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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to encourage the use of nature-based solutions to help tackle the effects of climate change.

When designed well, Nature-based solutions (NbS) can deliver multiple benefits for climate and biodiversity whilst helping communities adapt to climate change risks – for example through natural flood management and urban cooling.

NbS, such as restoring peat and planting trees, are key to tackling climate change and averting its impacts, as well as providing habitats which support our native species and functioning ecosystems.

Defra has pledged up to £400 million for tree planting and peatland restoration in England over the current and next financial year and we are working towards our statutory target to reach 16.5% tree canopy cover in England by 2050. We also have ambitions to restore hundreds of thousands of hectares of peat across England.

We are also actively pursuing the role of NbS to enhance habitats such as seagrass and saltmarsh to deliver blue carbon and biodiversity benefits.

We are supporting organisations to develop investment-ready nature projects that use private sector investment to benefit the environment and tackle climate change through the Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund. We have backed 127 pioneering projects to develop new business models that generate revenue from nature recovery, through carbon storage, cleaner water or enhanced biodiversity.