Protecting Ancient Woodland
As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Environment, I fully understand and share concerns regarding protection for our ancient woodlands and our aged and veteran trees, which are an irreplaceable aspect of our natural environment.
It is absolutely right that the National Planning Policy Framework, sets out that “development resulting in the loss or deterioration of irreplaceable habitats (such as ancient woodland and ancient or veteran trees) should be refused, unless there are wholly exceptional reasons and a suitable compensation strategy exists”. This will ensure that these irreplaceable areas are not lost for future generations.
Local planning authorities determine planning applications that concern ancient woodland and veteran trees. In this process, Natural England are statutory consultees where an application may affect ancient woodland designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest, which accounts for 23 per cent of ancient woodlands, or where development requires an Environmental Impact Assessment.
The reformed planning system will continue to protect the places of environmental value like National Parks and Sites of Special Scientific Interest and locally defined conservation areas and wildlife sites.
I am confident that the framework and reformed planning system protect our ancient woodland and our aged and veteran trees for decades to come.
Strengthening the Environment Bill
I was honoured to be on the public bill committee for the Environment Bill, and to be able to scrutinise the legislation line-by-line to ensure that it is as strong as it possibly could be.
The Environment Bill will place environmental ambition and accountability at the heart of Government. I am pleased that legislative measures will be introduced to address the biggest environmental priorities of our age, ensuring we can deliver on the commitment to leave the natural world in a better condition than we found it.
The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) will have the power to take public bodies to an upper tribunal if there are breaches of the law. I believe it is important that the OEP is independent and fully transparent in order to effectively hold the Government to account on its targets. I am therefore pleased by assurances from Ministers that the OEP will be operationally independent from Government, including from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. This means that Ministers will not be able to set its programme of activity or influence its decision-making.
The Bill will give the Secretary of State the power to set long-term, legally binding environmental targets on air quality, water, biodiversity, and resource efficiency and waste reduction that will be reviewed every five years. There will then be a published environmental improvement plan that will also be reviewed every five years, and a progress report will be published annually. I welcome the fact that the OEP will hold this and every future Government to account on these targets and will report on the progress made to improve the natural environment.
I am also aware that if the Secretary wanted to lower or change a target, they would have to lay before Parliament, and publish, a statement as to why they had reached their decision. It would then be up to myself and other Members of Parliament to scrutinise this decision, before voting on a Statutory Instrument to change any necessary legislation.
The CEE Bill
It is a major priority of mine to urgently tackle climate change, and have championed many actions to achieve this.
But I am afraid I cannot support the passage of this bill as I do not believe the protection of the environment is its primary aim. Clause 3, the purpose of this bill, is Extinction Rebellion’s stated desire for a “Citizen’s Assembly” which would, according to clause 4, have equal authority to Parliament in being able to coerce the Secretary of State. Whilst couched in pseudo-democratic language, it is nothing more than a demand for Government to cede Extinction Rebellion the power to write this country’s environmental policy.
This is destroying democratic accountability in the UK. We have parliamentary elections so that all citizens over 18 can have their say in free and fair elections, upheld by strong electoral laws. Brushing parliament aside and replacing its environmental policy making with an unaccountable self-appointed body would deprive UK citizens of their democratic rights that the people have Britain have fought for centuries, and sometimes sacrificed their lives for.
Giving it a friendly name like Citizens Assembly does not hide the fact that this is a power grab by Extinction Rebellion that will end democracy in the UK and lead inevitably to extreme civil strife as the normal democratic safety valve is blocked. Extinction Rebellion have consistently shown complete disregard for democracy and the rule of law. Giving such people the huge swathes of power they demand is not the way to help shape our society’s approach to tackling the climate and environment emergency. It would completely lose the support of the vast majority of the population and turn them against the battle against climate change. We have to take voters with us.
As chair of the All-Party Environment Group in Parliament, I firmly believe that elected Members of Parliament are best placed to hold Government to account and help to ensure that they stay on course to meet the target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Attending the APPG for Woods & Trees
Unfortunately, due to prior commitments, I was unable to attend the APPG’s event earlier this month. However, as an environmentalist and the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Environment, planting trees and protecting woodland is extremely important to me.
I am proud of the action that has been taken in recent years to preserve and extend British woodland. I am pleased that Ministers remain committed to increasing tree planting to 30,000 hectares per year across the UK by 2025. A consultation on updating the Government’s policy for trees, woodland and forestry through the creation of a new ‘England Tree Strategy’ has now closed and I look forward to reading the Government's response. This consultation will help inform a keystone strategy which will be vital in helping to deliver the Government’s tree planting commitment.
