The requirements for Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) need time to establish before further changes are made, we said in our consultation response to government's proposed brownfield exemption. Read our response in full 👉bit.ly/4ebw4gS

📰 The news that Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) loopholes risk England's poorest communities being deprived of trees, green spaces and wildlife picked up a lot of attention last week - and rightly so. People deserve homes surrounded by trees, nature and healthy green spaces and new development should help create greener, healthier places to live. Read the report and find out more 👇

🚨 England's poorest communities risk losing out on the trees, green spaces and wildlife they need most. New research for Wildlife & Countryside Link shows that proposed Biodiversity Net Gain exemptions could disproportionately affect deprived communities, where access to nature is already limited. From de minimis loopholes to proposed 0.2ha and brownfield exemptions, the areas with the least greenery stand to lose the most. This is not the route to good, sustainable development or proud, thriving communities. People deserve homes surrounded by trees, nature and healthy green spaces. The Government should strengthen Biodiversity Net Gain, not weaken it. Read the report: wcl.org.uk/docs/green_gap_re…

Charities warn brownfield-first housing push risks creating ‘ecological deserts’ in poorer areas dlvr.it/TSvBH6 #ukhousing

Access to nature is a class issue. When developers push for lower standards it deepens inequality and it's the poorest who pay. A Labour government shouldn't be making life greyer and less healthy for these communities. Nature belongs to all of us - not just the richest.

Nature is not a luxury it’s a need, and our poorest communities are being effected the hardest. 4/5 applications in deprived areas will lose all nature compensation if Labours plans pass. Fighting for nature is a social justice issue. theguardian.com/environment/…

New Government plans for Biodiversity Net Gain are out, and there is some progress: We welcome: ✅ the confirmation that Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects are happening ✅ the removal of self/custom build exemptions ✅ the exemption for nature recovery projects But we’re worried: ⚠ that a new 0.2ha threshold could cut BNG demand by 12% ⚠ that there will be more exemptions for brownfield and temporary developments ⚠ there's continued uncertainty around key details Stacking exemptions onto a flagship nature policy risks weakening it and if de minimis loophole isn't addressed, the stability of the system is at risk. Nature recovery needs more ambition, not less. 📢 Have your say by responding to the consultation: consult.defra.gov.uk/defra-b…

Is there anybody who doesn't want public ownership now? Other than those with conflicted interests, of course. Sign the petition, we're nearly at 300k: change.org/nationalise-water

We joined almost 60 other leading figures and institutions across the natural environment sector in endorsing a letter to the UK Government addressing the hostile rhetoric towards nature protections. Read the full statement now 📖 buff.ly/9alBtwq #landscapearchitecture

Biodiversity Net Gain is meant to protect nature. But right now, developers can skip it by ticking a box and writing a belief – not providing evidence. No proof. No checks. No fixes for nature. That’s the de minimis loophole – and it needs to go. Read more here: wcl.org.uk/docs/BNG_no_more_…

Last week, the LI co-signed a letter from the CIEEM to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which raises serious concerns over the misuse of the de minimis exemption within the #BNG framework. Read the letter now 📖 buff.ly/VdLZ08M

Biodiversity net gain (BNG) is a critical policy for securing nature’s recovery.

Biodiversity Net Gain at a crossroads: any consultation must close loopholes, not create new ones shar.es/agEZ2N

What’s behind the increasingly shrill calls to disregard nature protections? A peek behind the curtain at the illusionists peddling nature destruction as a public good: wildlifetrusts.org/blog/publ…

impressive letter entitled 'Letter on concerns regarding the removal of BNG requirements for small sites' - the signatory list should make the government think twice - it is PAGES long! But will it? And what will happen if this letter's ask is ignored? lnkd.in/e9fDzjnj

Biodiversity Net Gain is one of the key mechanisms through which the Environment Act is currently being delivered in practice. Lawyers have raised concerns about how any regressive changes to BNG would sit alongside: 🌿 statutory nature targets 🌿 international biodiversity commitments 🌿 and principles of lawful consultation Legal certainty matters – not just for nature, but for everyone relying on the framework to plan, invest, and deliver.

BY ME in yesterday's @Daily_Express @Keir_Starmer is plunging us towards a nightmare before Christmas – one thing will stop it express.co.uk/news/politics/…

RT @GreenRupertRead: It’s time to voice an ugly truth: I’ve been talking recently {privately} with ecologists, with very senior figures in…

📢 Over 80 conservation organisations, land-managers and rural businesses have written to Government to warn that exempting sub-0.5 ha sites from BNG would remove 97% of planning applications from the UK’s only national nature compliance market. If the market collapses: private investment in habitat creation stalls, rural jobs are threatened and nature recovery is compromised. Ministers must not shatter the system just as it’s beginning to thrive. Read more 👉 wcl.org.uk/small-site-bng-ex…

Labour has betrayed our birds & ignored us.They’re digging the 🪦 of swifts in the greatest environment betrayal in a generation. Don’t let them get away with it. They put a 3 line whip on a simple brick! What sort of greedy monkey builders are they listening to? Please share.