Climate And Nature Bill
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The Climate and Nature Bill, formerly the Climate and Ecology Bill, is a
private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in wh ...
before the
Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...
aimed at tackling the
climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in a region, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteoro ...
and ecological emergencies through an integrated approach. Similar iterations of the current bill have come before Parliament multiple times previously. The bill was most recently introduced in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
by
Roz Savage Rosalind Elizabeth Adriana Savage (born 23 December 1967), known as Roz Savage, is an English ocean rower, environmental advocate, writer, speaker and politician. She was elected as a Liberal Democrat MP for the new South Cotswolds constituen ...
( Lib Dem) on 16 October 2024 who said that the proposed legislation "has the ability to make the UK a world leader in tackling the climate-nature crisis, delivering a comprehensive, joined up plan that is finally aligned with what the
science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
says is necessary. It can pave the way for a truly
just transition Just transition is a concept that emerged in the 1980s through efforts by U.S. trade unions to protect workers' rights and livelihoods as economies shift to sustainable production, primarily protecting workers affected by environmental regulati ...
and ensure that citizens have a real say in deciding a fair way forward". If enacted, the bill would ensure that the UK Government: * reduces its greenhouse gas emissions in line with its international commitments under the
Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement (also called the Paris Accords or Paris Climate Accords) is an international treaty on climate change that was signed in 2016. The treaty covers climate change mitigation, adaptation, and finance. The Paris Agreement was ...
* halts and reverses the destruction of the natural world, in line with the Global Biodiversity Framework * establishes a temporary Climate and Nature Assembly to recommend measures for inclusion in an all-of-government strategy.


Summary

Over the 2019–24 Parliament, the bill was presented twice by (the then
Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...
MP)
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
. In the 2019–2021 session, the first reading of the Bill (Bill 172) took place on 2 September 2020, and it did not progress further. In the 2021–22 session, the first reading of the Bill (Bill 61) took place on 21 June 2021. Its second reading was postponed, and rescheduled for 6 May 2022, and it did not progress further. In the 2022–23 session, the (HL Bill 13) was introduced in the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
by Lord Redesdale (Lib Dem) via the private members' bill ballot route. Its first reading was on 21 May 2022, second reading was on 15 July 2022, committee stage was on 18 November 2022, report stage was on 25 January 2023, and third reading was on 21 April 2023. After passing the Lords,
Wera Hobhouse Wera Benedicta Hobhouse (' von Reden, 8 February 1960) is a British-German Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has been the Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath (UK Parliament constituency), Bath sinc ...
(Lib Dem) 'carried over' the bill to the Commons, but it did not progress further. In the same 2022-23 session, the Bill (Bill 304) was introduced in the Commons by Olivia Blake (Labour) via a ten-minute rule motion on 10 May 2023, when the Labour Party offered their support for its "ambition and objectives". In the 2023–24 session, the Bill (Bill 192) was presented by
Alex Sobel Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds Central and Headingley, previously Leeds North West, since 2017. He served as Shadow Minister ...
( Labour/Co-op) on 21 March 2024. Its second reading was scheduled for 17 May 2024, and it did not progress further. The Conservative Government did not offer its support for the bill over 2019–2024. In the current session of the 2024-29 Parliament,
Roz Savage Rosalind Elizabeth Adriana Savage (born 23 December 1967), known as Roz Savage, is an English ocean rower, environmental advocate, writer, speaker and politician. She was elected as a Liberal Democrat MP for the new South Cotswolds constituen ...
(Lib Dem) introduced the Bill (Bill 14) on 16 October 2024, having been drawn third in the private members' bill ballot. Unlike earlier attempts to advance the proposed legislation, Savage was given priority time on a sitting Friday. Its second reading took place on 24 January 2025—and after a division in the Commons—the bill was adjourned until 11 July 2025, though it is unlikely to be debated again. The Labour Government has not offered its support for the bill. On 24 January, the Minister for Nature,
Mary Creagh Mary Helen Creagh (born 2 December 1967) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry East since 2024, having previously served as MP for Wakefield (UK Parliament cons ...
, assured supporting MPs—though the Government would not allow the bill to progress—that next steps would include "binding commitments" to advance the bill's objectives. Following the adjournment, the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero,
Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...
, issued via a video on the social media channel, X, promising to set to work on the "spirit and substance" of the bill—"including for legislation"—in order to "make a meaningful difference" for climate and nature. It is not clear if the bill will return in the next (as yet unscheduled) session of the 2025–2029 Parliament.


Objectives

A Climate and Nature Act would require the Secretary of State to achieve climate and nature targets for the UK ndimplement a strategy to achieve those targets. It would establish a climate and nature assembly to advise in the creation that strategy ndgive duties to the
Committee on Climate Change The Climate Change Committee (CCC), originally named the Committee on Climate Change, is an independent non-departmental public body, formed under the Climate Change Act (2008) to advise the United Kingdom and devolved Governments and Parliamen ...
and the
Joint Nature Conservation Committee The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) is the public body that advises the Government of the United Kingdom and devolved administrations on UK-wide and international nature conservation. Originally established under the Environmental Pro ...
regarding the strategy and targets. The
House of Commons Library The House of Commons Library is the library and information resource of the lower house of the British Parliament. It was established in 1818, although its original 1828 construction was destroyed during the burning of Parliament in 1834. Th ...
has produced briefing note which explores the bill's aim—to ensure that policy and action on the climate and nature crises is science-led and people-oriented—and outlines its proposed duties on the Government and advisory and monitoring bodies to achieve its targets through the delivery of a integrated strategy. The Zero Hour campaign, which promotes the bill, has also produced a briefing note, outlining its objectives as: # Creating a joined up strategy, as the climate and nature crises are intertwined, and tackling them requires a plan that considers both together # Cutting
greenhouse gas emissions Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from human activities intensify the greenhouse effect. This contributes to climate change. Carbon dioxide (), from burning fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, oil, and natural gas, is the main cause of climate chan ...
in line with the UK's
Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement (also called the Paris Accords or Paris Climate Accords) is an international treaty on climate change that was signed in 2016. The treaty covers climate change mitigation, adaptation, and finance. The Paris Agreement was ...
-aligned
Nationally Determined Contributions The nationally determined contributions (NDCs) are commitments that countries make to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions as part of climate change mitigation. These commitments include the necessary policies and measures for achieving the glob ...
—expanded to include international aviation and shipping—and by ending
fossil fuel A fossil fuel is a flammable carbon compound- or hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the buried remains of prehistoric organisms (animals, plants or microplanktons), a process that occurs within geolog ...
production and imports as rapidly as possible # Halting and reversing nature's decline across the UK by 2030—in line with the mission of the Global Biodiversity Framework—and prioritising nature in decision-making # Taking responsibility for Britain's overseas emissions and ecological footprints # Ensuring no-one and no community is left behind in a
nature-positive Nature-positive is a concept and goal to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030, and to achieve full nature recovery by 2050. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, the aim is to achieve this through "measurable gains in the health, abundance ...
just transition Just transition is a concept that emerged in the 1980s through efforts by U.S. trade unions to protect workers' rights and livelihoods as economies shift to sustainable production, primarily protecting workers affected by environmental regulati ...
—by giving citizens a say in finding a fair way forward—via a climate and nature assembly.


2019–2024 Parliament


2019–2021 session


Bill 172

In the 2019–2021 session,
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
presented the bill on 2 September 2020. It received its first reading the same day. Its scheduled second reading of 12 March 2021 did not take place. 11 MPs co-sponsored the bill: Alan Brown (SNP),
Claire Hanna Claire Aisling Hanna (born 19 June 1980) is an Irish politician who has served as Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) since 5 October 2024 following her successful candidacy in the 2024 leadership election. She has served a ...
(SDLP),
Wera Hobhouse Wera Benedicta Hobhouse (' von Reden, 8 February 1960) is a British-German Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has been the Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath (UK Parliament constituency), Bath sinc ...
(Lib Dem), Clive Lewis (Labour),
Liz Saville Roberts Elizabeth Saville Roberts (; born 16 December 1964) is a Welsh Plaid Cymru politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dwyfor Meirionnydd since 2015. She has served as the group leader of Plaid Cymru in the House of Commons si ...
(Plaid Cymru),
Stephen Farry Stephen Anthony Farry (born 22 April 1971) is a Northern Irish academic and former politician who was the deputy leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland from December 2016 to September 2024. Farry was the Member of Parliament (MP) fo ...
(Alliance),
Ben Lake Ben Morgan Lake (born 22 January 1993) is a Plaid Cymru politician who became the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ceredigion Preseli, formerly Ceredigion, in 2017. Background Lake was born in Carmarthen and brought up in Lampeter. He is the so ...
(Plaid Cymru),
Tommy Sheppard Thomas or Tommy Sheppard may refer to: * Thomas Sheppard (cricketer) (1873–1954), English cricketer * Thomas Sheppard (MP) (1766–1858), Whig (and then Conservative) Member of Parliament (MP) for Frome *Sir Thomas Sheppard, 1st Baronet (died 1821 ...
(SNP),
Alex Sobel Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds Central and Headingley, previously Leeds North West, since 2017. He served as Shadow Minister ...
(Labour/Co-op),
Zarah Sultana Zarah Sultana (born 31 October 1993) is a British politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry South since the 2019 general election. She was a Labour Party MP until her suspension in July 2024 as one of seven La ...
(Labour) and
Nadia Whittome Nadia Edith Whittome (, born 29 August 1996) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Nottingham East since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she was previously the youngest MP upon her election at the age of 23. She ...
(Labour). Lucas also tabled a corresponding, cross-party
early day motion In the Westminster parliamentary system, an early day motion (EDM) is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by a member of Parliament, which the Government (in charge of parliamentary business) has not yet scheduled for debate. Hi ...

