Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which UK sites of special scientific interest do not fall within the scope of the environmental liability directive and would not be protected under UK implementing laws unless its scope were to be extended.
Answer
Sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) overlap with sites protected under EU legislation (council directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds; council directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora). As a result, the 25 per cent. of SSSI areas in England that are not also EU-protected sites, would not be covered by legislation implementing the environmental liability directive unless the Government exercised the discretion provided in that directive. I shall write to the hon. Member with the detailed information.This is in respect of England only as policy on the environment and nature conservation is a devolved matter and therefore for the respective Administrations in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.