The Government needs to heed the warning of failing environmental targets if it is to live up to its election pledge to save Britain’s beautiful countryside and “reverse the tide of destruction of the natural environment”.
Two weeks ago, GWT stood alongside the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) in an ITV News segment lamenting the slow progress in meeting tree planting and woodland creation targets. And now, in another worrying warning signal, it seems the same is true of the Government’s long-standing wildlife targets too.
According to the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP), seven out of the ten targets laid out in the Environment Act 2021 have little likelihood of being met by 2030. The three remaining targets - clean air, reducing the harmful impact of environmental hazards, and improving the beauty of nature – are only partly on track.
This comes on the back of an ongoing catalogue of sped-up legislation designed to slash what our Prime Minister describes as "pointless gold-plating, unnecessary red-tape, well-intentioned, but fundamentally misguided, environmental regulations".
First it was the Planning & Infrastructure Bill (now Act), designed to green light development, whilst simultaneously weakening protections for nature. Then we saw the watering down of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) rules, with the PM outlining his further intent to steamroll over nature in pursuit of economic growth.
With this in mind, The Wildlife Trusts have this week released a report showing that the PM’s plan to slash environmental protections is based on “loaded” inaccuracies.
Throughout this continued series of blows, wildlife has been painted by the Government as the villain; the blocker to economic growth. The government has pulled no punches in their derision towards the natural world.
Yet, in a striking contradiction, a government report released this week warns that global biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse pose a significant threat to food, water and health systems, supply chains, and wider geopolitical stability.
The Global biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and national security report, published by Defra and quoting security and treasury sources, identifies seven key areas of concern, impacting everything from national security and prosperity, and risks including increased inter-state competition for resources.
With this lack of joined up thinking coming from our most senior policy makers, it’s no wonder that the UK is behind on environmental targets. The challenge now becomes ‘what can we do about it?’
