Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill

moved Amendment No. 122:"Page 2, line 15, at end insert—" ““(   )   In the event of a conflict arising between any of the aims included in the general purpose, Natural England shall give priority to the aim in subsection (2)(a) and (b) over any other paragraph in subsection (2).”” The noble Baroness said: In my humble opinion this is one of the most important amendments that we have tabled to the Bill as it deals with the whole question of the conflict that could arise when Natural England makes decisions. Although the list of aims under the clause is not ranked, as was explained in earlier sittings, we feel that the wording,"““promoting nature conservation and protecting biodiversity””," is considerably weightier and more pointed than,"““contributing in other ways to””." With no clarity over what the ultimate duty of Natural England might be in a situation of conflict, the pressure exerted by third parties and their supporters—especially if the commercial opportunity is great—could be considerable. Natural England needs to be given teeth and direction to help it meet the challenges that it will face as a major environmental body—something to which the Minister referred at an earlier stage. We think that it is correct to give greater weight to the first aim. The purpose of this amendment is simply to ensure that no one can be in the slightest doubt about what the pecking order is. For example, a proposal to site an information centre and café on the limestone pavement of Whernside would, I hope, be stillborn. However, an application to build it near the summit of Helvellyn might be accepted more readily although it would still pose a threat to the environment. I bring to the Committee’s attention the conflict surrounding the proposals to build Horkesley Park—supposedly an interactive John Constable experience—in the Stour Valley. That proposal is likely to attract some 760,000 people to this part of an area of outstanding natural beauty, which has the highest level of landscape protection available. But at the same time the proposal could be seen as offering open air recreation. The developers could claim that Natural England’s list of inclusive statutory purposes would not allow it to advise against policies or proposals which might seriously damage the natural environment if the contribution to other aspects of sustainable development were great. Potentially there is a major conflict but, as the Bill stands, Natural England will have no teeth to address it. Not only will it not have the teeth to resist outside pressure, its direction could be compromised by unresolvable disagreement between board members. What is more, if major decisions are inconsistent, or seriously damaging to the environment, Natural England’s reputation and credibility with stakeholders and the public could be seriously damaged. The amendment is not intended to prioritise natural environment objectives over and above any others and in all circumstances; it would be an emergency brake mechanism that could be used in cases of irreconcilable conflict. I must emphasise that it would not form part of Natural England’s motivation but would ensure that it could be a trenchant champion of the natural environment. If the situations I have described do not persuade the Committee, I turn to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee report, which recommended that provision be made in the Bill to address,"““those exceptional circumstances where there is an irreconcilable conflict, to make clear that the aim of conserving and enhancing the natural environment takes precedence over other purposes. We therefore recommend, for the avoidance of doubt, Clause 2(2)(b) be amended to include reference to the ‘protection’ of the English landscape””." The Government’s response, quoted in the Select Committee’s report, misses the point. The Government state that,"““it would be inappropriate to automatically give primacy to biodiversity and landscape over access and recreation in rural and urban environments in general””." The document continues:"““There is no call for ‘automatic’ primacy for biodiversity and landscape in terms of funding or policy priority. What is required, and this view is widely shared, is a need for a clear priority for biodiversity or landscape where conflicts arise with some forms of recreation which are damaging to biodiversity or landscape and people’s enjoyment of these things””." So it is not just we on these Benches who are claiming that. I refer the Committee to the announcement only this week of the swingeing cut of £1 million that casts a shadow over Wordsworth country, and to the statement that the Lake District faces the biggest ever reduction in services; park authorities warn Ministers over the cash crisis. If Natural England will not fight its corner on behalf of some of those areas, we are not doing the right thing in setting it up in the way that the Bill proposes. In Standing Committee A, the Minister, Jim Knight, said that applying the Sandford principle to regional development agencies would be difficult, and that the Government want the RDAs to take the lead in the economy but with due regard to sustainable development. That adds more weight the other way. If the RDAs’ real purpose is to take the lead regarding sustainable development—which I believe it is—surely that is all the more reason why Natural England should act as a counterbalance to that. On Second Reading the noble Lord, Lord Bach, said in winding up the debate that he wanted:"““Natural England to be a trenchant champion of the environment. I hope that noble Lords will find it reassuring that the Sandford principle will continue to apply in national parks and that in nature reserves and sites of special scientific interest the strong presumption that biodiversity considerations take precedence will continue””.—[Official Report, 7/11/05; col. 472.]" That is fine as far as it goes but what happens to the areas outside that? I mentioned places where people wanted to set up new recreation areas that will bring a lot more people to areas which perhaps cannot cope with that. This is a very important amendment. The Minister in another place was not persuaded by it but I hope that even if the noble Lord, Lord Bach, cannot support me today, he will at least take the measure away and think about it, as Natural England is being put in a position where it will have to take some very difficult decisions. As I said, the regional development agencies have a different primacy. Therefore, it is even more important that Natural England should take the Sandford principle on board. I beg to move.