Ministers tell Environment Agency to wave planning applications through

Exclusive: Officials say they have been told to do as little as legally possible to prevent approvals for housebuilding in England

The Environment Agency has been told by ministers to wave through planning applications in England with minimal resistance as part of a regulatory shakeup designed to increase economic growth and plug the government's financial hole.

Officials at the agency say they have been told to do as little as legally possible to prevent housing applications from being approved and the government has drafted in senior advisers from the housing department to speed up the process.