EDM 832
about the bill on 2 September 2020. It was supported by 92 MPs (including
Jim Shannon Richard James Shannon (born 25 March 1955) is a Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Strangford since 2010. He is the DUP's Health Spokesperson. He had previously sat i ...
, DUP) and called on the Conservative Government to support the bill, noting its enactment would:
Ensure that the UK plays its fair and proper role in limiting global temperatures to 1.5°C by taking account of the UK's entire
carbon footprint A carbon footprint (or greenhouse gas footprint) is a calculated value or index that makes it possible to compare the total amount of greenhouse gases that an activity, product, company or country Greenhouse gas emissions, adds to the atmospher ...
, including consumption emissions released overseas as a result of goods manufactured abroad for use in the UK, ndthat it would lsoactively improve the natural world by protecting and restoring the UK's ecosystems, and ending the damage to nature caused by
supply chains A supply chain is a complex logistics system that consists of facilities that convert raw materials into finished products and distribute them to end consumers or end customers, while supply chain management deals with the flow of goods in distr ...
.
Lucas led a debate on the UK's response to the climate and ecological emergency on 9 February 2021. She called for immediate, ambitious action, two years on from Parliament's declaration of an environment and climate emergency o
1 May 2019
highlighting that escalating global crises— record heat,
wildfires A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...
, melting ice caps, and 1 million species facing
extinction Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...
—emphasised the need for UK leadership ahead of COP26 and COP15. She said that:
The scale and ramifications of the emergency require us to set aside party differences, and reach for the new vision of human prosperity that we know is possible. With sufficient political will, we can co-operate to ensure we all thrive within the limits of our planet, but that is not going to happen without new legislation that gives us a framework commensurate with the science and with reality. The
ill ILL, or Ill, or ill may refer to: Places * Ill (France), a river in Alsace, France, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Vorarlberg), a river in Vorarlberg, Austria, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Saarland), a river of Saarland, Germany, tributary o ...
is that new legislation. It brings the future into the present—and our responsibility to the future into the present, too. ll MPs shouldrecognise that the
climate crisis ''Climate crisis'' is a term that is used to describe global warming and climate change and their effects. This term and the term ''climate emergency'' have been used to emphasize the threat of global warming to Earth's natural environment an ...
is bigger than any one political ideology, nd work togetheron legislation that could be a new and desperately needed global first.
Lucas also criticised the UK's "inconsistent" domestic climate policies—arguing that the Climate Change Act is "out of date"—as scientists had warned about rising emissions in light of the shrinking
global carbon budget A carbon budget is a concept used in politics of climate change to help set greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets in a fair and effective way. It examines the "maximum amount of cumulative net global anthropogenic carbon dioxide () emission ...
. She stressed nature's "absence" from climate strategies, despite the UK's "severe"
biodiversity loss Biodiversity loss happens when plant or animal species disappear completely from Earth (extinction) or when there is a decrease or disappearance of species in a specific area. Biodiversity loss means that there is a reduction in Biodiversity, b ...
—and called for citizen engagement via assemblies, as seen in the work of Climate Assembly UK. Lucas also advocated updating UK legislation to reflect science, equity, and public involvement for a
just transition Just transition is a concept that emerged in the 1980s through efforts by U.S. trade unions to protect workers' rights and livelihoods as economies shift to sustainable production, primarily protecting workers affected by environmental regulati ...
, warning of "systemic collapse" without it. Supporting MPs echoed her urgency, while the Conservative Minister—
Anne-Marie Trevelyan Anne-Marie Belinda Trevelyan (née Beaton; born 6 April 1969) is a British politician who served as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (United Kingdom), Minister of State for Indo-Pacific under Rishi Sunak between October 2022 to July 2024. ...
—defended the UK's net zero progress an
''Ten Point Plan,''
promising "global leadership". Other MPs pressed the Conservative Government to support the bill, including
David Linden David Linden may refer to: * David Linden (politician) (born 1990), Scottish politician * David J. Linden (born 1961), American neuroscientist {{hndis, Linden, David ...
(SNP) and
Rachael Maskell Rachael Helen Maskell (born 5 July 1972) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for York Central since 2015. She was Shadow Environment Secretary from 2016 to 2017 and Shadow Employment Se ...
(Labour). Energy Ministers' responses asserted that the Government was aiming for
net zero Global net-zero emissions is reached when greenhouse gas emissions and removals due to human activities are in balance. It is often called simply net zero. ''Emissions'' can refer to all greenhouse gases or only carbon dioxide (). Reaching net ze ...
greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, as set in 2019, and as the "first major economy to legislate in this way"—as Energy Minister,
Kwasi Kwarteng Akwasi Addo Alfred Kwarteng (born 26 May 1975) is a British politician who served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer from September to October 2022 under Liz Truss and the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 202 ...
, said on 8 October 2021—the UK was a "global leader".


Environment Bill: proposed amendments

In the 2019–2021 session, supportive MPs also focussed on securing amendments to the Conservative Government’s Environment Bill in order to reflect proposals in the bill. In a cross-party initiative led by
Lloyd Russell-Moyle Lloyd Russell-Moyle (born 14 September 1986) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Kemptown from 2017 to 2024. A member of the Labour and Co-operative Party, he was a ...
and
Daniel Zeichner Daniel Stephen Zeichner (born 9 November 1956) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Cambridge since 2015. He has served as Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs since July 2024. ...
of Labour's Shadow EFRA Team, two amendments proposed at committee stage on 26 November 2020, but were not successful. The first, new clause 28, set out new statutory environmental objectives and commitments for the Secretary of State and for the new Office for Environmental Protection (which was established under provisions in the Environment Bill). New clause 29 would have required the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on the adequacy of environmental legislation and policy for meeting the climate and ecology challenges faced by the UK and the world. Zeichner, now Food Security Minister, said that:
We have taken a number of these ideas from the
ill ILL, or Ill, or ill may refer to: Places * Ill (France), a river in Alsace, France, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Vorarlberg), a river in Vorarlberg, Austria, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Saarland), a river of Saarland, Germany, tributary o ...
which abourbelieves is right to place emphasis on the importance of expanding and enhancing natural ecosystems and agroecosystems to safeguard their capacity as carbon sinks, as well as on the need to restore biodiverse habits and their soils. Out there in the world, there is an appetite for this more ambitious approach.
A further amendment was tabled at
report stage An act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament in Westminster, London. An act of Parliament can be enforced in all four of the UK constituent countries (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ire ...
, new clause 9 (which was the same as new clause 28 during committee). It was debated on 26 January 2021—and referred to by several MPs, including
Lucas Lucas or LUCAS may refer to: People * Lucas (surname) * Lucas (given name) Arts and entertainment * Luca Family Singers, or the Lucas, a 19th-century African-American singing group * Lucas, a 1960s Swedish pop group formed by Janne Lucas Perss ...
,
Ben Lake Ben Morgan Lake (born 22 January 1993) is a Plaid Cymru politician who became the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ceredigion Preseli, formerly Ceredigion, in 2017. Background Lake was born in Carmarthen and brought up in Lampeter. He is the so ...
(Plaid Cymru) and
Debbie Abrahams Deborah Angela Elspeth Marie Abrahams (; born 15 September 1960) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Oldham East and Saddleworth since 2011. Abrahams was a member of the Shadow Cabinet of Jerem ...
(Labour)—but was not pushed to a division.


