commercial Projects) Regulations 2013. This amendment proposes to formally recognise data centres as eligible for consideration under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) consenting regime, under Section 35 of the Planning Act 2008.

Under this proposal, developers may make a request to the Secretary of State for their data centre projects to be directed into the NSIP process, provided the Secretary of State considers the project to be of national significance and in compliance with statutory criteria. This will be an ‘opt-in’ process, meaning developers can choose to apply for NSIP status rather than being automatically included.

To support this change, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) will develop a National Policy Statement (NPS) for data centres. This will set out the national policy framework, including thresholds, parameters, and other relevant factors thresholds to guide NSIP eligibility and approvals.

If approved by Parliament, the new regulations are expected to come into force later this year or early next.

Why this matters

Amendments to the Bill will offer a more efficient and nationally coordinated route for the delivery of strategic data centre infrastructure. Inclusion of data centres in the NSIP regime will support their timely construction, enabling the delivery of infrastructure that underpins a vast range of technologies and essential functions of modern life, from advanced AI workloads to everyday business IT systems like CRM platforms.

Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) are large-scale infrastructure projects - such as those in energy, transport, water, and waste - that are considered vital to the UK’s national interest. These projects go through a dedicated planning process under the Planning Act 2008, which streamlines approval by replacing multiple consents with a single Development Consent Order (DCO).

Applications for DCOs are submitted to the Planning Inspectorate. Final decisions are made by the relevant Secretary of State, rather than local planning authorities.

The upcoming Infrastructure and Planning Bill will further strengthen the NSIP regime by simplifying consultation requirements and reducing the number of legal challenge that can be made (from three to one), helping to accelerate project delivery timelines.

techUK’s position

techUK has consistently advocated for data centres to be recognised as NSIPs, while emphasising the importance of developers retaining a choice about whether to use the NSIP route or not. We therefore welcome the government’s proposed amendments, which reflect this position.

We will continue to work closely with our members to understand which types of projects may be eligible and how best to engage with the new process.