Government response to the Environment and Climate Change Committee report 'An extraordinary challenge: Restoring 30 per cent of our land and sea by 2030'

This is the government's response, published 8 November 2023.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government says it is "committed to protect 30% of land and of sea by 2030" and intends to "set out how terrestrial sites will be included by the end of the year", while declining some of the Committee's proposals on monitoring duties and the six-year cycle.

• On protected sites, it confirms its commitment to restore 75% of SSSIs to favourable condition by 2042, with an interim target that by January 2028 all SSSIs will have an up-to-date condition assessment.
• On the proposed statutory monitoring duty for Natural England, it states: "We do not consider it necessary to add further statutory duties in this regard."
• On six-yearly SSSI monitoring, it notes that JNCC standards "have moved away from the 6 yearly cycle to a risk-based process", and Natural England is developing a long-term, prioritised programme.
• It intends to publish its response on implementing the Landscapes Review "in due course", and to publish the UK National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan and a summary of national targets "by summer 2024".

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error