Our beautiful countryside, coastline, woods and rivers are a crucial part of what makes our country so special. We are committed to leaving the environment in a better state for future generations. We introduced our landmark Environment Act including ambitious targets to halt nature’s decline by 2030 and Biodiversity Net Gain, a world-leading scheme to deliver greener new development. We led international efforts to protect our oceans and seas, building on the success of the Blue Belt programme which protects an area of ocean the size of India. We will consult UK overseas territories on opportunities to expand it further.
We know that spending time outdoors in nature can significantly benefit our health and wellbeing, especially for children. That is why we set an ambitious commitment for everyone to have access to nature within a 15-minute walk of where they live. To deliver this, we will:
❱ Designate our 11th National Park alongside investing to improve existing National Parks and protected landscapes.
❱ Use future rounds of our Landscape Recovery Scheme to support more local projects like the community-led schemes near Hadrian’s Wall as the area recovers from the vandalism at the Sycamore Gap.
❱ Continue to support programmes that encourage disadvantaged children and young people to access green spaces.
❱ Deliver our commitments on National Trails including the Coast to Coast Path and the King Charles III England Coast Path.
❱ Continue to work with landowners, charities and others to open up more ‘access to nature’ routes. We will not impose a universal Right to Roam.
