The starting gun has been fired on the General Election, which will be the most important of my career in conservation. As candidate lists and party manifestos are being finalised, we wanted to share with you our key asks for nature to help you when speaking to candidates who are seeking your vote.
The urgent need to restore nature now
The 2023 UK State of Nature and the Worcestershire State of Nature report from earlier this year have highlighted the urgent need to halt and reverse the decline in wildlife in Worcestershire and the rest of the UK. We are one of the most nature-depleted countries on Earth.
In Worcestershire, we have around 20% of all remaining traditional lowland meadows and around 8% of all traditional orchards left in the UK, illustrating the important role we have locally in protecting rare habitats and the species that depend on them. Here at home we are facing similar pressures to other parts of the UK but there are also some nature conservation success stories we can be proud of that demonstrate that nature can recover, if we act now.
Our asks of all candidates and political parties
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Bring back the UK’s lost wildlife by:
- Making more space for nature by committing to 30% of land for nature by 2030.
- Stop damage to Marine Protected Areas by ensuring proper protection and banning destructive practices.
- Bring wild beavers back to every county as nature’s finest wetland engineers.
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End river pollution and water scarcity by:
- Enforcing the law against polluters and ensuring our regulators are sufficiently resourced.
- Halve nutrient pollution by 2023 from sewage, wastewater and agriculture.
- Deliver stronger protection for chalk streams.
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Fund wildlife-friendly farming by:
- Increasing the budget for wildlife-friendly farming to at least £4.4bn per year.
- Halve pesticide use and maintain all bans on bee killing and human-health-harming neonicotinoids.
- Help farmers reduce emissions and adapt to climate change.
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Enabling healthy communities by:
- Committing to a cross-Government fund to grow community-based health services.
- A right to a healthy natural environment including access to natural spaces in local areas.
- Giving every child the best start in life by learning in and about nature.
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Tackle the climate emergency by:
- Helping nature and people adapt to climate change.
- Protecting our blue carbon in the marine environment.
- Upgrading energy efficiency for homes.
We will be writing to all candidates setting out these key asks, once the candidate lists have been finalised, and will seek in-person meeting with all elected MPs after the election.
Restore Nature Now march – 22nd June in central London
A couple of weeks ago we announced that the Wildlife Trusts are involved in the Restore Nature Now march, which we hope will be the largest ever march for nature in the UK. The timing of the march means that we have the opportunity to show how many people care about nature in the days before the election.
The Restore Nature Now march is supported by a diverse group of dozens of wildlife and environment organisations (including the RSPB, The Wildlife Trusts, The Climate Coalition, WWF-UK, National Trust, WWT, Woodland Trust, Wildlife and Countryside Link, Rewilding Britain, Extinction Rebellion and Chris Packham) who are united in our demand to #RestoreNatureNow.
We are encouraging people to attend to use public transport. There are some groups co-ordinating transport in some areas of the county. Find out more and pledge to attend the Restore Nature Now march.
