Select committee: Environmental Audit Committee
Conclusion 18
Second Report - The UK's footprint on global biodiversity
Published 30 Sep 2021
Paragraph 74
Environmental Audit Committee Biodiversity and Ecosystems All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The UK Overseas Territories are home to 94 per cent of British endemic species and 90 per cent of the biodiversity for which the UK Government has responsibility. The territories are also of global importance given the large proportion of the world’s albatross and penguin species found in these territories. Given this, environmental preservation and the improvement of these territories must be a priority for the UK Government. We welcome the impressive global leadership the UK has demonstrated through the establishment of the Blue Belt Programme, and the Global Ocean Alliance.
From: Environmental Audit Committee, Second Report - The UK's footprint on global biodiversity (HC 674), paragraph 74, 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.