House of Commons
Wednesday 7 July 1999
The House met at half-past Nine o'clock
PRAYERS
[Madam Speaker in the Chair]
Wildlife Protection
Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House do now adjourn.--[Mrs. McGuire.]
9.33 am
Ms Julia Drown (South Swindon): I am delighted to have the opportunity to raise this important issue today, as 7 July is the 50th anniversary of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949--now known as the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981--which established the existing framework for wildlife protection and access to the countryside. I know that wildlife protection is a matter of great concern to hon. Members, especially on the Labour Benches, and I hope that a number of others will be able to participate in the debate.
I hope that, in the debate, we will succeed in persuading the Government to include a new wildlife and countryside Bill in the 1999 Queen's Speech, to cover the many issues that need to be addressed--the measures that would not only increase the protection of wildlife but increase people's enjoyment of the countryside. That would not only benefit us today, but would be an inheritance that we could leave for future generations.
The past 50 years have brought marked changes to our environment and countryside, some of them good, but many of them destructive and regressive. Many of our best wildlife sites have been lost and species that were once common are now endangered. That is a matter of great concern to my constituents and, sadly, sites in my constituency, are among those that have suffered as a result of inadequate protection.
The challenge to protect our natural heritage is greater than ever. That is emphasised by the shocking figures that starkly illustrate the threats to our countryside. At a rate of almost one a day, more than 300 of the United Kingdom's best wildlife sites are lost or damaged every year. We have seen a huge decline in wild flower meadows, lowland heathland, hedgerows and ancient woodlands in Britain.
Over the past 50 years, more than 25 species have become extinct in the wild in the UK, and more are heading that way. The World Wid Fund for Nature has projected that if no action is taken, water voles will become extinct in 2003, skylarks in 2009, and the song thrush will vanish from farmland by 2006.
Many have welcomed the Government's Green Paper on sites of special scientific interest, which I shall call special sites. It outlined how such sites could be better protected. However, it is critical that those proposals are translated into action at the earliest opportunity. Delay simply means more damage and destruction to our
countryside. The Government could do more than they have outlined in the Green Paper by examining the needs of species outside those special sites, where there are also serious threats to wildlife.
More than half of all hon. Members--343 in all--have signed early-day motion 11, which calls for a wildlife Bill based on the wildlife charter. The level of support that it has received sends the strongest signal to the Government that there is a firm belief right across the political spectrum that early action is essential.
The Wildlife and Countryside Act was revised in 1981, but it is out of date and is not working. Landowners and managers are not legally obliged to manage special sites for the benefit of the wildlife for which they were declared. There have been no prosecutions for destroying listed plants, and only a handful of prosecutions for harming animals, other than bats.
Mr. Tam Dalyell (Linlithgow):
I participated in the Committee stage, which was 100 hours, of the 1981 Act. One of the troubles is not the Act, but the reluctance of authorities to go to the courts to prosecute. I wish my hon. Friend well with all my heart in her efforts to persuade the Government to introduce another Bill, but something must be done to persuade authorities to go to law, when that is justified.
Ms Drown:
I agree with my hon. Friend. The improvements to the legislation must include clearer statutory duties for landowners and managers, as well as better enforcement, strengthened powers to enter land, and stiffer penalties that would act as a real deterrent. There should be improved powers for statutory nature conservation agencies, so that they can fulfil an effective watchdog role. Landowners also need advice on how they can protect wildlife and which practices will cause damage.
The objective is not anti-farmer or anti-landowner legislation. Farmers in my constituency have made clear to me their commitment to wildlife and the environment, and how they want to co-operate with the Government and environmental groups to get the best for the countryside.
That brings me to incentives. I ask the Government to consider incentives to encourage landowners to invest in the proper management and protection of wildlife. In1996-97, management payments on special sites amounted to £12 million. Those were typically compensation payments for not carrying out an activity, rather than an incentive for positive management. Compensation payments can be far less than an owner could get for rearing sheep or cattle, or for growing flax, so better directed incentives may reap better rewards for wildlife in the UK.
