Nature is in crisis: Richard Foord MP calls for environment to be at the heart of government work
Richard Foord, the MP for Honiton & Sidmouth, whose constituency spans some of the most sensitive landscapes in the country, is robustly backing the Climate and Nature Bill (CAN) Bill which will be debated on Friday (24 January).
The Private Members Bill is being championed by the trans-Atlantic rower and Liberal Democrat MP Roz Savage. It proposes a legally-binding mission statement to ensure policy and action on the climate and nature crisis is science-led and people-oriented.
Dozens of constituents have written to Richard urging him to back the Bill.
He said: “Our natural world is in crisis and needs urgent action. It is precious and essential for the survival of the human race, yet governments continue to allow the planet’s temperature to soar, while species such hedgehogs, some birds, bees and other insects, once common-place in the UK just a few decades ago, have seen their numbers plummet.”
According to the State of Nature report 2023, essential pollinators such as bees, hoverflies and moths decreased by 18 per cent on average since 1970, whilst predatory insects, like the two-spot ladybird which helps control crop pests, have declined by more than a third.
Many other flowering plants and other species have dramatically fallen.
“Almost one in six species in the UK are now threatened with extinction.
“These losses have been caused largely by changes in the way we manage our land, climate change and development.
“We need to get smarter about following the science on both the decline of nature and on the heating of our planet.
“And we must reject defeatism, just because one or two other countries are going in the opposite direction. The majority are working to prevent catastrophic climate change and nature loss. Enacting the Climate and Nature Bill would help do that.”
East Devon contains some of the most beautiful landscapes in the country, including the highly protected Aylesbeare Common – designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
It also covers some of the Jurassic coastline at Sidmouth, Seaton and Beer, where marine life is suffering due to sewage spills, overfishing, plastic pollution and climate change.
Richard added:
“Unfortunately, the Conservative government largely ignored nature, seeing it as a ‘nice to have’ and cut to the bone the budgets of statutory bodies such as Natural England.
“The new government is putting in place plans to mitigate climate change. However, its approach to the biodiversity crisis has been so far disappointing. I am troubled that contrary to scientific advice, ministers appear to be planning to re-licence some bee-killing "neonicotinoids", which would break a manifesto pledge.
“It’s essential that we follow the science and that ministers are not unduly influenced by lobby groups who have something to gain. Voting against the Bill in my view, would be unconscionable.”
The Climate and Nature Bill needs at least 102 MPs present on Friday 24 January to be heard. If it fails to get that many MPs attending to support the Bill, it may fall.