2021–2022 session


Bill 61

In the 2021–2022 session,
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
tabled an amendment to the 2021
Queen's Speech A speech from the throne, or throne speech, is an event in certain monarchies in which the reigning sovereign, or their representative, reads a prepared speech to members of the nation's legislature when a session is opened. The address sets fo ...
on 12 May 2021, regretting insufficient measures in that Speech to address the climate and ecological emergency. It attracted support of 42 Labour, SNP, SDLP and Plaid Cymru MPs, and urged the Conservative Government to make time for the bill to be debated and passed into law.
Lucas Lucas or LUCAS may refer to: People * Lucas (surname) * Lucas (given name) Arts and entertainment * Luca Family Singers, or the Lucas, a 19th-century African-American singing group * Lucas, a 1960s Swedish pop group formed by Janne Lucas Perss ...
presented the bill for a second time in the Commons on 21 June 2021 with 11 co-sponsors: Alan Brown (SNP),
Ed Davey Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, leader of the Liberal Democrat party since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State ...
(Lib Dem),
Stephen Farry Stephen Anthony Farry (born 22 April 1971) is a Northern Irish academic and former politician who was the deputy leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland from December 2016 to September 2024. Farry was the Member of Parliament (MP) fo ...
(Alliance),
Barry Gardiner Barry Strachan Gardiner (born 10 March 1957) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent North from 1997 until the seat's abolition in 2024 and Brent West since 2024. He is a member of the Labour Party. The s ...
(Labour),
Claire Hanna Claire Aisling Hanna (born 19 June 1980) is an Irish politician who has served as Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) since 5 October 2024 following her successful candidacy in the 2024 leadership election. She has served a ...
(SDLP),
Ben Lake Ben Morgan Lake (born 22 January 1993) is a Plaid Cymru politician who became the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ceredigion Preseli, formerly Ceredigion, in 2017. Background Lake was born in Carmarthen and brought up in Lampeter. He is the so ...
(Plaid Cymru), Clive Lewis (Labour),
Brendan O'Hara Brendan O'Hara (born 27 April 1963) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He serves as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber since the 2024 United Kingdo ...
(SNP),
Sarah Olney Sarah Jane Olney (' McGibbon; born 11 January 1977) is a British Liberal Democrat politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond Park since 2019, previously holding the seat from 2016 to 2017. Olney has served as the ...
(Lib Dem),
Liz Saville Roberts Elizabeth Saville Roberts (; born 16 December 1964) is a Welsh Plaid Cymru politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dwyfor Meirionnydd since 2015. She has served as the group leader of Plaid Cymru in the House of Commons si ...
(Plaid Cymru) and
Alex Sobel Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds Central and Headingley, previously Leeds North West, since 2017. He served as Shadow Minister ...
(Labour/Co-op). The bill was scheduled for a second reading debate on four occasions
10 September 202129 October 202110 December 2021
and 6 May 2022. It was not allocated time to proceed. Supportive Parliamentarians urged the Conservative Government to support the bill during other debates and questions, including Caroline Lucas, Lucas
,
Liz Saville Roberts, Saville-Roberts
,
Claire Hanna, Hanna
,
Stephen Farry, Farry
,
Beth Winter (Labou
,
Jonny Oates, Baron Oates, Lord Oates (Lib De
,
Mary Kelly Foy Mary Kelly Foy (; born 27 February 1968) is a British Labour Party politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the City of Durham since the 2019 general election. She is a member of the Socialist Campaign Group parliamentary cau ...
(Labou
,
Lloyd Russell-Moyle Lloyd Russell-Moyle (born 14 September 1986) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Kemptown from 2017 to 2024. A member of the Labour and Co-operative Party, he was a ...
(Labou
,
Baroness Bennett (Gre
)
and
Nadia Whittome Nadia Edith Whittome (, born 29 August 1996) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Nottingham East since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she was previously the youngest MP upon her election at the age of 23. She ...
(Labou
.
The Government did offer its support, or make time for the bill, which was regretted by Farry, who said:
Despite the rhetorical commitment to the delivery of net zero by 2050, the Government do not have the policies and programmes in place to achieve that. As a co-signatory of the
ill ILL, or Ill, or ill may refer to: Places * Ill (France), a river in Alsace, France, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Vorarlberg), a river in Vorarlberg, Austria, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Saarland), a river of Saarland, Germany, tributary o ...
I am deeply disappointed that the Government have chosen not to advance such legislation. A bill that establishes a statutory framework for the bold, joined-up change—that is necessary to fulfil the UK's international climate responsibilities—and to facilitate transition to a
zero-carbon economy Global net-zero emissions is reached when greenhouse gas emissions and removals due to human activities are in balance. It is often called simply net zero. ''Emissions'' can refer to all greenhouse gases or only carbon dioxide (). Reaching net ze ...
is greatly needed.


2022–2023 session


HL Bill 13

In the 2022–2023 session, the bill was introduced in the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
by Lord Redesdale (Lib Dem), who was drawn 8 of 25 in the private members' bill ballot. Its first reading took place o
25 May 2022
and its second reading was o
15 July 2022
At its second readi
,
Peers from across the House spoke in favour, including Baroness Hooper (Conservative), Baroness Boycott and Lord Green (
Crossbenchers A crossbencher is a minor party or independent member of some legislatures, such as the Parliament of Australia. In the British House of Lords the term refers to members of the parliamentary group of non-political peers. They take their name fr ...
), the Lord Bishop of St Albans, Baroness Bennett (Green) and Lord Teverson (Lib Dem). Reflecting cross-party support for stronger action, Peers stressed the interconnected climate and ecological crises—though some raised concerns about methane targets and
food security Food security is the state of having reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, healthy Human food, food. The availability of food for people of any class, gender, ethnicity, or religion is another element of food protection. Simila ...
. The Conservative Government, via Baroness Bloomfield, resisted the bill, citing the UK's existing frameworks like the Climate Change Act and Environment Act. During the debate, Labour's Frontbench spokesperson, Baroness Blake, said:
Given the onservativeGovernment's stated ambition ahead of the COP15 biodiversity summit to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030—a target reflected in this bill—what plans does the Government have, before the Montreal summit, to align domestic policy with international ambition? Surely the Government can do better than simply halting nature's decline? Could the Minister explain why it is seemingly good enough to call on other nations to restore nature while, at home, we are satisfied with managing its decline?
At committee stage o
18 November 2022
Lord Redesdale amended the bill to focus on its nature objectives in light of the Global Biodiversity Framework to be agreed at COP15—for the Parties, including the UK—to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030. The revised Ecology Bill proposed a duty on the Secretary of State to reverse the UK's contribution to nature degradation by 2030—boosting species, habitats and ecosystems’ health against a 2020 baseline—in order to align with Britain's UN biodiversity commitments. Proposing his amendments, Redesdale emphasised the UK's dire nature depletion—i.e. that 40% of species hav
declined
since 1970, and that 600 million birds have bee
'lost'
in Europe over 40 years—calling for more ambitious nature recovery action.
Lord Randall "Lord Randall", or "Lord Randal", () is an Anglo-Scottish border ballad consisting of dialogue between a young Lord and his mother. Similar ballads can be found across Europe in many languages, including Danish, German, Magyar, Irish, Swed ...
(Conservative) said that debates about conservation policy are often "talking about stopping the loss, but we should be increasing our biodiversity at the same time". Lord Green (Crossbench) reminded Peers that, in the UK, "just over half our natural biodiversity is still intact, placing us last in the G7—and in the bottom 10% worldwide—because so much of our land has been given over to marginal agriculture or monoculture conifer plantations". Labour's spokesperson, Baroness Blake, said on behalf of HM Opposition that:
The Labour Party adcommitted to putting the environment and climate at the heart of its agenda and delivering
nature-positive Nature-positive is a concept and goal to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030, and to achieve full nature recovery by 2050. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, the aim is to achieve this through "measurable gains in the health, abundance ...
action—which halts and reverses the loss of biodiversity by 2030—for the benefit of all people on the planet, as is the ask of he bill That element of reversing will make the real difference between the onservativeGovernment's position and what is necessary. The Environment Act commits to halt species decline, but fails to reverse decline and does not tackle broader biodiversity loss.
The Conservative Minister, Lord Callanan, acknowledged that nature is in decline around the world, but resisted the proposed reforms, citing the Environment Act's species abundance target as "a good proxy for the health of the wider ecosystem". The Ecology Bill passed through its remaining Lords stages successfully, and was handed over to
Wera Hobhouse Wera Benedicta Hobhouse (' von Reden, 8 February 1960) is a British-German Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has been the Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath (UK Parliament constituency), Bath sinc ...
(Lib Dem) in the Commons for its first reading on 24 April 2023] It was not given time to progress further, but campaigners welcomed that the Labour Party had offered its support for the bill as it passed through the House of Lords, Upper House.


