The Nature Recovery Green Paper and Environmental Targets, published yesterday, are a welcome roadmap to help tackle biodiversity loss but they must be strengthened, said the Countryside Restoration Trust (CRT).

Danielle Dewe, Chief Executive Officer of the CRT, said: “The Nature Recovery Green Paper rightly states that the UK is one of the most nature depleted countries in the world. We therefore need more ambitious targets from the Government than those set out in the consultations published yesterday. We need to increase species populations by more than 10% by 2042, and not against a baseline of 2030 at which point biodiversity will be very low.”

Dewe concluded: “The papers reference grassland habitats and arable farmland margins, and these must include hay meadows, the loss of which has contributed to the fall in rural pollinators. Wildlife corridors such as wild, tall grass margins and hedgerows, together with more hay meadows, will help boost butterflies, bees and other key workers.”

ENDS