Recommendation 3

The Committee recognises that the Ecocide Bill sits within a developing European and international legal context. The revised EU Environmental Crime Directive requires a stronger enforcement approach to the most serious environmental harm, including conduct comparable to ecocide, and while it does not mandate a standalone offence, it requires robust penalties for widespread, substantial and irreversible or long-lasting damage. The Committee notes views that the Bill would be one way of achieving alignment with the Directive and thus “keeping pace” with EU law in this area.