Policy Resource: What does thegovernment's 'flagship'Environment Bill meanfor the climate andenvironment?

@HopeFTFuture @hopeforthefuture_uk Hope for the Future

What is the Environment Bill?The Environment Bill is the government's flagship piece of environmentallegislation, which is currently working its way through Parliament. It'sdirectly linked to Brexit, with the government required to put in placeenvironmental protections which were previously upheld by the EU. It aimsto help achieve the government’s long-term objective for “this to be the firstgeneration to leave the environment in a better state than that in which weinherited it” and its manifesto pledge to “protect and restore our naturalenvironment after leaving the EU”. The bill's scope covers all aspects of theenvironment, not just those linked to climate change, so it's important to beaware of the full contents of this important piece of legislation.

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October 2020

Why is it important?If you're looking to meet or contact your MP about climate change it'spossible you'll be raising issues which are impacted by this bill. It's alsolikely that MPs, particularly Conservatives, will point to the EnvironmentBill as evidence of the government's commitment to the environment. So,although the bill may seem slightly technical, it's still important to havesome understanding of its strengths and weaknesses.

Background Much of the UK's current environmental law comes from the EU, withcompliance policed by the EU, mainly the European Commission. In 2018,for example, the UK was taken to Europe's highest court by theCommission over breaches of air pollution targets, with the Court havinghad the power to impose multimillion euro fines. As the UK leaves the EU,this bill legislates for a UK based replacement which can undertake thisrole. It also sets out the principles that will guide environmental policy-making and legislation.

So what exactly is in the bill?According to the government, the Environment Bill comprises two'thematic halves'. The first half sets out a legal framework forenvironmental governance, including a new enforcement body toreplacement the European court. The second half makes provision forspecific improvements to the environment, including measures on wasteand resource efficiency, air quality and environmental recall, water, natureand biodiversity, and conservation covenants.

Office of Environmental ProtectionOne of the most interesting aspects of the bill is the creation of the newwatchdog to monitor compliance with environmental laws. This Office ofEnvironmental Protection (OEP) will be a new regulator holding thegovernment and other public bodies to account, including through thecourts if this is deemed necessary. It will have the ability to launchindependent investigations to identify breaches of environmental law.Although it won't be able to issue fines itself, it may launch cases whichend with courts issuing fines. The government state that the OEP will havea free-to-use complaints system where "anyone who believes that a publicbody is not adhering to environmental protection regulations can approachthe OEP, confident in the knowledge that it will independently investigate,offer advice and take enforcement action when necessary".

It will have around 120 staff and be based in Bristol and the governmentare currently recruiting for a Chair. So, with this Office forming a key partof future environmental governance, it's likely we'll be hearing muchmore about it over the coming years. It's unclear how exactly its workwill correspond with the existing Committee on Climate Change, but ithas been announced that the OEP will be able to take action againstfailures by public bodies to comply with laws on greenhouse gasemissions.

Environmental StandardsThere are a variety of requirements placed on the government by the bill.These include a need for ministers to set, by October 2022, at least onelong-term target in each of the priority areas of air quality, water,biodiversity, and resource efficiency and waste reduction. They must alsoundertake a report on environmental legislation across the world everytwo years and put in place an Environmental Improvement Plan, settingout the steps they intend to take to improve the natural environment.

Air QualityPublic bodies and councils will be tasked with tackling air quality in theirlocal area by working more closely together. Local Authorities will alsobe better able to enforce restrictions on smoke emissions from domesticfires, for example if someone in a Smoke Control Area is burningtraditional coal. There is a lot of detail to digest on the air quality plansand you may be interested in the Government's Factsheet, available here.The bill has been criticised for failing to require WHO air quality targets;this would require an annual mean guideline of 10 μg/m3 whichsupporters say would ensure that the human health impacts of airpollution are properly considered and minimised.