Clean air in South Cambridgeshire
It is encouraging that air pollution has reduced significantly since 2010. Emissions of nitrogen oxides have fallen by 33 percent and are at their lowest level since records began. However, there is still more to do.
I am therefore pleased that the Government has put in place a £3.8 billion plan to improve air quality and create cleaner transport. This includes nearly a £1.5 billion investment to support the uptake of ultra-low emissions vehicles; £1.2 billion to increase cycling and walking and make our roads safer for vulnerable users; and £880 million to help local authorities develop and implement local air quality plans and to support those impacted by these plans. This funding is in addition to a further £2.5 billion to support a number of cities improve their local transport systems through the Transforming Cities Fund.
I am also pleased that at the Budget in March, the Chancellor announced a £304 million investment in capital over next two years to combat roadside pollution, enabling local authorities to take steps to reduce nitrogen dioxide emissions.
The Government’s Clean Air Strategy aims to cut air pollution and save lives, backed up by new primary legislation. The Strategy details how the UK will go further and faster than the EU in reducing exposure to particulate matter pollution. It sets out a goal to halve the number of people living in locations with concentrations of particulate matter above WHO guidelines and I am encouraged that it has been described by the WHO as 'an example for the rest of the world to follow'.
The Environment Bill builds on this Strategy and sets an ambitious, legally binding target to reduce fine particulate matter, and increase local powers to address sources of air pollution. This target will be among the most ambitious in the world and improve the quality of millions of people’s lives.
Supertankers
I share concerns about the protection and health of British waters. Our waters are a precious natural resource and they must be managed carefully. The future of the communities that earn their livelihoods from the sea and the biodiversity of the ocean depends on a balanced and considered approach to fisheries management.
The UK has 357 Marine Protected Areas covering a quarter of the country’s waters but the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy currently restricts our ability to impose more stringent protections on our seas. After the end of the end of the transition period, however, the UK will be able to introduce stronger measures so that we can manage our waters as we see fit.
The Fisheries Bill currently going through Parliament will help to protect our marine resources and develop plans to restore our fish stock back to more sustainable levels. This builds on a manifesto commitment which promised to introduce a legal commitment to fish sustainably as we become an independent coastal state once again.
I understand that the access of super trawlers to UK waters is of significant concern to local fishing communities and to those working to protect our seas. That is why I am glad that the Fisheries Bill will provide the Government with powers to licence foreign vessels in UK waters. Foreign vessels will have no automatic right of access to our waters in the future.
A fair and green recovery from the Coronavirus outbreak
These have been very difficult times for the country and while it is paramount to protect jobs and the economy, I appreciate that questions are also being asked about the way the country does business in the future.
I agree that as we recover from Covid-19, the Government needs to deliver an economy which is stronger, greener, more sustainable and more resilient. By doing this, we will protect jobs and add many more employment opportunities. I was therefore pleased that, on 8 June, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy announced a Green Recovery working group, one of five new ‘recovery roundtables’ bringing together businesses, business representative groups and leading academics, to unleash Britain’s growth potential and help the economy recover from the pandemic. This group will explore how to capture the economic growth opportunities from the shift to net zero emissions.
Work on achieving this is already underway and, in the Chancellor's Summer Statement, I was pleased that he announced a £3 billion green investment package that could help support around 140,000 green jobs and upgrade buildings and reduce emissions. To pay for green improvements, including loft, wall and floor insultation, homeowners and landlords in England will be able to apply for vouchers from a £2 billion Green Homes Grant scheme this year which could save some households hundreds of pounds a year on their energy bills while creating thousands of jobs for tradespeople. Finally, the Chancellor also announced a £1 billion programme aimed to make public buildings, including schools and hospitals, greener, helping the UK meet its ambitions of achieving net zero by 2050.
The UK has played a world-leading role in tackling climate change and the transition to Clean Growth, with the UK being the first country to legislate to eliminate our contribution to climate change by 2050, and the fastest in the G20 to cut emissions. Since 1990, the UK has cut emissions by more than 40 per cent while growing the economy by more than two thirds, and we are a world-leader in offshore wind.
At the same time, the Environment Bill is being introduced to protect and improve the environment for future generations, enshrining in law environmental principles and legally-binding targets, and the first progress report of the Government’s ambitious 25 Year Environment Plan found that 90 per cent of the priority actions have been delivered or are on track for delivery.
Reducing carbon emissions and tackling climate change will continue to be priorities for me and my Ministerial colleagues.