I urge the Government to take a broader look at how policies across Departments impact on the success of wildlife and countryside legislation. For instance, agricultural intensification has led to a reduction in the quantity and quality of habitats such as heather moorland, chalk grassland and lowland wet grassland. Species are lost because of overgrazing of pastures, undergrazing of marginal land, the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, and the loss of traditional crop rotations. Water abstraction can lead to the drying out of important wetland sites, and planning decisions made years ago continue to cause harm to sites--for example, through mineral extraction. Revising planning policy could help in that
respect. The Department for Education and Employment could also have a part to play in improving education in our schools on the environment and protection of wildlife and encouraging initiatives among children to help to protect their local wildlife.
A coalition of 22 wildlife organisations, including the National Trust, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Friends of the Earth and the Wildlife Trusts, is supported by more than 5.5 million people in the United Kingdom. Most political parties would be glad of such a membership. It is campaigning for better legal protection for wildlife. Specifically, it wants legislation to be introduced that will deliver the Government's manifesto commitment to
Mr. Desmond Swayne (New Forest, West):
I support much of what the hon. Member for South Swindon (Ms Drown) has said and I am sure that the Bill for which she asks will enjoy broad cross-party support. Indeed, I have expressed my support for it by signing early-day motion 11 and a number of similar ones.
For the benefit of the Minister, I want to air a parochial concern that, because of the nature of the New forest and the fact that it is the most important wildlife and ecological sanctuary in western Europe, is also a concern for the nation. I do not want him to take the opportunity presented by the introduction of a wildlife protection Bill in the next Session to slip through a new national park status for the New forest. My concern is that changes made to the existing management structure of the New forest will be for the worse and to the detriment of wildlife protection and that sensitive ecological area.
I estimate that no modern legislation would afford the powers that the existing structures enjoy, although those structures are undemocratic. It would not give them the power to stand against so-called progress and development. If hon. Members consider the issues of development versus conservation as they have arisen over the past 30 years in the New forest, they will find that, on every occasion, one or other of the local authorities--be it Hampshire county council or New Forest district council or its forebears--has stood on the side of development, democratically representing the wishes of the people.
To take the cause celebre--the great Lyndhurst bypass--there was a democratic call for the private Member's Bill on it which was considered in this Parliament. By sponsoring it, Hampshire county council was responding quite legitimately to the democratic concerns expressed by the people of Lyndhurst and of Lymington. We know the history of bypasses at Newbury and in the west midlands. We also know of the attendant legitimate concern of people who are interested in the protection of wildlife habitats and we have witnessed the public disorder that may arise from that concern. But we should bear in mind the fact that the people of Lyndhurst and of Lymington sought that bypass.
The bypass would have taken up an enormous swathe of the New forest. My concern is that, had there been a park authority--loaded, as it inevitably would have been, with representatives of the democratically accountable district and county councils--it would have said, "On people versus ponies, because of the development of the fast-growing, economically viable southern coastal strip below the New forest, people are more important that ponies, so we ought to let the bypass go through." I believe that that would not have been in the interests of the New forest or the nation.
It is the job of legislation to protect the interests of the New forest. The Minister will no doubt assure me, as he has done in the past, that the existing structures will not be constrained by any change in status that he might envisage. In other words, the existing laws, which govern the New forest and give the verderers court the power that it now enjoys to thwart development, will not be changed. I understand that, but there is a difficulty and it will arise merely because of the existence of a national park authority or quasi-authority.
"ensure better protection for wildlife".
Such a Bill will also provide an ideal opportunity to introduce the Government's proposals for improved access to open countryside, and I know that ramblers in South Swindon are anxious for it to be enacted at the earliest opportunity. I therefore urge the Government to announce a comprehensive wildlife and countryside Bill in the 1999 Queen's Speech to back up their determination to halt further environmental degradation and to bring many of their good intentions to fruition.
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