Bill 304

In the same session, Olivia Blake (Labour) introduced the bill in the Commons o
10 May 2023
As a
ten-minute rule bill The Ten Minute Rule, also known as Standing Order No. 23, is a procedure in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom for the introduction of private member's bills in addition to the 20 per session normally permissible. It is one of the ways ...
, and unlike earlier presentations, Blake delivered a speech at its first (and last) reading. No MP spoke for a further ten minutes to oppose the bill, and it was not objected to. A second reading date of 24 November 2023 was set. The bill did not make progress. Backed by MPs from all main parties, its co-sponsors were Derek Thomas (Conservative),
Peter Bottomley Sir Peter James Bottomley (born 30 July 1944) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1975 until 2024, last representing Worthing West. First elected at a by-election for the former consti ...
(Conservative), Alan Brown (SNP),
Brendan O'Hara Brendan O'Hara (born 27 April 1963) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He serves as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber since the 2024 United Kingdo ...
(SNP),
Ed Davey Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, leader of the Liberal Democrat party since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State ...
(Lib Dem),
Wera Hobhouse Wera Benedicta Hobhouse (' von Reden, 8 February 1960) is a British-German Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has been the Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath (UK Parliament constituency), Bath sinc ...
(Lib Dem),
Liz Saville-Roberts Elizabeth Saville Roberts (; born 16 December 1964) is a Welsh Plaid Cymru politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dwyfor Meirionnydd since 2015. She has served as the group leader of Plaid Cymru in the House of Commons si ...
(Plaid Cymru),
Colum Eastwood Colum Eastwood (born 30 April 1983) is an Irish nationalism, Irish nationalist politician who served as Social Democratic and Labour Party, Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) from 2015 to 2024. He has served as the Member o ...
(SDLP),
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
(Green),
Stephen Farry Stephen Anthony Farry (born 22 April 1971) is a Northern Irish academic and former politician who was the deputy leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland from December 2016 to September 2024. Farry was the Member of Parliament (MP) fo ...
(Alliance) and Geraint Davies (Independent). In her speech, Blake argued that the intertwined climate and nature crises demanded urgent, integrated action—and that the Conservative policies "fell short". She argued that aligning with science and international commitments—like the 1.5°C target and COP15 obligations—is "critical" for survival. She highlighted immediate impacts in the
Global South Global North and Global South are terms that denote a method of grouping countries based on their defining characteristics with regard to socioeconomics and politics. According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the Global South broadly com ...
and increasingly in the UK, and said:
As my hon. friend the Member for Newport West (
Ruth Jones Ruth Alexandra Elisabeth Jones (born 22 September 1966) is a Welsh actress, comedian, writer and producer. She co-wrote and co-starred in the critically acclaimed BBC sitcom ''Gavin & Stacey'' (2007–2010, 2019, 2024), for which she won the B ...
) said so well during
debate
on the ill'sprinciples last November: “We know that
climate action Climate action (or climate change action) refers to a range of activities, mechanisms, policy instruments, and so forth that aim at reducing the severity of human-induced climate change and its impacts. "More climate action" is a central demand o ...
must be nature-positive action and that we must halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity by 2030 for the benefit of all people and the planet.” This bill brings that vital issue to the fore. I am delighted that so many members of local councils, including ow, former supporter
Georgia Gould Georgia Gould (born January 5, 1980) is an American professional mountain bike and cyclocross competitor, and Olympian (2008, 2012). She has earned five career national championships – four in cross-country mountain bike in 2006, 2010, 2011 ...
, and local mayors, including the
Mayor of London The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The current ...
, have recognised that and are backing the bill. It is time that we got the action we need from the onservativeGovernment to ensure that we can survive.
Blake also set out nature's role as a climate mitigator, with deteriorating carbon sinks—like
peatlands A peatland is a type of wetland whose soils consist of Soil organic matter, organic matter from decaying plants, forming layers of peat. Peatlands arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter, usually litter from vegetation, du ...
and woodlands—signalling a need for equal focus on emissions cuts and habitat restoration. She warned tha
$44 trillion
in global output—an
300 million
people—are at risk from nature's decline, alongside health threats from pollinator loss. Blake also criticised the "absence" of a concrete plan to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030, risking "irreversible" ecological
tipping points '' Star Wars: The Clone Wars'' is an American 3D CGI animated television series created by Lucasfilm Animation, Lucasfilm Animation Singapore, and CGCG Inc. The debut film was released in theaters on August 15, 2008; it served as the introduc ...
, and advocated for meaningful public involvement via
citizens' assemblies Citizens' assembly is a group of people selected by lottery from the general population to deliberate on important public questions so as to exert an influence. Other names and variations of deliberative mini-publics include citizens' jury, ci ...
, saying:
The double-headed climate and nature crisis is affecting people's lives now, especially in the
Global South Global North and Global South are terms that denote a method of grouping countries based on their defining characteristics with regard to socioeconomics and politics. According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the Global South broadly com ...
, but increasingly in the UK. Just think of the climate change-triggered heatwaves in India and Pakistan, the floods we have seen worldwide and, of course, the
floods A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...
and
heatwaves A heat wave or heatwave, sometimes described as extreme heat, is a period of abnormally hot weather generally considered to be at least ''five consecutive days''. A heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the area and ...
of recent years in the UK. There is no room for complacency and no time to waste.
When Blake introduced the bill, Labour's Frontbench ESNZ and EFRA Teams—including (the then Shadow Secretaries of State)
Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...
and
Jim McMahon James Robert McMahon Jr. (born August 21, 1959) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons, most notably with the Chicago Bears. McMahon played col ...
—announced the Labour Party's support for the "ambition and objectives" for her bill. Blake commented that this was an "important step on the way to getting a full commitment from the Party to take up he billso that it becomes official Labour policy." At the 2023 Labour conference, Blake chaired a Zero Hour fringe event on 8 October with (the then Shadow Ministers)
Ruth Jones Ruth Alexandra Elisabeth Jones (born 22 September 1966) is a Welsh actress, comedian, writer and producer. She co-wrote and co-starred in the critically acclaimed BBC sitcom ''Gavin & Stacey'' (2007–2010, 2019, 2024), for which she won the B ...
and
Kerry McCarthy Kerry Gillian McCarthy (born 26 March 1965) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bristol East since 2005. A member of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, she was Shadow S ...
. Jones confirmed Labour's commitment to ensure that nature's destruction is not only halted, but "firmly in reverse by 2030". Labour's ambition to "align" their energy policies to the UK's 1.5°C obligations under the
Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement (also called the Paris Accords or Paris Climate Accords) is an international treaty on climate change that was signed in 2016. The treaty covers climate change mitigation, adaptation, and finance. The Paris Agreement was ...
was also confirmed by McCarthy MP at the event.


2023–2024 session


Bill 192

In the 2023–2024 session,
Alex Sobel Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds Central and Headingley, previously Leeds North West, since 2017. He served as Shadow Minister ...
tabled an amendment to
Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...
's first King's Speech, regretting the lack of the bill. The amendment was supported by 42 MPs from across the Green, Lib Dem, Plaid Cymru, SDLP, Alliance and Labour parties—including
George Howarth Sir George Edward Howarth (born 29 June 1949) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Knowsley until 2024. He also served the seat's predecessors since being elected in a by-election in 1986, fi ...
(Labour). In the same session,
Alex Sobel Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds Central and Headingley, previously Leeds North West, since 2017. He served as Shadow Minister ...
(Labour/Co-op) presented the bill on 21 March 2024. Its co-sponsors were
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
(Green),
Ed Davey Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, leader of the Liberal Democrat party since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State ...
(Lib Dem),
Colum Eastwood Colum Eastwood (born 30 April 1983) is an Irish nationalism, Irish nationalist politician who served as Social Democratic and Labour Party, Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) from 2015 to 2024. He has served as the Member o ...
(SDLP)
Brendan O'Hara Brendan O'Hara (born 27 April 1963) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He serves as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber since the 2024 United Kingdo ...
(SNP), Olivia Blake (Labour),
Peter Bottomley Sir Peter James Bottomley (born 30 July 1944) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1975 until 2024, last representing Worthing West. First elected at a by-election for the former consti ...
(Conservative),
Daisy Cooper Daisy Cooper (born 29 October 1981) is a British Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for St Albans (UK Parliament constituency), St Albans s ...
(Lib Dem), Clive Lewis (Labour),
Stephen Farry Stephen Anthony Farry (born 22 April 1971) is a Northern Irish academic and former politician who was the deputy leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland from December 2016 to September 2024. Farry was the Member of Parliament (MP) fo ...
(Alliance),
Alison Thewliss Alison Emily Thewliss (born 13 September 1982) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Central from the May 2015 general election until 2024. Before being elected to Westminster, Thewl ...
(SNP) and Derek Thomas (Conservative). Writing in the ''
Big Issue Big or BIG may refer to: * Big, of great size or degree Film and television * ''Big'' (film), a 1988 fantasy-comedy film starring Tom Hanks * ''Big'', a 2023 Taiwanese children's film starring Van Fan and Chie Tanaka * '' Big!'', a Discover ...
'', Sobel said:
It's clear that we urgently need a new plan. One that brings people from different walks of life together—one that locks our international commitments in law—and one that involves citizens in the just transition we need to put us on the path to a zero-carbon, nature-rich future. A future of affordable, clean, home-grown energy and greater food security. A future of flourishing wildlife. A future of cleaner air, green jobs and more prosperous communities. I'm proud to sponsor a private member’s bill that would bring this about.


2024–2029 Parliament


First Reading

In the current session of the 2024–2029 Parliament,
Roz Savage Rosalind Elizabeth Adriana Savage (born 23 December 1967), known as Roz Savage, is an English ocean rower, environmental advocate, writer, speaker and politician. She was elected as a Liberal Democrat MP for the new South Cotswolds constituen ...
(Lib Dem) introduced the Bill (Bill 14) on 16 October 2024. Savage was drawn third in the 2024 private members' bill ballot and, unlike earlier presentations of the bill, was offered priority parliamentary time for the bill to progress. The bill's co-sponsors are
Carla Denyer Carla Suzanne Denyer (born 24 September 1985) is a British politician who has been the Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales alongside Adrian Ramsay since 2021 and the Member of Parliam ...
(Green), Clive Lewis (Labour), Simon Opher (Labour),
Nadia Whittome Nadia Edith Whittome (, born 29 August 1996) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Nottingham East since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she was previously the youngest MP upon her election at the age of 23. She ...
(Labour), Olivia Blake (Labour),
Alex Sobel Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds Central and Headingley, previously Leeds North West, since 2017. He served as Shadow Minister ...
(Labour/Co-op),
Roger Gale Sir Roger James Gale (born 20 August 1943) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Herne Bay and Sandwich, previously North Thanet, since 1983. He had a career in journalism and broadcasti ...
(Conservative),
Simon Hoare Simon James Hoare (born 28 June 1969) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Dorset since 2015. He was formerly Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Government from Novemb ...
(Conservative),
Pippa Heylings Phillippa Frances Heylings, known as Pippa Heylings, is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for South Cambridgeshire since 2024. A member of the Liberal Democrats, she previously represented Histon and Impingto ...
(Lib Dem),
Kirsty Blackman Kirsty Blackman (; born 20 March 1986) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician serving as the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Aberdeen North (UK Parliament constituency), Aberdeen North since 2015 Unit ...
(SNP) and
Llinos Medi Llinos Medi Huws (born ) is a Welsh Plaid Cymru politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Ynys Môn since 2024. She previously served as leader of the Isle of Anglesey County Council from 2017 to 2024. A councillor for Talybol ...
(Plaid Cymru).


