Calls continue for swift bricks in all new Welsh buildings
Campaigners pressing for swift bricks to be installed in all new buildings in Wales say they will continue lobbying political parties after the Welsh Government rejected a proposal debated in the Senedd.
Nearly 11,000 people signed a petition last autumn calling for legislation to require swift bricks in new developments. The proposal was debated by the Senedd on 1 October 2025.
Despite support for swifts from several Members of the Senedd, the Welsh Government rejected the proposal.
Ministers said making swift bricks mandatory could complicate calculations under the national planning requirement for net benefit for biodiversity, known as NBB, and could lead developers to see swift bricks as sufficient on their own to meet biodiversity duties.
Campaigners, working with RSPB Cymru, say that argument does not stand up to scrutiny. They argue that swift bricks are low cost, easy to install and provide benefits for multiple species, and could be required alongside wider biodiversity measures rather than instead of them.
Swift bricks typically cost around £35 per dwelling and can be fitted in around 20 minutes. Campaigners say this should not be seen as a barrier within the context of new building developments.
Following the government’s response, the Senedd’s Petitions Committee closed the petition at a meeting in November. The committee noted that political parties could choose to include the issue in their manifestos ahead of the Senedd elections in May 2026.
Campaigners say they will now focus on urging political parties and election candidates to commit to mandatory swift bricks, arguing that swift populations continue to decline and need urgent action.
They are also encouraging members of the public to raise the issue with politicians and campaigners in the run-up to the election, in an effort to keep the proposal on the agenda of the next Welsh Government.
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