Select committee: Environmental Audit Committee
Recommendation 3
Second Report - The UK's footprint on global biodiversity
Published 30 Sep 2021
Paragraph 25
Environmental Audit Committee Biodiversity and Ecosystems All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We recommend that the Government urgently prioritise the development of the indicator on overseas environmental impacts of UK consumption of key commodities, since a better understanding of the environmental impacts of imported products is crucial to meeting the Government’s objectives in this regard. The indicator ought to be prepared for release not later than the date of the next Outcome Indicator Framework update. We also recommend that the Government commit to setting an environmental footprint target using this indicator once developed.
From: Environmental Audit Committee, Second Report - The UK's footprint on global biodiversity (HC 674), paragraph 25, 30 September 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 1 February 2022 (deadline 30 November 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response sets out domestic and international action on biodiversity, agreeing with some recommendations, such as support for a more ambitious species goal, while disagreeing with others.
- On a footprint target, the government says it will not consider setting one "until it can be certain that it would be supported by a robust evidence base" and avoids unintended consequences. It anticipates the new overseas-impact indicator will appear in the next (2022) framework update.
- On taxation, it agrees it is important to consider environmental impacts of relevant tax changes, but says it does "not agree with the Committee's specific recommendation" to assess every change, citing practicality and cost.
- On forest-risk commodities, it points to Environment Act due diligence rules on illegally occupied land and to other disclosure measures, rather than a wider ban covering the finance sector.
- On public procurement, it has "committed to a consultation on strengthening the GBSF in early 2022", and says it will take the Committee's recommendation on clear definitions into account in a review.