Nature will be at the centre of a green
recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, Environment Secretary
will pledge today in a speech delivered to some of
the biggest environmental groups in the country.
The Environment Secretary will set out the
government’s ambitious plans to deliver both for people and
nature after the UK’s exit from the European Union, and how we
will achieve faster economic growth whilst enhancing our
environment.
In his speech, Environment Secretary is expected to say:
“The first thing to say is that leaving the EU
table does not mean retreating from our role in the world. In
fact it means we should redouble our efforts globally. Long
before we joined the EU, the UK was a driving force in
establishing other international conventions to help our natural
environment.
“On my farm and in government, I have felt and
heard and seen the everyday frustration of EU regulation at close
quarters – and it’s no coincidence that nature has declined under
the inflexible rule of the EU directives – not least the
CAP.
“EU environmental law always has good
intentions but there are negative consequences to attempting to
legislate for these matters at a supranational level. It tends to
lead to a culture of perpetual legal jeopardy where national
governments become reluctant to try new things or make new
commitments for fear of irreversible and unpredictable legal
risks. This in turn creates a culture where there are too many
lawyers and not enough scientists and too many reports but not
enough action.
“When I have meetings to discuss policy
challenges I want to see more ecologists. Our approach must
create the space for more experimentation and innovation.”
Following the announcement by the Prime
Minister for Britain to ‘build build build’ to fuel the country’s
economic recovery, the Secretary of State will reassure the
audience that we are focused on a green recovery, building back
Britain in an environmentally sustainable way that allows us to
focus on the protections that matter most for the species and
habitats affected.
Announcing a consultation which will include a
new method for Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), the
Secretary of State will say:
“Nature rightly deserves protection, so if we
are to protect species and habitats and also deliver biodiversity
net gain, we need to properly understand the science to inform
crucial decisions. We should ask ourselves, for example, whether
the current environmental impact assessment processes are as
effective or efficient as they could be.
“There is scope to consolidate and simplify
the process. We can set out which habitats and species will
always be off-limits, so everyone knows where they stand. And we
can add to that list where we want better protection for species
that are characteristic of our country and critical to our
ecosystems that EU ignored – things like veteran trees, ancient
woodland, watervoles, red squirrels, adders, and pine
martens.”
Putting nature at the heart of our green
recovery from the pandemic, the Secretary of State will also
announce an innovative £4million pilot for ‘green prescribing’.If
successful, this will be scaled up across the country, making
full use of our National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural
Beauty, so we can ease the burden on our whole NHS. We know that
people benefit both physically and mentally from being in nature.
These pilots will help us to understand how best to connect
people, especially those hit hardest by Covid-19, with the
beautiful British countryside.
The Secretary of State will speak live at the
Green Alliance panel event at 10.00am.
