Don’t bite the hand that feeds the birds

A deeply flawed doomsday message on Britain’s biodiversity status endangers the successful state-funded schemes that help nature fight back

Richard Negus

JULY’S INTAKE OF FRESHER LABOUR MPS would surely have had their interest piqued by a work in the House of Commons Library titled “Are we on target for the environment?” This research briefing is one in a series of “quick reads” specifically produced for Westminster’s 2024 new arrivals. Here, in bite-size form, “priority areas” are identified within the Environment Act 2021 — those priorities being air quality, biodiversity, resources and waste, and water. The four-paragraph section on biodiversity is suffixed with the word “loss”. The authors describe the UK as “one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world” adding that “nearly one in six [UK] species are threatened with extinction”. These startling statements rely on the 2023 “State of Nature” report — the product of a collaboration between environmental…

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The Critic (Digital) - 1 Issue, November 2024

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