The Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has announced that although there has been significant work undertaken to progress the ambitious environmental targets resulting from the Environment Act 2021, due to the volume of responses to the target consultation they will be unable to publish the updated environmental targets as originally intended by the end of October 2022.
The department received over 180,000 responses from a range of individuals, businesses and other organisations to the target consultation which closed on 27th June 2022.
Environment Secretary, Therese Coffey said:
The Rt Hon Thérèse Coffey MP
“I was part of the ministerial team that created the 25 Year Environment Plan and prepared the Environment Bill presented to Parliament in 2019.
“Defra will continue to work at pace to finalise these environmental targets.”
In a written statement Defra reiterated that the ‘Government remains committed to halting the decline in species by 2030 and bringing forward the wider suite of targets, which will help clean up our air, reduce pollution, keep our water clean and reduce waste.’
A Written Ministerial Statement has been laid in Parliament to update both houses, which can be read here.
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