Environmental Audit Cttee calls for rapid implementation of key environmental principles in policymaking across Government
The Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) argues that there is no reason for any further delay to the roll-out of the Government’s Environmental Principles, (integration, prevention, rectification at source, polluter pays and precautionary principles) which are intended to be binding on policymakers across many areas of central government. Including aviation. The Government has been designing its environmental principles for over four years. Now that the requirement on policymakers to observe environmental principles has been enacted in the Environment Act 2021, there is concern that further delay in implementation will risk principles being sidestepped by Whitehall rather than embraced. The EAC is calling for rapid finalisation and implementation of the policy statement presented to Parliament in May 2022. The Government must deliver on its ambition for the policy statement to be finalised and embedded across government policymaking, by autumn of 2022. The UK was previously obliged to follow environmental principles in the EU Treaties, and is still bound by a number of international agreements on environmental protection. Brexit offered a significant opportunity to shape the implementation of environmental principles to domestic circumstances.
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The 5 principles in the draft policy statement, as set out in section 17(5) of the Environment Act, are internationally recognised as successful benchmarks for environmental protection and enhancement. When making policy, and where relevant, ministers will need to consider:
- the integration principle
- the prevention principle
- the rectification at source principle
- the polluter pays principle
- the precautionary principle
EAC calls for rapid implementation of environmental principles in policymaking across Government
28 July 2022
From the EAC (Environmental Audit Committee)
The Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) today argues that there is no reason for any further delay to the roll-out of the Government’s Environmental Principles, which are intended to be binding on policymakers across many areas of central government. The Government has been designing its environmental principles for over four years. Now that the requirement on policymakers to observe environmental principles has been enacted in the Environment Act 2021, there is concern that further delay in implementation will risk principles being sidestepped by Whitehall rather than embraced.
EAC is calling for rapid finalisation and implementation of the policy statement presented to Parliament in May 2022. The Government must deliver on its ambition for the policy statement to be finalised and embedded across government policymaking, as Parliament intended, not later than the autumn of 2022.
However, for this to happen, the new Government formed by the incoming Prime Minister must get a rapid grip on implementation. The UK was previously obliged to follow environmental principles in the EU Treaties, and is still bound by a number of international agreements on environmental protection. Brexit offered a significant opportunity to shape the implementation of environmental principles to domestic circumstances while maintaining a high level of protection for wildlife and the environment. For example, finalising the environmental principles policy statement presents an opportunity for Ministers to give substantive effect to the polluter pays principle when making policy for England.
In June 2022 the Environment Secretary told the Committee that the Government wished to depart from the European Commission’s implementation of environmental principles in the Treaties. However, there is little detail about how the Government plans to implement the new statutory duty on policymakers in practice. EAC’s examination of the draft policy statement has identified significant gaps between the Government’s apparent aspirations and the expectations of many engaged in environmental protection.
Once the principles have been issued, and the statutory duty on policymakers to observe them has been commenced, EAC is calling on Ministers to commit to a review of their implementation by the autumn of 2023 to understand how the principles are being implemented in practice. Ministers should submit worked examples to the review across a range of government departments and policy areas, including at least one policy area—such as defence or taxation—where the statutory requirement does not apply but policymakers are observing the principles voluntarily.
EAC is concerned that the Government has rejected the Office for Environmental Protection’s (OEP) advice to strengthen the draft principles in certain areas, for instance in the interpretation of the precautionary principle. In its advice to Ministers, the OEP raised concerns that the draft policy statement suggested a narrow approach to applying the precautionary principle. EAC has recommended that Ministers heed the OEP’s advice in full. Specifically, EAC calls on the Government to strengthen its implementation of the prevention principle, by advising policymakers to apply preventative measures “without delay and as soon as possible” where environmental harm is already occurring.
Chair’s comments
Environmental Audit Committee chairman, Rt Hon Philip Dunne MP, said:
“The environmental principles policy statement has been over four years in the making. The Government must not continue to drag its feet over the implementation of this important element of the Environment Act. It is a major post-Brexit opportunity, to champion environmental protection at home. Yet this potential win from Brexit risks being squandered while Ministers figure out how the principles ought to be implemented in Whitehall. There is absolutely no reason, after such time has elapsed, for there to be any further delay in making the principles binding on policymakers.
“The Committee calls for the rapid implementation of the Environmental Principles across Whitehall policymaking this Autumn. Any delay in doing so will simply see the important principles, which Parliament intended to be the foundation of environmental protection, being sidestepped rather than embraced.
“I look forward to the timely publication of the new Government’s finalised policy statement and the swift commencement of the statutory duty on policymakers to observe them. The Committee stands ready to examine how the principles have been implemented in practice once they have been in operation for 12 months.”
Further information
- The draft environmental principles policy statement presented to Parliament for scrutiny in May 2022 can be found on GOV.UK.
- The Environment Act 2021 exempts the following policy areas from the duty to observe the principles in policymaking:
- the armed forces, defence or national security;
- taxation, spending or the allocation of resources within government.
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The 5 principles
Embedding environmental protection – the integration principle
Description: The integration principle proposes that policymakers should look for opportunities to embed environmental protection in fields of policy that have environmental effects.
When to use the integration principle: The integration principle applies to all policy in scope of the legal duty, where the policy has a potential environmental effect.
Application of the integration principle: Applying the integration principle involves considering whether the policy has the potential to cause a negative environmental effect which could be avoided, minimised or reduced through alterations to the policy in proportion to other policy aims.
… and the definition continues …. link
The prevention principle
The prevention principle means that government policy should aim to prevent environmental harm. This principle underpins many aspects of environmental policy to ensure that environmental damage, such as CO2 emissions, pollution or biodiversity loss[footnote 4], is avoided.
The prevention principle should promote policy design options that prevent environmental damage either before it has occurred (through policy design), or to contain existing damage. This can have economic benefits as it prevents additional costs and complexities that arise when environmental damage occurs.
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The rectification at source principle
Description: The rectification at source principle states that environmental damage should, as a priority, be addressed at its origin to avoid the need to remedy its effects later. Rectification at source should result in approaches that are more cost-effective, efficient, and equitable in the long-term.
When to use the rectification at source principle: The principle should be used to guide the design of policy that addresses or manages environmental damage, or potential environmental damage. It may not always be possible to identify or address all environmental damage at its origin. Where it is not possible to address it at source, there should be consideration of trying to contain or limit the environmental harm as much as possible.
… and the definition continues …. link
The polluter pays principle
Description: The polluter pays principle means that, where possible, the costs of pollution[footnote 7] should be borne by those causing it, rather than the person who suffers the effects of the resulting environmental damage, or the wider community.
The polluter pays principle serves several functions and may be used through different phases of policymaking. It can be used in the design of a policy (before the damage has occurred) to prevent or deter environmental damage. In cases where pollution cannot be avoided or is caused by accident, the polluter pays principle can be used to restore or redistribute the costs of environmental damage. Applying this principle helps to incentivise individuals or groups to avoid causing environmental damage and encourage sustainable practices.
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The precautionary principle
Description: The precautionary principle[footnote 9] assists the decision-making process in the face of a lack of scientific certainty. The principle helps policymakers deal with risks which may not be precisely calculable in advance.
The UK government is a signatory to the 1992 Rio Declaration. Its definition of the precautionary principle states that ‘where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, a lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation’.
When to use the precautionary principle: The precautionary principle is applicable where there is plausible evidence of a risk that a particular policy could cause serious or irreversible damage to the environment, alongside a lack of scientific certainty about the likelihood and severity of this damage. The precautionary principle supports policymakers in their management of that risk.
… and the definition continues …. link
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