Environment Bill

(asked on 5th October 2020) - View Source

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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the regulatory gap that would occur as a result of the Environment Bill not being enacted by 1 January 2021; and what steps they plan to take to ensure there is continuity in the transfer of EU protections into UK law during any such gap.


This question was answered on 19th October 2020

The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 will make sure all existing EU environmental law continues to operate in UK law at the end of the transition period, providing businesses and stakeholders with certainty. We have a long history of environmental protection supported by a strong legal framework which predates membership of the EU, and we will safeguard and improve on this record.

As regards scrutiny of the implementation of environmental measures, the Government intends to bring the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) into operation in 2021. The delay to the Environment Bill due to Covid-19 means it will not be formally established by the beginning of the year. However, an interim secretariat will support the OEP Chair and will receive complaints about alleged failures of public authorities to comply with environmental law from the start of next year. This will be in place until the OEP can begin its statutory functions. Once established, the OEP will then be able to use its legal powers to investigate complaints reported to the interim team from 1 January 2021, and could take enforcement action against serious failures if necessary. As a result, there will be no gap in time where public authorities cannot be held to account.

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