Second Reading

Its second reading took place on 24 January 2025, where MPs from across the parties largely spoke in favour, although some Conservatives did not and—unusually for a sitting Friday—the debate was interrupted for a defence statement. During the debate, Savage emphasised the urgency of tackling the climate-nature crisis, citing worsening environmental standards in the UK across the world. MPs from the Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Green parties also contributed, highlighting local impacts, like flooding in
Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district of Lancashire, England, on Morecambe Bay, part of the Irish Sea. In 2011 the parish had a population of 34,768. Name The first use of the name was by John Whit ...
and species loss in
Cannock Chase Cannock Chase, often referred to locally as The Chase, is a mixed area of countryside in the county of Staffordshire, England. The area has been designated as the Cannock Chase National Landscape, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and muc ...
. Savage said:
Taking bold action on climate and nature is the best way for the abourGovernment to demonstrate true global leadership—and do what is right—knowing that, in the long run, the cost of inaction is far, far greater than the cost of action. Are we willing today to do what is required in the long term, rather than what is expedient in the short term? Are we willing to do not what is politically possible, but what is scientifically necessary to ensure a future for our planet? The choice is ours, and the time is now. Let us be the generation who chose to save our natural world, not the generation who stood by and watched it die.
On the connections between climate, nature and the economi
cost
(Labour co-sponsor) Clive Lewis highlighted that " ecannot have growth on a dead planet"—whilst (Conservative co-sponsor)
Simon Hoare Simon James Hoare (born 28 June 1969) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Dorset since 2015. He was formerly Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Government from Novemb ...
added:
If not now, when? We can afford not to do this. Failure to do so would be the longest suicide note in history for our species.
Critics, including Andrew Bowie on the
Opposition Frontbench The frontbench of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition in the Parliament of the United Kingdom consists of the Shadow Cabinet and other official shadow ministers of the political party currently serving as the Official Opposition. The Opposition fro ...
, argued the bill "risks" jobs and energy security by ending fossil fuel use "too rapidly", but his Conservative colleague, Roger Gale, argued that:
If we do not listen, we are about to become the authors of our own demise—and that is why I believe that the bill deserves, at the very least, a
second reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...
.
The Labour Government via,
Mary Creagh Mary Helen Creagh (born 2 December 1967) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry East since 2024, having previously served as MP for Wakefield (UK Parliament cons ...
, outlined Labour's plans, such as
Great British Energy Great British Energy (shortened to GB Energy or GBE) is a British government-owned renewable energy investment body that was formed as part of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party's plans for energy policy. GBE will invest in renewable energy ...
and the Water (Special Measures) Act. When urged by (Lib Dem)
Calum Miller Calum Alexander Miller is a British Liberal Democrat politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Bicester and Woodstock since 2024. Formerly a public policy academic and a senior civil servant, he was the principal private secret ...
and Simon Opher (Labour), Creagh pledged "meaningful change" in the Government's approach, "binding commitments on nature provisions" and "continued dialogue"—but she did not endorse the proposed legislation. This was regretted by
Lewis Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * " Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohe ...
, who had said:
If we want a
sustainable economy Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...
and sustainable biodiversity, and if we want to protect nature and ensure that future generations have somewhere to live, and have food security and water security, we need to ensure that this bill (or something like it) becomes law. We need to ensure that Labour oesthe right thing for climate and nature. It is what our constituents want to see.
A Government
Whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...
,
Christian Wakeford Christian Wakeford (born 9 November 1984) is a British politician serving as Assistant Government Whip since 2024. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury South since the 2019 general election. Elected in 2019 as a Conservative, he ...
, moved to adjourn the debate at the close of Creagh's speech, preventing any backbench MP from seeking (to close the debate and) move a substantive vote on the bill itself. The Green Party Co-Leader,
Carla Denyer Carla Suzanne Denyer (born 24 September 1985) is a British politician who has been the Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales alongside Adrian Ramsay since 2021 and the Member of Parliam ...
, advocated for a substantive vote. Savage opted against it, having securing certain "concessions" from Ministers—an effort which was praised by
Pippa Heylings Phillippa Frances Heylings, known as Pippa Heylings, is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for South Cambridgeshire since 2024. A member of the Liberal Democrats, she previously represented Histon and Impingto ...
(Lib Dem)—who suggested that the Government's "commitments will enable us to move forward, not at the pace that we want, but together". A vot
(division 91)
took place on Wakeford's motion to adjourn—and effectively end—the progression of the bill. 7 MPs voted against and 120 Labour MPs voted in favour of adjourning the debate, including 13 Labour supporters of the bill ( Adam Thompson, Andrew Cooper,
Anna Dixon Anna Dixon is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament for Shipley since 2024. Education and career Dixon was educated at Ilkley Grammar School in West Yorkshire.
,
Fleur Anderson Kathleen Fleur Anderson (born 6 February 1971) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Putney since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she has served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland sin ...
, Ian Murray,
John Whitby John Michael Whitby is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament for Derbyshire Dales since 2024. A former musician, he was the lead singer of The Beyond in the 1980s and 1990s. Early life Whitby was born i ...
,
Josh Newbury Joshua Alan Austin Newbury is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Cannock Chase since 2024. Career Newbury was previously a primary care communications manager at NHS Birmingham and Solihull. Hi ...
,
Lee Pitcher Lee Michael Pitcher (born 18 July 1977) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme since 2024. Early life and education Lee Michael Pitcher was born on 18 Jul ...
,
Naushabah Khan Naushabah Parveen Khan ( ) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Gillingham and Rainham since 2024. Early life Khan was born at the now defunct All Saints' Hospital in Chatham and grew up in Gil ...
,
Phil Brickell Philip Michael Brickell (born ) is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolton West since 2024. Early life and career Philip Michael Brickell was born in in Bolton, Greater Manchester. He was educated ...
,
Rachel Hopkins Rachel Louise Hopkins (born 30 March 1972) is a British Labour politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South and South Bedfordshire, formerly Luton South, since 2019. Hopkins was a Member of Luton Borough Council ...
,
Tris Osborne Tristan John Osborne is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Chatham and Aylesford since 2024. Early life Osborne is a native of the Medway area in Kent and grew up in Rochester. He attended S ...
and 2021–2022 co-sponsor,
Barry Gardiner Barry Strachan Gardiner (born 10 March 1957) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent North from 1997 until the seat's abolition in 2024 and Brent West since 2024. He is a member of the Labour Party. The s ...
).The Liberal Democrats and certain Labour MPs abstained.


Government whip

The Government did not offer MPs a
free vote A conscience vote or free vote is a type of vote in a legislative body where legislators are allowed to vote according to their own personal conscience rather than according to an official line set down by their political party. In a parliamentar ...
on the bill. News reports outlined that
backbench In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of t ...
Labour MPs were whipped to, if necessary, oppose the bill—or otherwise 'talk it out'. Private members' bills are not usually subject to a Government 'line', and the Government Whips' decision was opposed by campaigners and some MPs.
Barry Gardiner Barry Strachan Gardiner (born 10 March 1957) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent North from 1997 until the seat's abolition in 2024 and Brent West since 2024. He is a member of the Labour Party. The s ...
, for example, had previously called the Johnson Government whip on his Employment and Trade Union Rights (Dismissal and Re-engagement) Bill "cowardly" and, at its bill's second reading o
22 October 2021
said that:
It is remarkable that the onservativeGovernment have imposed a three-line whip against y bill Why? In politics, it is rare to find something that absolutely everyone agrees on, so why are the Government determined to block ybill?
Alongside Gardiner's 'fire and rehire' bill being blocked, campaigners also cite the Thatcher Government whip on
Richard Shepherd Sir Richard Charles Scrimgeour Shepherd (6 December 1942 – 19 February 2022) was a British politician who was Member of Parliament for Aldridge-Brownhills from 1979 to 2015. A Eurosceptic, Shepherd was one of the Maastricht Rebels that ha ...
's Protection Of Official Information Bill. At its second reading o
15 January 1988
MPs called the imposition of the whip "misconceived, authoritarian and a sorry display of
Executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...
arrogance" and "an utter disgrace
hich Ij () is a village in Golabar Rural District of the Central District in Ijrud County, Zanjan province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq ...
ought to ave beenrejected decisively". During that debate, former Conservative Prime Minister
Edward Heath Sir Edward Richard George Heath (9 July 1916 – 17 July 2005) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1974 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 ...
said:
By decreeing a whip, the Government are challenging the whole basis of private members' time. This is the first occasion that anyone can recall, or find in history, on which a
whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...
of this kind has been issued. If we allow this to pass today, it will be cited in future by the Government as a satisfactory precedent for imposing whips on private members' legislation. That is entirely unacceptable.
Also, during the 24 January debate, known private members' bill oppone
,
Christopher Chope Sir Christopher Robert Chope (born 19 May 1947) is a British politician and former barrister who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Christchurch in Dorset since 1997. A member of the Conservative Party, he was first elected in ...
(Conservative), asked:
Is it true that the abourGovernment are intent on kicking the bill into the long grass, because they do not want to be seen to be opposing it, yet they do not really support it?
The MPs who voted against the motion to adjourn the Climate and Nature Bill were
Chope Chope is a real-time restaurant-reservation booking platform that connects diners with its partner restaurants. The name “Chope” was inspired by the term chope spoken colloquially in Singapore. Chope charges restaurants fixed and per-diner ...
,
Shockat Adam Shockat Hussain Adam Patel (born November 1972) is a Malawi-born British businessman, optometrist, and independent politician who has served as the Member of Parliament for Leicester South since 2024. In September 2024 he was a founder of the ...
(Independent),
Siân Berry Siân Rebecca Berry (; born 9 July 1974) is a British politician who has served as the member of Parliament for Brighton Pavilion since July 2024, succeeding Caroline Lucas. She was a co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales alongsid ...
(Green),
Carla Denyer Carla Suzanne Denyer (born 24 September 1985) is a British politician who has been the Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales alongside Adrian Ramsay since 2021 and the Member of Parliam ...
(Green),
Rosie Duffield Rosemary Clare Duffield (born 1 July 1971) is a British politician who was elected as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Canterbury (UK Parliament constituency), Canterbury in 2017 United Kingdom general election ...
(Independent), Iqbal Mohamed (Independent) and
Adrian Ramsay Adrian Philip Ramsay is a British politician who has served as co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales since 2021 and as the Member of Parliament for Waveney Valley since 2024. He was previously the deputy leader of the Green Party ...
(Green).
Ellie Chowns Eleanor Elizabeth Chowns (born 7 March 1975) is a British Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typ ...
(Green) and
Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Islington North (UK Parliament constituency), Islington North since 1983. Now an Independent ...
(Independent) acted as tellers. During the second reading debate, Denyer said that:
In the second reading of the
Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is a private members' bill (PMB) which proposes to legalise assisted suicide for terminally ill adults in England and Wales. The bill was introduced by Labour backbench MP Kim Leadbeater in October 20 ...
, we heard powerful arguments about how it could be improved, but MPs voted for it to progress because there was an agreement that it warranted further scrutiny. The same applies with his bill
hich Ij () is a village in Golabar Rural District of the Central District in Ijrud County, Zanjan province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq ...
has been going for four years, has had cross-party support throughout. We hould have gotthe bill to committee stage.


