Following the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ appearance before the Environmental Audit Committee last month to discuss the priorities of his department, the EAC Chair has written to Steve Reed requesting further clarification.

Committee Chair Toby Perkins MP, has asked the Minister to provide additional information on a number of topics by Thursday 1 May.

The topics include:

• when the 2025 Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) will be published and when a response to the Office for Environmental Protection’s 2023-24 assessment report will be forthcoming.
• funding for the Office for Environmental Protection.
• how nature has been established as a priority issue underpinning the Government’s five current Missions.
• an annual Government statement on the state of climate and nature.

Asking for further information on the EIP, Toby Perkins writes:

“Your answers on this issue gave rise to concerns that the targets and commitments underpinning the current EIP risk being downgraded or watered down when the 2025 EIP is issued. It would be particularly concerning if environmental protection targets were relaxed or limited in scope as a result of the resources available following the Spending Review….

“We appreciate that you were unable to comment on the expenditure plans of your Department for environmental protection issues, or on the submission to be made to the Chief Secretary of the Treasury, before the publication of the Spending Review.

“Since these plans have a clear bearing on the capacity of your Department and its associated public bodies, we would like to invite you to appear for a further discussion between the Review’s publication and the Summer Recess.”

The EAC is also asking the Minister to set out:

• the indicators the Government plans to use to monitor trends in the effectiveness of environmental protection measures as a result of changes in regulatory approaches
• the steps planned to ensure continued protections if the indicators suggest that the measures are not as effective as expected.

The letter concludes:

“Given the substantial public interest in the matters under consideration the Committee has decided to publish this letter on its website, and I anticipate that the Committee will wish to publish any response.”