George Eustice, the Secretary of State for DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)will be leading on the bill in Parliament

Tree FellingThe bill requires local authorities to have a community consultationbefore tree felling takes place. Some politicians, such as Barnsley MPDan Jarvis, have asked the government to link this bill to the AgricultureBill and the national tree strategy, for a coherent plan for increasingtree cover. Jarvis also called for the bill to be amended once the nationaltree strategy is published so that it refers to that strategy.

Deposit return schemeThe bill allows for the introduction of deposit return schemes. These seeconsumers paying a small deposit when they buy an item (such as adrink bottle or can), which is then redeemed on return of the used item.It's predicted that this would lead to big reductions in single-use plasticwaste.

What else is in the bill?The bill includes many other issues which it isn't possible to cover indetail here. These include provisions on biodiversity, waste, and landmanagement. You can read more from the House of Commons Libraryhere.

DelaysThe bill has been badly delayed since it was last in Parliament in March.It is currently due to be considered by a 'Public Bill Committee' (a groupof MPs who scrutinise legislation in line-by-line detail) in December.Due to the COVID-19 crisis, Parliament had to deal with many newcrisis laws. This has put huge pressure on the timetabling of bills andmany pieces of legislation are currently delayed. In addition, committeesmust now abide by social distancing requirements which means thatthere are only two committee rooms in Parliament which are largeenough for the number of MPs needed to review this bill.

Ruth Chambers, at the Green Alliance think-tank, has noted theimportance of getting the bill passed as soon as possible: "The first partof the bill contains provisions that must become law before the end ofthe (Brexit) implementation period on 31 December 2020, so the clockis ticking. These include the new environmental watchdog, the Officefor Environmental Protection, which ministers have assured parliamentwill be ready to act from 1 January 2021. That can’t happen unless theEnvironment Bill is passed by then."

Reaction to the billMany MPs have been strongly supportive of the 'flagship' bill. TheConservative Animal Welfare Foundation have described it as 'ground-breaking' and an 'historic step change in the way we protect and enhanceour precious natural environment'. While praising many aspects of the bill,environmental groups have raised some areas of concern. WWF called fora new chapter in the bill, which would address the UK's ‘global footprint’ -the impact that the things we consume in the UK have on the environmentoverseas. Greenpeace have raised concerns about the OEP, questioningwhy it won't be able to issue fines to public bodies and asking whether itwill be properly independent of government. Greener UK, who represent acoalition of environmental groups, have outlined a number of areas wherethe bill could be stronger (available here), with a spokesperson sayingthat, with regards to the OEP, there were "concerns that ministers willdecide the green watchdog’s budget and board, with a weaker legalstatus for environmental principles". Adding that "the proposals for howtargets will be set for air quality and nature are also a pale imitation ofhow targets are set for climate".

The Labour Party have criticised the bill as inadequate, saying:“Parliament declared a climate and environmental emergency nearly 9months ago [...] Extreme weather, flooding and increasingly endangeredwildlife cause increasing anxiety to British farmers and all of us, especiallyyoung people. This bill does not come close to the urgent and decisiveaction the UK needs to take to show real global leadership. Thegovernment’s air quality plans have been ruled unlawful multiple times.But still the bill fails to set enforceable targets to bring air pollution belowthe harmful levels set by the WHO".

Raising the Environment Bill with your MPThe huge scope of the Environment Bill means that there's lots of different issues you may wish to highlight with your MP. You might want to checkwhether your MP is among the 17 on the Bill Committee, who will closelyscrutinise the bill (you can check the list here). These MPs will be spendinglots of time on the bill in December and would likely welcomecorrespondence from engaged constituents. For other MPs, you may wantto ask them to write to ministers, or raise a question in Parliament. Thiscould be calling on the government to go further on air quality targets, thepowers of the OEP (and asking whether the OEP will be functioning bynext January), or about the drawing up an integrated tree strategy. Formore information on any of these issues and for help with discussing themwith your MP, contact our research team - Matt on matt@hftf.org.uk orLogan on logan@hftf.org.uk.