Key Facts

• Amendment adds 'or enhancing' after 'conserving' in section 41(1) of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.
• The amendment seeks to embed biodiversity considerations into public authorities' functions across England.
• Public authorities must consider local nature recovery strategies, species conservation strategies, and protected site strategies when considering biodiversity.
• The planning White Paper's growth category will not conduct detailed environmental assessments.
• Between 2013 and 2018, 46% of conservation priority species in England declined.
• District licensing for great crested newts has been criticized for lack of proven effectiveness.
• Greener UK raised legal concerns about the wording of clauses regarding habitat protection priorities.
• Natural England’s grant in aid budget has declined by 49% in the last six years.
• 46% of conservation priority species in England declined between 2013 and 2018.
• Greener UK reports suggest current strategies may be undermined by poor enforcement, potentially leading to faster development with lower standards.
• Natural England launched a project about 10 days ago focusing on nature recovery networks.
• The Environment Bill includes net biodiversity reporting requirements.
• Five pilot schemes are launched across the country to assess strategies for protected sites.
• South Humber Gateway project secured funding for 275 hectares of new wet grassland habitat, benefiting up to 175,000 birds.
• Amendment 142 aims to make it a requirement that all public authorities and persons or bodies exercising functions of a public nature have to produce biodiversity reports.
• Amendment 186 would add Natural England and the Environment Agency to the list of designated authorities required to publish biodiversity reports.
• The Minister, Rebecca Pow, argues that broadening the duty to report may not be appropriate for small public authorities with limited resources.
• The government's programme will deliver biodiversity enhancement and public goods including clean water, carbon capture, and climate change mitigation.
• Public authorities must report every five years on how measures improve nature.
• Regulations and guidance allow for greater flexibility in reporting.
• The debate is about whether 'may' or 'must' should be used in clause 94 regarding biodiversity reports.
• George Howarth intervenes to bring the conversation back to the main issues of the amendment rather than debating the linguistic nuances.
• Five pilot projects are already underway for local nature recovery strategies.
• The work on these pilots will provide lessons that will help in the quick roll-out of further strategies.
• The Government intends to produce regulations swiftly following Royal Assent.
• The discussion centres on amending clause 97 to ensure clearer links between local nature recovery strategies and national environmental targets.
• Amendment 143 aims to underline the necessity of linking strategy content with target-setting frameworks established by the Bill.
• George Howarth's comment reflects a light-hearted view on the timing of discussions around strengthening environmental legislation.
• Local nature recovery strategies are described as a powerful tool for strategic planning of nature's recovery.
• The minister supports running pilot plans, which are currently underway.
• There is an emphasis on flexibility and learning from best practices during these pilot stages.
• The amendment aims to ensure local nature recovery strategies consider ecological coherence.
• Statutory guidance will be published to detail what each strategy must contain.
• A national partnership was launched by Natural England earlier this month to support the establishment of the nature recovery network.