Environment Bill
As Chairman for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Environment, this bill being airtight and ensuring that our planet is protected for future generations is of the upmost importance to me and I am working closely with my colleagues on both sides of the House to ensure that it is.
I am told that the Government is currently reflecting on concerns about the Bill raised during Committee Stage, as well as those raised by colleagues and interested parties. I look forward to the Bill coming back to the House, at which point I will have the opportunity to vote on any amendments brought forward there.
As set out in the 25 Year Plan to Improve the Environment, the decision to leave the European Union has created an historic opportunity to deliver a Green Brexit, where environmental standards are not only maintained but enhanced.
I am pleased that the Bill will ensure the environment is at the heart of all policy making and that this and future governments are held to account if they fail to uphold their environmental duties. These will include meeting net-zero by 2050, as well as wider long-term legally binding targets on biodiversity, air quality, water, and resource and waste efficiency which will be established under the Bill.
The Office for Environmental Protection, a new, world-leading independent regulator, will be established in statute to scrutinise environmental policy and law, investigate complaints and take enforcement action when necessary. This will ensure we succeed in leaving the environment in a better condition than we found it. The Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan will also be placed on a statutory footing, and a set of environmental principles will be introduced that will be used to guide future government policy making.
Outside the EU Britain can develop global gold standard environmental policies. Having left the Common Agricultural Policy we can use public money for public goods, rewarding environmentally responsible land use. By leaving the Common Fisheries Policy we will be able to grant access and allocate quotas based on sustainability, allowing us to pursue the highest standards in marine conservation.
Air Quality Standards
Poor air quality is the greatest environmental risk to our health. Our air is now cleaner than at any point since the industrial revolution, but there is more work to be done if we are to protect the health of our nation.
The Government’s Clean Air Strategy aims to cut air pollution and save lives, backed up by new primary legislation. The Strategy details how the UK will go further and faster than the EU in reducing exposure to particulate matter pollution. It sets out a goal to halve the number of people living in locations with concentrations of particulate matter above WHO guidelines, legislate to give councils more powers to improve air quality and ensure only the cleanest domestic fuels and stoves can be sold. I am encouraged that it has been described by the WHO as 'an example for the rest of the world to follow'.
The Environment Bill will build on this Strategy, and highlight our drive to go further to clean up our air and fight air pollution so children and young people can live longer healthier lives. The Bill set an ambitious, legally-binding target to reduce fine particulate matter, and increase local powers to address sources of air pollution, enabling local authorities to work with families to cut harmful pollution from domestic burning by using cleaner fuels. This target will be among the most ambitious in the world and improve the quality of millions of people’s lives.
This action supplements the £3.5 billion investment into air quality and cleaner transport.
Agriculture Bill & Animal Welfare
The UK has some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world and it is right for us to cement our status as a global leader by continuing to raise the bar. All animals should be subject to the highest possible welfare standards.
Leaving the EU creates a once in a generation opportunity to design a domestic agricultural policy that will stand the test of time. We can bring in innovative new ideas to support investment in healthy, sustainable British food production and do much better for farming, the environment and animal welfare.
The Government has been clear it will not compromise the high quality of British food or agricultural standards in any free trading relationship and is committed to maintaining high standards on animal welfare and food safety now that the UK has left the EU. The Animal and Plant Health Agency takes potential breaches of animal welfare legislation and codes very seriously and investigates all allegations. Where welfare regulations are breached, appropriate action will always be taken.
Biodiversity in relation to development
I am pleased that the Environment Bill will enshrine biodiversity net gain into law, meaning the delivery of much-needed infrastructure and housing will not come at the expense of vital biodiversity.
Biodiversity net gain will require developers to ensure habitats for wildlife are enhanced, with a 10 per cent increase in habitat compared with the pre-development baseline. Developers will have to assess the type of habitat and its condition before submitting plans, and then demonstrate how they are improving biodiversity such as through creating green corridors, planting more trees, or forming local nature spaces
Green improvements on site would be encouraged, but in circumstances where they are not possible, developers will need to pay for habitat creation or improvement elsewhere. The cost and approach to this means of compensation formed part of the recent consultation, which the Government has now responded to. In recognition of respondents’ preference for the local collection and spending of net gain compensation, the Government will not introduce a new tariff on loss of biodiversity. Instead, it will be made easier for local authorities, landowners and organisations to set up habitat compensation schemes locally where they wish to do so.
I am encouraged that this new approach will not only improve habitats for wildlife and create healthier places to live and work but is central to ambitions to leave the environment in a better state for future generations.
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