Adjournment reactions

Following the
adjourned In parliamentary procedure, an adjournment ends a meeting. It could be done using a motion to adjourn. A time for another meeting could be set using the motion to fix the time to which to adjourn. Law In law, to adjourn means to suspend or postp ...
second reading of the bill, some MPs, media outlets, campaigners, and members of the public expressed their disappointment in the decision not to push the bill to a substantive vote; including the
National Education Union The National Education Union (NEU) is a trade union in the United Kingdom for school teachers, further education lecturers, education support staff and teaching assistants. It was formed by the amalgamation of the National Union of Teachers ...
,
British Ecological Society The British Ecological Society is a learned society in the field of ecology that was founded in 1913. It is the oldest ecological society in the world. The Society's original objective was "to promote and foster the study of Ecology in its widest ...
, PCS Workers for Climate Justice. Government whips—in seeking to avoid a backbench rebellion (and a potential, embarrassing defeat)—instead committed to further engagement between Ministers, Labour MPs and Savage on the intended outcomes of the bill. Zero Hour expressed its disappointment that the Labour Government did not offer a free vote, so that all MPs, including the 192 supporting MPs, could vote with their conscience. Campaigners praised the efforts of Savage in securing assurances from Creagh that next steps will include "binding commitments" to advance the bill's objectives—and welcomed
Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...
's promise to "set to work" on the bill’s objectives—"including for legislation"—so that " ecan make a meaningful difference for climate and nature".


Government response

As the Labour Government did not allow the bill to progress to
committee stage An act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament in Westminster, London. An act of Parliament can be enforced in all four of the UK constituent countries (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ire ...
, after the 24 January adjournment, Savage said that:
The Government has committed to a number of measures around the restoration of nature, accounting for emissions and nature impacts overseas, public engagement—and closer collaboration between the
Climate Change Committee The Climate Change Committee (CCC), originally named the Committee on Climate Change, is an independent non-departmental public body, formed under the Climate Change Act 2008, Climate Change Act (2008) to advise the United Kingdom and devolved G ...
and the
Joint Nature Conservation Committee The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) is the public body that advises the Government of the United Kingdom and devolved administrations on UK-wide and international nature conservation. Originally established under the Environmental Pro ...
—and between the two key ministries that are responsible for our environment, including the Secretaries of State presenting an annual statement on progress made on climate and nature.
Giving evidence to the Environmental Audit Committee on 27 January 2025,
Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...
said emphasised the need for a mission-driven government to address the intertwined crises of climate and nature, distinguishing it from previous approaches focussed solely on carbon budgets. He praised the bill, and expressed his intention to foster a political consensus through an annual climate and nature statement to Parliament and the public. The annual statement would detail the Government's knowledge of the crises, actions being taken—and ways the public can participate—aiming to "bridge gaps between the ''Carbon Budget Delivery Plan'' and ''Environmental Improvement Plan''". At a subsequent session of the
Committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...
on 24 March 2025, the
Secretary of State for the Environment The secretary of state for the environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment (DoE). Today, its responsibilities are carried out by the secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs and the ...
Steve Reed—said that he "was disappointed that he billdidn't proceed", that he "very much agreed with the proposals in the bill", and that he hoped to "find other ways to achieve it". The Government's official commitments to Savage have yet to be published publicly, but following written parliamentary questions by—(Labour co-sponsors) Simon Opher and
Nadia Whittome Nadia Edith Whittome (, born 29 August 1996) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Nottingham East since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she was previously the youngest MP upon her election at the age of 23. She ...
and other MPs— Creagh has since set out that the Government will "strengthen the narrative on consumption emissions" and "restore and protect our natural world" by: * developing a new, statutory plan to protect and restore our natural environment with delivery information to help meet each of he UK'sambitious Environment Act targets * building on, and strengthening, relationships between the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the Committee on Climate Change, and the Special representatives for nature and climate at a more strategic level * taking forward the spirit and substance of the bill with its sponsors nd setting outan update on these steps in a ministerial limate and naturestatement by the autumn.


Current status

According to the Commons website, the next stage for the bill is second reading, which started on 24 January 2025, was adjourned, and will continue on 11 July 2025. On 1 May 2025, marking six years since the House of Commons declared an environment and climate change emergency, Clive Lewis,
Roz Savage Rosalind Elizabeth Adriana Savage (born 23 December 1967), known as Roz Savage, is an English ocean rower, environmental advocate, writer, speaker and politician. She was elected as a Liberal Democrat MP for the new South Cotswolds constituen ...
—and four Labour co-sponsors of the Bill—tabled
Early Day Motion In the Westminster parliamentary system, an early day motion (EDM) is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by a member of Parliament, which the Government (in charge of parliamentary business) has not yet scheduled for debate. Hi ...
1184, observing that "the
second reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...
debate of the Bill was adjourned, but not concluded, on 24 January 2025" and urging the Government "to allocate parliamentary time for further debate on the Bill to address hesecritical challenges". As set out in section 14(9) of the standing orders of the
Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...
, other private members' bills will have preference on 11 July 2025, and any continued second reading is unlikely—unless the Government allocates further time for the Bill to proceed:
On and after the eighth Friday on which private members’ bills have precedence, such bills shall be arranged on the order paper in the following order: consideration of Lords amendments, third readings, consideration of reports not already entered upon, adjourned proceedings on consideration, bills in progress in committee, bills appointed for committee, and second readings.


Zero Hour campaign


Overview

Zero Hour is a 70,000 person-strong non-profit grassroots campaign working to build cross-party support for the bill. They work to persuade MPs, Peers, mayors, councillors, local authorities, electoral candidates and political parties to endorse the proposed legislation. A range of businesses, students' unions, trade unions, community groups, NGOs, charities, farming and food groups, cooperatives, Olympians, activists and celebrities—including
Chris Packham Christopher Gary Packham CBE (born 4 May 1961) is an English naturalist, nature photographer, television presenter and author, best known for his television work including the CBBC children's nature series '' The Really Wild Show'' from 1986 t ...
,
Deborah Meaden Deborah Sonia Meaden FRSA (born 11 February 1959) is a British businessperson and TV personality who ran a multimillion-pound family holiday business, before completing a management buyout. She is best known for her appearances as a 'Dragon' on ...
,
Liz Bonnin Elizabeth Bonnin (born 16 September 1976) is a French-Irish science, wildlife and natural history presenter, who has worked on television in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. She presented morning show '' RI:SE'' and music show ''Top of the ...
, Tori Tsui, Dominique Palmer, Amir Khan GP and
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall Hugh Christopher Edmund Fearnley-Whittingstall (born 14 January 1965) is an English celebrity chef, television personality, journalist, food writer, and campaigner on food and environmental issues. Fearnley-Whittingstall hosted the '' River ...
—have backed the bill.


Scientists

Some 1,200 scientists, including
Venki Ramakrishnan Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (born 1952) is a British-American structural biologist. He shared the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Thomas A. Steitz and Ada Yonath for research on the structure and function of ribosomes. Since 1999, he has wo ...
, David King,
Partha Dasgupta Sir Partha Sarathi Dasgupta (born 17 November 1942) is an Indian-British economist who is Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, and a fellow of St John's College, Cambridge. Personal life H ...
, John O'Keefe, John E. Walker, Michael Levitt (biophysicist), Michael Levitt, Richard J. Roberts, Richard Roberts—and E. J. Milner-Gulland, E.J. Milner-Gulland, Nathalie Pettorelli, Paul Behrens and Charlie Gardner—have called on the Government and MPs to support the bill. Partha Dasgupta, Dasgupta, who led the HM Treasury-commissioned report, ''Economics of biodiversity, The Economics of Biodiversity: The Dasgupta Review'', wrote—in a Zero Hour briefing, ''Follow the Science: The need for a Climate and Nature Act—''that:
We are facing the greatest crises of our time, which calls for bold, transformational thinking. A Climate and Nature Act would set the most up-to-date science into UK legislation, ensuring that our natural world is being valued and prioritised across all governmental decision-making.


ENGOs

The bill is also supported by a wide variety organisations, including Wildlife Trusts, The Wildlife Trusts, The National Trust, The Climate Coalition, Climate Coalition, Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, CPRE, The Countryside Charity, CPRE: The Countryside Charity, Greenpeace UK, Friends of the Earth, Surfers Against Sewage, Faith for the Climate and Nature Friendly Farming Network. Ahead of the bill's second reading on 24 January, National Trust, The National Trust and The Wildlife Trusts urged the Labour Government to "lead by example, both domestically and on the international stage", in supporting Savage's plan
Harry Bowell
on behalf of the biggest conservation charity in Europe, said:
The bill is a major opportunity for MPs to press the Government for more meaningful and urgent action to tackle the nature and climate crisis. We remain one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. Our built and natural landscapes are experiencing increasingly frequent and ferocious weather events.
Similarly
Joan Edwards
at The Wildlife Trusts, said:
The Government must back up its bold election promise to ‘reverse the tide of destruction of the natural environment’ with cast-iron, scientifically credible steps to meet our legally binding 2030 nature targets, especially as their own Office for Environmental Protection warns we are severely off track.


