Defra environmental principles and governance consultation: Environment Agency response
Environmental principles, accountability for the environment and environmental governance after the UK leaves the European Union (EU).
Documents
Details
Defra has consulted on environmental principles and governance after the UK leaves EU. See the full Defra consultation.
The Environment Agency welcomes government proposals to:
- put a set of environmental principles into UK law
- establish a new independent body to hold the government to account
Taken together, and with the sustained work of the Environment Agency and other bodies, the Environment Agency believes these new arrangements will help protect and enhance the environment for future generations.
The Environment Agency welcomes the government’s agreement in the EU (Withdrawal) Act 2018 that the environmental principles should be set out in primary legislation. They endorse the principles identified.
The Environment Agency supports the proposal for a new independent body that’s accountable to Parliament. They welcome the government’s agreement that this body will have proportionate enforcement powers against Ministers of the Crown, including the ability to initiate legal proceedings. This will help ensure that the new body can hold the government to account when the UK leaves the EU.
The Environment Agency agrees that the new body should not replace or duplicate the role of other bodies, including the Environment Agency.