On Thursday 17 July King Charles delivered the King’s Speech, setting out the new Labour Government’s priorities for the months ahead. We take a look at how getting the policies right will benefit people and wildlife.
The King’s Speech sets out the government’s priorities for the coming months, including the draft laws that the new UK Government plans to introduce.
Following the election of the new government, we set out five key actions that we believe they need to take for nature to recover and thrive. To tackle the nature and climate crisis, we need to make sure that the proposed policies and laws have a nature-first approach at their heart. Doing so will bring benefits for people and wildlife. Below we take a look at three key elements of the Government’s agenda outlined in the King’s Speech that are essential to get right.
This aims to get Britain building and includes reforming the planning system to speed up the delivery of high-quality infrastructure and much-needed housing. We know that it is entirely possible to deliver both for people and nature – as long as it is done in the right way.
We need to enable development to occur in the right locations and be delivered in the right way. This means nature-friendly development that avoids significant harm to nature and actively supports its recovery. We need new housing communities where green space and nature are integral to the design, and where residents can access and enjoy amazing wildlife close at hand.
Good planning is essential to meet our nature and climate targets, and we support the UK Government’s unwavering commitment to the environment and its ambition to deliver for both the economy and nature. We look forward to helping make this happen.
The Energy Independence Bill includes the creation of GB Energy, a new publicly owned energy company that will own, manage and operate clean power projects across the UK. We believe that to be really innovative, it must have biodiversity criteria, such as plans to protect or support wildlife, in its investment framework from the start.
Embedding nature from the outset would benefit the climate by reducing costly delays to energy infrastructure. It would ensure that the most special places for wildlife were avoided and that any compensation required was built into plans from the start. It would create wider gains for society and the economy too, such as by helping to deliver a more sustainable wildlife-rich future.
The inclusion of biodiversity criteria will ensure that public funds are used as efficiently as possible to address the nature and climate crisis, and it will also provide an incentive for developers to support nature in their plans. Furthermore, it is likely to increase public confidence in new renewable projects by alleviating anxieties about potential impacts on nature.
This will be central to the UK Government’s mission to deliver growth and a greener economy. However, to do this we believe that the New National Wealth Fund must include a more holistic definition of national wealth, which includes our natural capital. These are our natural resources such as air, water, soil, habitats and ecosystems that make human life possible.
The Fund should also be able to invest in natural infrastructure such as our waterways and woodlands. Investing in nature is pivotal to tackling the nature and climate crisis. For example, when we invest in restoring the UK's peatlands, we are helping to secure special places for wildlife that also help in the fight against climate change.
Getting these laws right for nature will deliver better results for people and wildlife. And it will save us time and money in the long run. Without a healthy functioning environment, we can’t have a healthy functioning economy. As an example, a loss of pollinating insects can affect the success of crops which in turn can affect food availability and the price of food.
As parliament debates these laws in the coming months, we need to ensure that nature is firmly on the agenda.
There is also much that can be done to tackle the nature and climate crisis that does not require new laws. The UK Government is responsible for making sure that we meet legal commitments to halt the loss of wildlife and protect 30% of our lands and seas by 2030. That’s just six years away which makes it vital for the government to act quickly.
The good news is that the science says we’ve still got enough time to turn things around. We know what will work and help us reach those targets, and we already work with businesses, farmers, landowners, house builders, local communities and many, many others to deliver solutions for people and wildlife.
We’re here and ready to help deliver a shared world where all people and nature can thrive.
