The plans mentioned in the King’s Speech do not automatically mean that these plans will go ahead – there may be interruptions, priority changes or they may take a long time to be approved. However, the King’s Speech is a useful insight into what the new government is prioritising. Below are some of the bills that relate to our priorities as a Wildlife Trust:
Ben Hall/2020VISION
Planning and Infrastructure Bill – This bill plans to make the delivery of infrastructure and housing speedier, giving more planning capacity to local authorities and strengthening the use of renewable energy. Labour have made clear their plans to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years, including through a re-evaluation of the greenbelt. We’re expecting to see more clarity on this towards the end of the month, when we’re expecting a consultation on the National Planning Framework to launch.
Luke Massey
Water Bill – This bill will tighten the regulations around water, making the consequences of water pollution more severe and in turn improving water quality. One of the Wildlife Trust’s key policies for the new government is ending river pollution and water scarcity, which this bill aims to tackle. However, it is disappointing to see no mention of tackling pollution from agriculture in this bill. Nutrient pollution from farming remains one of the main causes of poor water quality.
Great British Energy Bill – This bill will establish Great British Energy, a publicly owned clean power company. This will encourage investment in renewable energy and support the transition to clean energy. We’ll be keeping an eye on how this transition develops, including when it comes to the approval of large-scale renewables projects.
English Devolution Bill – This bill aims to provide more power to local authorities, empowering local communities and unblocking local decision making. This could make it easier for local councils to make positive changes within their districts, but we’ll have to wait and see as to how this Bill affects council administrations in practice. One thing to note is the inclusion of community right to by, which could see community organisations purchasing unloved areas and taking on their management.
In response to the King’s Speech, Craig Bennet, the CEO of the Wildlife Trusts, said “We want to see a new land designation – Wildbelt – to specifically protect land for nature recovery, improve water quality and create more space for nature across the country. This King’s Speech calls for things to happen faster – if that also means restoring nature with urgency, we agree.”
6 out of the 7 constituencies in Gloucestershire have voted in a new MP. Some of our MPs are members, showing their alliance with our message.
Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust met with many Prospective Parliamentary Candidates ahead of the election, and we are now extending invitations to MPs to talk to the experts in our team, encouraging them to show their appreciation of wildlife and the challenges nature is facing. We have used the results from our Vote for Nature survey to show our MPs what their constituents care about and what their constituents want them to prioritise when it comes to nature.
The King’s Speech has set the sense of pace and urgency we were expecting from this new government, with bills designed to unleash a programme of growth across the country. Whilst we welcome the sense of urgency in tackling the problems we currently face, we’ll be keeping a close eye on what this means for planning and green infrastructure, nature-friendly farming and access to nature. Watch this space!
