Thank you for contacting me about the natural world.
The Conservatives have a proud record on reducing emissions, and we are a world leader in climate change. We were the first Western country to legislate to reach net zero emissions by 2050 and we have decarbonised faster than any other major economy since 1990. Between 1990 and 2023 we have cut emissions by around53 per cent while growing our economy by around 80 percent. Domestically produced renewable energy helps us reach our climate targets and provides households with cheaper energy.
That’s why we have invested billions of pounds since 2010 into homegrown, renewable energy. Our ambition is to decarbonise the power sector by 2035. In 2010, around 6.5 per cent of our generated electricity was from renewables. In the second half of 2023, 44.5 per cent of electricity generation was from renewables. Ensuring that fish stock and fisheries are sustainable both environmentally and economically is a priority for the UK. In 2023 we consulted on an ambitious and balanced package of reforms to introduce a world class system of fisheries management.
The reforms draw on the best available science and the expertise of our fishermen to ensure stocks are healthy and sustainable long into the future. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs published the first five Fisheries Management Plans in December 2023–with the sixth to be published in the coming months. They are developing a further five plans for key stocks such as skates and rays and cockles, aiming to consult on and publish these plans by the end of 2024.
Our fisheries management reforms will play a crucial role in achieving the goals in our Environmental Improvement Plan, as well as supporting levelling up some of our much-loved coastal towns and communities.
We are delivering the £14.5 million ‘Access for All’ programme, which consists of a package of targeted measures in our protected landscapes, national trails, forests and the wider countryside to make access to green and blue spaces more accessible. More than £3.5 million has already been spent on making our protected landscapes more accessible, including on creating and improving footpaths to ensure that the countryside is accessible to everyone.
Our England Trees Action Plan has kickstarted tree planting across England, funded by over £675 million of the Nature for Climate Fund, is transforming England’s tree planting and woodland management. We have set a statutory target to increase tree canopy and woodland cover of England to 16.5 per cent by2050. Last year, over 3,600 hectares of trees were planted (4.7 million trees)–the highest planting rate for nearly a decade–a massive boost to a sector that employs over 33,000 people across the UK. 15 million trees have been planted since 2020–representing significant progress in achieving our targets and we have a strong pipeline for the next few years. In our manifesto, we set out further ambitious plan to plant more trees, including delivering our tree planting and peatland commitments through our Nature for Climate funding; launching a new design competition for urban greening; cutting red tape that holds back the planting of trees in the planning system; and delivering our commitment at COP28 to introduce forest risk commodities legislation early in the next Parliament.
The value of trees to people and nature has never been clearer. They are vital for our health and security and we cannot do without them. We remain determined to ensure we continue to push forward with this important work and leave the environment in a better state than we found it for future generations.