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Why the Environment Bill must come back with a bang not a whimper

Posted on 29 October, 2020 by Ruth Chambers Leave a comment

After a lengthy delay of more than six months, the Environment Bill will make a welcome return to parliament on 3 November. It will pick up where it left off with a committee of MPs going through the bill in detail and discussing where changes and clarifications are needed. During its absence we have faced major challenges, the resurgence of coronavirus and significant new evidence of the perilous state of nature at home and across the planet.

Natural environment

Environment Bill must not undermine environmental accountability

Posted on 28 October, 2020 by Ruth Chambers 3 comments

It is good news that the Environment Bill will resume its parliamentary journey on 3 November after a delay of more than six months. The not-so-good news is that the government has proposed some amendments to the Bill (for example, see NC24 on page 50) which would weaken the already precarious independence of the new green watchdog, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP).

Policy

What will the Brexit endgame mean for the environment?

Posted on 20 October, 2020 by Sarah Williams Leave a comment

The pandemic seems to have warped our sense of time. It was early spring and now, suddenly, it’s autumn. But Brexit has provided a strange bit of consistency throughout the period. After a month’s pause, the EU and UK have continued to negotiate their future relationship which is hardly surprising given the looming deadline. While the UK government could have requested an extension, it chose not to do so and the transition period will end on 31 December.

Setting the right targets can help save the planet

Posted on 7 October, 2020 by Ruth Chambers Leave a comment

This post is by Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link, Ruth Chambers, senior parliamentary affairs associate at Greener UK and Pip Goodwin, senior policy officer at the RSPB.

There is targets fatigue in the air. When goals are set and missed, or goalposts are moved, there’s an understandable cynicism about their value.

Natural environment

The mystery of the vanished Environment Bill

Posted on 5 October, 2020 by Ruth Chambers One comment

Today marks 200 days since the Environment Bill was last seen in parliament.

The passage of the bill was paused on Thursday 19 March due to the coronavirus outbreak. Of course, this was absolutely the right decision as the government focused its energies on dealing with the pandemic. But, as parliamentary business resumed in early summer we expected to see the bill, which ministers have described as a ‘flagship’, return quickly. Its continued absence is, therefore, a mystery and casts a lengthening shadow of doubt on the government’s environmental credentials.

The new England Tree Strategy has to be about more than numbers

Posted on 11 September, 2020 by Green Alliance blog Leave a comment

This post is by Andrew Allen, lead policy advocate – land use at the Woodland Trust and John Deakin head of trees and woodlands at the National Trust.

The new England Tree Strategy, due later this year, must be more than a plan for planting bark covered carbon absorbing machines. Our trees and woods need a bold vision to expand, connect, restore and protect them so they are also good for nature, climate and people.

Natural environment

Why the Chair of the Office for Environmental Protection will have their work cut out

Posted on 11 August, 2020 by Ruth Chambers 2 comments

The government has launched a recruitment campaign for the inaugural chair of the new independent environment watchdog, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP). This is without a doubt one of the most exciting jobs around in both the environmental and regulatory worlds and a significant milestone in the journey towards a new domestic environmental governance system. Read more

Political leadership

The importance of collaboration and legal expertise in the genesis of the Environment Bill

Posted on 24 July, 2020 by Green Alliance blog Leave a comment

This post is by Professor Maria Lee, co-director of the Centre for Law and the Environment at UCL, and Dr Carolyn Abbot, Senior Lecturer in law at the University of Manchester. Maria has been a member of the Greener UK Brexit Scenarios Group.

There are important stories to be told about the shaping of the Brexit debate by the environmental NGO community, and about the place of legal expertise in that debate. We have been exploring these stories Read more

Why would England ditch its recycling targets when waste is such a problem?

Posted on 23 July, 2020 by Libby Peake 2 comments

Back in March 2018, the government won kudos for reversing its opposition to tough recycling targets included in the EU’s Circular Economy Package. “I want the UK to lead the way in driving global resource efficiency and that’s why, as well as backing the EU’s Circular Economy Package, we have committed to publishing a new resources and waste strategy in 2018,” then Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey said. Read more

Reactions to the speech by Environment Secretary George Eustice

Posted on 21 July, 2020 by Green Alliance blog 2 comments

On Monday 20 July, Green Alliance hosted online the first major speech on the environment by the Rt Hon George Eustice MP, Defra secretary of state. You can read the full speech, watch the event on our YouTube channel or listen to the highlights on our podcast.

Here are reactions to what he said, on funding, the Environment Bill, trade and the UK’s global role, from leading environmental campaigners: Read more

Political leadership

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