Campaigns, charities and businesses

Zero Hour's other partners (of which there are close to 1,000 supporting organisations) include The Co-operative Bank, Ecotricity, Patagonia, Inc., Patagonia, Natura & Co, Natura, Suez (company, 2015), SUEZ UK, Women's Institute, The Women's Institute, UK Youth Climate Coalition, Oxfam, Oxfam GB, A Rocha, The Body Shop, Lush (company), Lush, Triodos Bank, Ecosia, Extinction Rebellion, UK Youth for Nature and Greener Jobs Alliance.


Unions

17 union leaders publicly support the bill—including Zero Hour allies,
National Education Union The National Education Union (NEU) is a trade union in the United Kingdom for school teachers, further education lecturers, education support staff and teaching assistants. It was formed by the amalgamation of the National Union of Teachers ...
and Bakers, Food and Allied Workers' Union, Bakers, Food & Allied Workers Union—plus Public and Commercial Services Union, British Medical Association, University and College Union, Equity (British trade union), Equity, Artists Union (disambiguation), Artists Union of England, National Union of Students (United Kingdom), National Union of Students, General Federation of Trade Unions (UK), General Federation of Trade Unions, Pharmacists' Defence Association, Pharmacists' Defence Association Union, Association of Educational Psychologists, National House Building Council, National House Building Council Staff Association, Social Workers Union, Social Workers' Union, National Association of Probation Officers and POA (trade union), Prison Officers Association.


Faith organisations

Leaders representing the UK's main faith denominations have called on MPs to support the bill including Graham Usher (bishop), Graham Usher (Anglican), Rowan Williams (Church in Wales), Jonathan Wittenberg (Judaism), Kamran Shezad (Muslim), John Arnold (bishop), John Arnold (Catholic), Olivia Graham (Anglican), Adwoa Burnley (Quaker), Elizabeth Slade (Unitarian), Olivia Fuchs (Buddhist), Trupti Patel (Hindu) and Richard Murray (Scottish Episcopal).


Supporters


Overview

According to the Zero Hour campaign, which coordinates the Climate and Nature Bill campaign, 192 MPs, 75 Peers, 385 local councils and the London Assembly are backing the bill—plus Directly elected mayors in England, metro mayors, Sadiq Khan, Tracy Brabin, Andy Burnham and David Skaith.


Parties

The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland, Alliance Party, Green Party of England and Wales, Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru, Social Democratic and Labour Party, Yorkshire Party, Wales Green Party, True and Fair Party, Volt UK and Mebyon Kernow officially support the proposed legislation.


MPs

All those sitting as Alliance, Green, Lib Dem, Plaid Cymru and SDLP MPs in the Commons support the bill. In addition, 89 Labour Party (UK), Labour and Co-operative Party, Labour/Co-op MPs, 2 Conservative Party (UK), Conservative MPs, 7 Scottish National Party, SNP MPs, 1 DUP MP and 4 Independent Alliance (UK), Independent Alliance MPs are listed as Zero Hour supporters, of 192 MPs in total.


Peers

In the House of Lords, 75 peers have pledged their support, including Lord Knight of Weymouth, Lord Knight (Labour/Co-op), Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park, Lord Goldsmith (Conservative), Baroness Boycott (Crossbench), Kate Parminter, Baroness Parminter, Baroness Parminter (Lib Dem), the Graham Usher (bishop), Lord Bishop of Norwich, Baroness Bennett (Green) and Carmen Smith, Baroness Smith of Llanfaes, Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (Plaid Cymru).


Devolved legislators

There are a few supporters of the bill in the Scottish and Welsh Parliaments, where the issue of tackling the climate-nature crisis has received some attention—including Monica Lennon (Scottish Labour, Scottish Labour/Co-op), all of the Scottish Greens, Scottish Green Member of the Scottish Parliament, MSPs, several Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd, MSs and Jane Dodds (Welsh Liberal Democrats, Welsh Lib Dem MS).


Party youth wings

The youth wings of several political parties are behind the bill, including Alliance Youth, Plaid Ifanc, Young Greens of England and Wales, Young Greens and Wales Green Party, Young Welsh Greens.


Labour politicians


Overview

Labour Party (UK), The Labour Party, in Opposition over the 2019–2024 Parliament, supported Olivia Blake's introduction of the bill in May 2023, when the Party announced its support for the bill's "ambition and objectives" and (the then Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...
said that "we need ambitious and urgent action to tackle the climate and environmental emergencies together; and cut bills, give us energy security, and create good jobs in the process".


Labour grassroots

At Labour Party Conference, Labour's 2023 annual conference, a motion forwarded by Constituency Labour Parties (Constituency Labour Party, CLPs) calling on the Party to officially support the bill (entitled, 'Climate Change and Ecology') received 72,289 votes from voting delegates, but it was not selected for further discussion or debate. At the 2024 conference, (Labour Campaign finance, donor) Dale Vince endorsed the bill as "the Climate Change Act 2 the UK needs".


Similar legislative efforts

Also, whilst in Opposition, Labour sought to amend the Environment Act to ensure the UK began to reverse the decline in the state of nature in England no later than 2030; as well as the (failed) Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill to recognise the importance of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Each of these Labour-led or -supported amendments aligns with the climate and nature targets of the Climate and Nature Bill.


2024 manifesto

In its 2024 manifesto, the Labour Party's recommendations included pledges related to the bill, including promises to "deliver for nature ndto work in partnership with civil society, communities and business to restore and protect our natural world", and to mandate "UK-regulated financial institutions and FTSE 100 Index, FTSE 100 companies to implement credible transition plans that align with the 1.5-degree target, 1.5°C goal of the
Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement (also called the Paris Accords or Paris Climate Accords) is an international treaty on climate change that was signed in 2016. The treaty covers climate change mitigation, adaptation, and finance. The Paris Agreement was ...
". It also recognised that "the climate and nature crisis is the greatest, long-term, global challenge that we face".


Labour MPs

89 Labour and Labour/Co-op MPs support the bill, including Sarah Champion, Afzal Khan (British politician), Afzal Khan, Chi Onwurah, Louise Haigh—plus Satvir Kaur,
Rachel Hopkins Rachel Louise Hopkins (born 30 March 1972) is a British Labour politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton South and South Bedfordshire, formerly Luton South, since 2019. Hopkins was a Member of Luton Borough Council ...
, Navendu Mishra, Emma Hardy, Ashley Dalton,
Fleur Anderson Kathleen Fleur Anderson (born 6 February 1971) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Putney since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she has served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland sin ...
and Ian Murray—alongside Andrew Cooper, Steve Witherden, Scott Arthur, and Julia Buckley. The official Socialist Environment and Resources Association, Labour environment campaign, SERA, supports the bill and many of its members are supporters.


Labour Peers

The 17 Labour supporters in the Lords include (Peers for the Planet director) Larry Whitty, Baron Whitty, Lord Whitty, Doreen Lawrence, Baroness Lawrence, Joan Bakewell, Baroness Bakewell, Ruth Lister, Baroness Lister of Burtersett, Baroness Lister, Peter Hain, Lord Hain, Peter Hendy, Lord Hendy and Chris Smith, Baron Smith of Finsbury, Lord Smith of Finsbury.


Labour councils

Of 385 supporting Local government in the United Kingdom, local councils, 24 Labour-led local authorities have passed motions in support of the bill—including Birmingham, Camden, Ealing, Exeter, Hackney, High Peak, Islington, Lewisham, Manchester, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham, Oldham, Oxford, Salisbury and Westminster. 561 Labour politicians signed Zero Hour's ''Climate and Nature Declaration''. As an Ealing London Borough Council, Ealing councillor, Deirdre Costigan proposed a motion to support the bill o
19 October 2021
She is yet to add her support as the Labour MP for Ealing Southall (UK Parliament constituency), Ealing Southall. Two other Labour MPs, Alison Hume and Luke Akehurst, backed the bill ahead of the 2021 United Kingdom elections, 2021 elections, when over 1,000 candidates supported a Zero Hour pledge campaign—but neither have confirmed their support as the MPs for Scarborough and Whitby (UK Parliament constituency), Scarborough and North Durham. As the then candidate for North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Hume said that the climate emergency is "the most important challenge facing the world", adding that, "[she was] proud to join colleagues in the Labour Party in publicly supporting the bill [and if] elected, I will work to make the bill law."


Conservative politicians


Overview

Currently,
Simon Hoare Simon James Hoare (born 28 June 1969) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Dorset since 2015. He was formerly Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Local Government from Novemb ...
and
Roger Gale Sir Roger James Gale (born 20 August 1943) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Herne Bay and Sandwich, previously North Thanet, since 1983. He had a career in journalism and broadcasti ...
are the Conservative Party (UK), Conservative supporters in the Commons. They are also both co-sponsors of Roz Savage, Savage's bill. Before his Wyre Forest (UK Parliament constituency), re-election in 2024, Mark Garnier said that he "support[s] the aims" of the bill", but the Shadow Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Shadow Economic Secretary is yet to confirm his support. Four Conservative Peers are supporters, including (former Minister of State for Overseas Territories, Commonwealth, Energy, Climate and Environment, Minister for Energy, Climate and Environment) Zac Goldsmith, Lord Goldsmith. Conservative-led councils passed supporting motions on the bill over 2019–2024—including Cornwall Council, Cornwall, Devon County Council, Devon and Shropshire Council, Shropshire—and 161 Conservative politicians signed Zero Hour's ''Climate and Nature Declaration''.


