Tories plan to scrap Natural England and Environment Agency in 'most ambitious deregulation project in a generation'

From the Newshound archive · first published 5 October 2026.

Shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith is set to announce a "bonfire" of red tape at the Conservative annual conference in Birmingham on Monday, pledging to dismantle both Natural England and the Environment Agency, remove net zero requirements from housebuilding regulations, and press forward with Heathrow expansion. Griffith told broadcasters the package amounts to the most ambitious deregulation drive in a generation and could cut the price of a new-build home by an estimated £50,000.

Griffith confirmed that any future Conservative budget would be "tax-cutting" and that he and Kemi Badenoch "ultimately" want to abolish inheritance tax entirely, subject to available funding.

The Conservatives are also pledging to eliminate the £100,000 salary threshold above which free childcare is withdrawn, arguing the current cliff edge penalises GPs, deputy headteachers and senior police officers.

Griffith acknowledged the party is in "a very difficult situation" and will not be in a position to fulfil every commitment from day one, as the Conservatives work to recover from their worst ever election defeat in 2024.