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- Britain’s greatest opportunity to break away from Brussels is in its natural environment.
- Defra was once a Whitehall backwater that rubber stamped EU directives. It is now one the most innovative departments within government
- We are now free from the EU’s widely criticized Common Agricultural Policy and can take a new approach
Britain is no longer a green and pleasant country. Nearly half of all species are in long-term decline, and one in six are at risk of extinction. The law commits the government to halting the decline of nature by 2030. However, this will require bold reforms to the way we manage our land and produce food, taking full advantage of the powers reverted from Brussels.
In a historic speech, Michael Gove, then Environment Secretary, reflected on the vote to leave Europe. He identified the natural environment as an area where Britain has the greatest chance to move away from Brussels and make things better.
His desire to make the most of this unfrozen moment was picked up by his successors. The results have been stunning: new legislation for agriculture and fisheries, a new system to pay farmers, and a new approach in biosciences regulation, starting with gene editing.
Freed from the EU’s much maligned Common Agricultural Policy, we are taking a different approach to how we support farmers, known as the Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS). Farmers will no longer be paid for the amount of land they have, but rather for providing environmental services like cleaner air or water. Taxpayer cash can be used to support sustainable food production and restoration of natural assets like soils, hedgerows, and other services that provide better value for money.
Next month, the next tranche of post Brexit reform will be revealed. The Government will open a consultation on the EU’s habitat regulations. This will allow us to tailor our approach to British species and habitats. Ministers will also unveil the National Food Strategy White Paper in response to Henry Dimbleby’s comprehensive review of our food system from farm to fork.
Defra was once a backwater of Whitehall that merely complied with EU directives and implemented Brussels-imposed agricultural and fisheries policies. Defra has since become one of the most innovative, transformative departments within government. George Eustice and his team are determined to reap the benefits of Brexit for Britain’s farmers, fishers and nature-loving public.
But the task is immense and we need to consider what additional steps are necessary to reach our environmental goals. That’s why the Conservative Environment Network (CEN) has published an essay collection with contributions from 12 Conservative MPs and peers. Green Albion sets out a blueprint to restore nature and tackle climate change while strengthening the nation’s food security.
These goals are not mutually exclusive, as Victoria Prentis MP, Farming minister, states at the beginning. It is possible, as she explains, to ‘maintain and even increase’ our food security while providing farmers and landowners with the option to restore habitats on areas of less productive land. These goals are inseparable because of the greatest threat to domestic food production: climate change, soil degradation and poor water quality. That’s why the new rural payments system is so important.
But as CEN’s collection sets out, there is more the Government could do to put nature into recovery. Siobhan Bailey MP calls for the UK Infrastructure Bank’s inclusion of nature in its remit. This will enable private sector investment in wetland restoration and create vibrant habitats while protecting communities from rising waters and flooding.
Robert Largan MP calls to ban the use of peat in professional horticulture by 2025 to stop the destruction of the greatest terrestrial carbon store.
Michael Fabricant MP, a member of the House of Commons, calls for tighter restrictions on import seeds and saplings after Brexit to ensure that the Government’s race to meet its target to triple tree-planting rates by 2024 does not cause more harm than good. This will prevent the UK from importing another disaster like ash death, which could kill 99% and cost us 15 million. He also calls on the UK to create a new habitat classification, and provide legal protection for the remnants of western British temperate rainforest, which is an endangered and globally important habitat.
The UK has the potential to lead the fourth agriculture revolution, which is based AI, robotics, and precision technologies. This will allow productivity improvements without causing any environmental harm. Jerome Mayhew MP urges Ministers to consider a carbon price, with a border adjustment, to incentivise this low-carbon and biodiversity-encouraging farming and to prevent food imports undercutting sustainable British farmers.
We must also use our regulatory autonomy beyond the EU. Henry Dimbleby’s independent national food policy review recommended that the UK use its comparative advantages in cell- or lab-grown meat to reduce its land footprint.
Jonathan Djanogly MP responds this clarion cry by outlining the steps that ministers need to take to encourage a world-beating cell meat industry. He asks for the Government’s support in removing EU regulations and increasing research and development funding to promote food innovation. A vibrant cellular meat industry could add up to 2 billion to the UK’s GDP by 2030 and provide employment opportunities for up to 16,500 people.
We now have an opportunity to start a program of renewal, given the damage caused to our natural environment by EU policies that failed. As Danny Kruger Put it!At the recent CEN conference, restoration was the defining characteristic of modern conservatism. Let’s hope the Government is listening.
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James Cullimore manages the Senior Nature Programme at the Conservative Environment Network.
Columns are the author’s opinion and may not reflect the views of CapX.
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