PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Wildlife: Conservation (22 March 2021)

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) protect and (b) promote (i) hedgehogs, (ii) red squirrels, (iii) water voles, (iv) dormice and other native species in the UK.

Asked by:
Sir John Hayes (Conservative)

The Government is committed to taking action to recover our threatened native species, such as hedgehogs, red squirrels, water voles and dormice. Our Environment Bill includes measures that will help improve the status of threatened species, including setting at least one biodiversity target in law. The Bill will also strengthen the biodiversity duty on public authorities to take action to conserve and enhance biodiversity.

Additionally, through our net gain provisions in the Bill, we are supporting the role of new development in helping protect and create the habitat that our native species need to thrive.

We continue to work with stakeholders to determine the specific actions that will be paid for by our new schemes that will reward environmental land management. The Agricultural Transition Plan sets out examples of the types of actions that we envisage paying for under the schemes, including creating, managing and restoring habitats such as woodland, heathland and species-rich grassland, which could all benefit native species.

Furthermore, Defra and Natural England are bringing together partners, legislation and funding to create the Nature Recovery Network. Through this work, by 2042 we will create or restore 500,000 hectares of additional wildlife-rich habitat which will benefit our native species.

Answered by:
Rebecca Pow (Conservative)
30 March 2021