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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of existing environmental legislation to maintain and restore the UK's natural heritage.

Defra undertook a review of implementation of the EU Nature Directives, published in March 2012, which also fed into the Law Commission’s ongoing review of wildlife legislation at that time. The Law Commission published its recommendations on 10 November 2015, to which the Government responded on 22 November 2016.

The Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 is currently subject to post-legislative scrutiny. Defra’s memorandum provides a preliminary assessment of the Act, which has been submitted to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee. This is available at the link below:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/natural-environment-and-rural-communities-act-2006-post-legislative-scrutiny