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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential benefits of nature on mental health and wellbeing.

The Government recognises the health and wellbeing benefits of spending time in nature and has committed to ensure that everyone lives within a 15-minute walk of a green and blue space. The Environmental Improvement Plan, published on 31 January this year, states that the “evidence is clear that spending time in nature is beneficial for our physical and mental health” and sets out our plans to incorporate green and blue spaces into the healthcare system.