Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to monitor and evaluate whether conservation measures delivered through the Nature Restoration Fund materially outweigh the environmental impacts of development.

Throughout an Environmental Delivery Plan’s (EDP) duration, monitoring will play a critical role in providing the scientific evidence and confidence that conservation measures are achieving the desired effect.

Natural England are required to publish reports covering an EDP’s start date to its mid-point, and its mid-point to end date. Natural England may also choose to publish a report at any other time.

These reporting requirements will provide transparency around the environmental improvements that each EDP has delivered and whether it is having the required impact.

Where monitoring shows these measures are insufficient, Natural England will ensure backup measures are deployed.