Rt. Hon. George Eustice

Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

DEFRA

11th May 2022

Dear George,

I am writing to you regarding your department’s consultation on the Nature Recovery Green Paper: Protected Sites and Species.

As you know, the world is in the midst of a climate and ecological emergency, with the UN warning that one million species are at risk of extinction and the WWF reporting that wildlife populations have fallen by 68 percent since 1970. Domestically, the picture is equally concerning with over 40 percent of species seeing a decline in their populations and 15 percent of species now threatened with extinction. Climate change, urbanisation, pollution, poor woodland management and intensive agriculture are all putting pressure on species and collectively driving biodiversity loss.

I welcome the Government’s commitments to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030, which I campaigned to be enshrined in the Environment Act, and to protect 30 percent of land and sea for nature by 2030. However, I am concerned that the proposals in the consultation fall short of what is needed to deliver these outcomes, and that the focus on simplifying process risks weakening protections for nature, rather than delivering stronger protection for sites and species. I am particularly concerned about proposals to ‘fundamentally change’ the Habitats Regulations assessments, and firmly believe that these should be retained and applied to all protected sites.

Far more needs to be done genuinely to put nature on a path to recovery, and I know that the Green Party of England and Wales are submitting a more comprehensive response to the consultation.

Moreover, in addition to protecting our precious natural world, it is also essential that we tackle the clear inequality in access to nature.   There is increasing concern that people from black and ethnic minority backgrounds are twice as likely to live in neighbourhoods without access to nature-rich spaces and 1 in 3 people in England do not have access to nature-rich spaces near their homes. When it comes to our wilder, richer landscapes, the picture is even starker with People of Colour making up only 1% of visitors to national parks, despite making up 13 percent of the population. It is essential that urgent steps are taken to close this gap and ensure that every community is able to have easy access to nature.

There is a growing body of evidence demonstrating the importance of this for physical and mental health, with a 2019 study finding that spending at least 120 minutes in nature a week was associated with positive health and wellbeing, in comparison to no contact with nature. The importance of access to nature was particularly highlighted during the Covid-19 pandemic when the use of parks and public green spaces increased substantially. The People and Nature Survey for England, which sought to understand the perspectives of children and young people in relation to nature during Covid-19, found than eight in ten of surveyed children said that being in nature made them very happy, and that seventy percent wanted to spend more time outdoors with friends in the future.

I therefore believe that the Government should also bring forward proposals to improve access to nature including, for example, extending the Right to Roam. The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 only provides legal access to 8% per cent of English land. Furthermore, the public can only access 3 per cent of rivers in England and Wales,  which is provided by voluntary agreements between landowners and for example, kayakers or anglers, rather than legislation.

Extending the Right to Roam and amending the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 to include rivers, woods, more grasslands and Green Belt land would have enormous benefits for individuals and wider society. It would improve the public’s connection to nature and tackle racial and social inequalities in access to green space. And it would also help to improve public health and wellbeing, thereby reducing pressure on the National Health Service and delivering on the Government’s commitment in the 25 Year Environment Plan to open up the mental and physical health benefits of the natural world.

There is also a growing consensus that greater public access to our countryside would benefit nature by exposing the environmental destruction which has previously been hidden. As you know, there has been a considerable increase recently in the numbers of people taking up water-based activities such as canoeing, stand-up paddleboarding, and open water or wild swimming. It is therefore unsurprising that there has been public outrage at the levels of pollution in our waterways and sewage discharges by water companies. Greater access has the potential to mobilise the public in working to protect and restore nature, and send a positive signal ahead of COP15 in Kunming.

Finally, you will know the Right to Roam has long existed as a common right in Scotland and was only recently codified into law through the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 which introduced new rights of responsible public access to land and the countryside. Crucially, the Right to Roam is accompanied with responsibilities, laid out in the Scottish Outdoor Access Code which is clear that the public must respect the interests of others, care for the environment and take responsibility for their own actions. I firmly believe that rights and responsibilities go hand in hand and that there must therefore be better public information and greater promotion of the Countryside Code, which should be taught in all schools from a young age. I am particularly concerned that the Government has failed to properly invest in education on the Countryside Code in recent years.

I hope you will consider the need for improve access to nature, including through proposals like extending the Right to Roam, and look forward to continuing to engage on these issues.

Best wishes, Caroline