Source · Select Committees · Environmental Audit Committee
Recommendation 7
7
Paragraph: 62
We recommend that the Government introduce mechanisms to ensure that each Government department and non-departmental...
Recommendation
We recommend that the Government introduce mechanisms to ensure that each Government department and non-departmental public body is required, by their policies and actions, to contribute to reaching the targets set out above. The Office for Environmental Protection should be responsible for ensuring their enforcement.
Paragraph Reference:
62
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
Tackling the long-term decline of nature will be challenging but through our requirement to set a new species abundance target we are committing ourselves to that objective. A domestic 2030 species target will not only benefit our species but the actions necessary will also help to drive wider environmental improvements. Government has an explicit duty to ensure that the 2030 species abundance target is met, alongside our wider suite of legally binding Environment Bill targets which will be brought forward by 31 October 2022; including at least one additional target related to biodiversity. The Bill’s statutory cycle of monitoring, planning and reporting ensures that government will take early, regular steps to achieve its targets, and is held to account with regular scrutiny from the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) and Parliament.