Opposition

At the bill's second reading on 24 January, the Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Shadow Minister— Andrew Bowie—said that the Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party could not support the bill as it "misunderstands" energy markets and governance, and may "damage" Britain's prosperity and security. Andrew Bowie (politician), Bowie also commented that "whilst respecting those supporting it, [the] bill is deeply flawed, would leave Brits poorer, undermine our democratic process, and damage our energy security." Th
Conservative Environment Network
director, Sam Hall, said that, whilst respecting the aspirations of the bill to accelerate environmental action, "the abourGovernment should focus on meeting existing Conservative-enacted targets".


Individuals’ support

In the 2019–2024 Parliament, Conservative supporters included
Roger Gale Sir Roger James Gale (born 20 August 1943) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Herne Bay and Sandwich, previously North Thanet, since 1983. He had a career in journalism and broadcasti ...
and (former MPs)
Peter Bottomley Sir Peter James Bottomley (born 30 July 1944) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1975 until 2024, last representing Worthing West. First elected at a by-election for the former consti ...
and Derek Thomas. Thomas said, when announcing his support, that:
Our response to the climate-nature crisis must be about seizing the future—and that's why I'm proud to support this bold, new legislative plan. [The bill] should be embraced by decision-makers at all levels: it's nothing to fear, and builds on the policies and commitments that the onservativeGovernment has already made. It calls for a joined-up plan to tackle climate and nature issues, hand in hand, and is exactly what's needed. There's no time to waste.
Former Minister for the Environment, Peter Bottomley, Bottomley commented (in July 2022)—in echoing Margaret Thatcher's 8 November 1989 speech at the United Nations General Assembly, UN General Assembly on the global environment—that "environmentally-positive legislation is a truly Conservative commitment". The former Father of the House (United Kingdom), Father of the House also said on his ''Facebook'' page that:
The cost of inaction far outweighs the cost of legislation; standing by is not an option. It's a huge challenge, but there is hope. We can work together across borders with governments, companies, communities and others who have the will to act and the power to transform our world. Climate change knows no borders. It will not stop at one nation's doorstep—or overlook those who did or did not respond in good time. We must act now. The cost of inaction far outweighs the cost of legislation; standing by is not an optio

/blockquote>The former Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Douglas Ross (Scottish politician), Douglas Ross, said he would have considered "signing the bill when it [came] to the Commons for a vote". Former MP, Laurence Robertson, told ''BBC News'' that he "[supported] the aims and principles of the bill" on 15 June 2022. Robertson did not confirm his full support. In June 2021, the former Conservative MP—Crossing the floor, and now Labour MP—
Christian Wakeford Christian Wakeford (born 9 November 1984) is a British politician serving as Assistant Government Whip since 2024. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury South since the 2019 general election. Elected in 2019 as a Conservative, he ...
said that he was "supportive of the bill". Former MP and former Conservative, Chris Skidmore, said that "a Climate and Nature Act can deliver the bold, new, science-led framework Britain needs".


Conservative Peers

In the House of Lords, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative peers, Zac Goldsmith, Lord Goldsmith, (former Minister for Energy and Climate Change) Sandip Verma, Baroness Verma, Baroness Verma and (former Minister for Energy) Baroness Hooper support the bill, as does (Theresa May's former environment adviser) Lord Randall of Uxbridge, Lord Randall.


Other political support


Opposition parties

The Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrats have supported the bill since its introduction—and at all government levels where they have representation. Their Leader of the Liberal Democrats, leader,
Ed Davey Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, leader of the Liberal Democrat party since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State ...
, and Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, deputy leader,
Daisy Cooper Daisy Cooper (born 29 October 1981) is a British Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for St Albans (UK Parliament constituency), St Albans s ...
, have acted as co-sponsors of the bill. Roz Savage, Savage and Baron Redesdale, Redesdale, as primary sponsors in the Commons and Lords, have been supported by all Lib Dem MPs, 32 Lib Dem Peers, 17 Lib Dem-led councils—including Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council, Richmond, Bath and North East Somerset and Watford Borough Council, Watford—and 487 Lib Dem signatories of Zero Hour's ''Climate and Nature Declaration''. Davey said, before COP26—"our last, best hope to stop world-changing climate change"—that:
The climate is changing before our eyes. We are seeing Flash flood, flash flooding in London and Heat wave, heat waves across the country. We need to act now—and this bill is our way to do that. [By backing] this bill, [the Conservative Government could have shown] the world we are acting to cut emissions and stop the climate emergency.
Ahead of Savage's second reading, 58 Lib Dem Parliamentarians—including Daisy Cooper, Cooper and (co-deputy leader in the Lords) Joan Walmsley, Baroness Walmsley, Baroness Walmsley—urged Keir Starmer to "showcase cross-party consensus on the need for an integrated approach to the climate-nature crisis", adding:
We, Liberal Democrats, commend your and the Government's determination to elevate the UK's global climate and nature leadership. However, without legislation that unites our climate and nature plans, they will continue to be developed in isolation. This means your Great British Energy, clean energy and nature restoration ambitions may fail—and, equally worryingly—may make both crises worse.
Green Party of England and Wales, The Green Party have also supported the bill since its first introduction in 2020, and unlike the Liberal Democrats, pledged to deliver a Climate and Nature Act in their 2024 Westminster manifesto to "address the full extent of the climate and nature crisis in line with the most up-to-date science—and ensure a comprehensive and joined-up approach to the ecological emergency." Plaid Cymru, Social Democratic and Labour Party and Alliance Party of Northern Ireland officially support the bill.


London Assembly and Mayor

On 2 December 2021, the London Assembly passed a cross-party motion to back the bill proposed by Zack Polanski (deputy leader of the Green Party) and Leonie Cooper (Labour/Co-op). The
Mayor of London The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The current ...
, Sadiq Khan, subsequently confirmed his support on 15 July 2022. Other metro-mayors also support the bill.


Local councils

According to Zero Hour, 385 community, parish, town, district, borough, metropolitan, city, county and unitary councils have passed motions in support of the bill. Some local mayors are also supporters.


Nature and Climate Declaration

Over 2022, Zero Hour organised a UK-wide, all-party initiative—a ''Nature and Climate Declaration''—to attract the support of councillors, elected mayors, and devolved legislators in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to the key principles of the bill. Conservatives Andrew Boff and Sandesh Gulhane were signatories, alongside Welsh Labour's Jenny Rathbone. The then leaders of Alliance and SDLP—Naomi Long and
Colum Eastwood Colum Eastwood (born 30 April 1983) is an Irish nationalism, Irish nationalist politician who served as Social Democratic and Labour Party, Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) from 2015 to 2024. He has served as the Member o ...
—supported the ''Declaration'', as did the Member of the Legislative Assembly (Northern Ireland), Northern Ireland MLA, Gerry Carroll (People Before Profit) and DUP councillor, Stephen Ross. Angus Robertson (the SNP Government Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, Secretary for the Constitution) was also a signatory, as was Lorna Slater (Scottish Greens). It was supported by over 2,000 politicians across the UK nations when the ''Declaration'' was launched. It was debated in the Commons via a cross-party initiative led by (former Conservative MP) Derek Thomas on November 2022. In that debate, and on behalf of the Labour Party,
Ruth Jones Ruth Alexandra Elisabeth Jones (born 22 September 1966) is a Welsh actress, comedian, writer and producer. She co-wrote and co-starred in the critically acclaimed BBC sitcom ''Gavin & Stacey'' (2007–2010, 2019, 2024), for which she won the B ...
set out that a Starmer ministry, Labour Government would deliver a science-led, joined-up plan to tackle the climate and ecological emergency—adding that:
Tackling
biodiversity loss Biodiversity loss happens when plant or animal species disappear completely from Earth (extinction) or when there is a decrease or disappearance of species in a specific area. Biodiversity loss means that there is a reduction in Biodiversity, b ...
, climate change, and the Environmental health, environmental risks to the health of the public is the challenge of our time. This important ''Declaration'' and the
ill ILL, or Ill, or ill may refer to: Places * Ill (France), a river in Alsace, France, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Vorarlberg), a river in Vorarlberg, Austria, tributary of the Rhine * Ill (Saarland), a river of Saarland, Germany, tributary o ...
alongside it will be a huge step towards achieving those aims. abourunderstands the importance of the UK doing its fair share to cut emissions in order to stay below 1.5°C of global warming, [and has] committed to a robust net zero and nature test for every policy. We know that
climate action Climate action (or climate change action) refers to a range of activities, mechanisms, policy instruments, and so forth that aim at reducing the severity of human-induced climate change and its impacts. "More climate action" is a central demand o ...
must be
nature-positive Nature-positive is a concept and goal to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030, and to achieve full nature recovery by 2050. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, the aim is to achieve this through "measurable gains in the health, abundance ...
action—and that we must halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity by 2030 for the benefit of all people and the planet.
Jones also criticised the Conservatives' "inconsistent" policies—citing new oil licenses and coal mines—and the Government's "inadequate" Environment Act targets. The responding Minister—Trudy Harrison (Conservative)—defended the Government's net zero progress, tree planting, and peatland restoration—denying an "attack on nature".
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
(Green) and
Barry Gardiner Barry Strachan Gardiner (born 10 March 1957) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent North from 1997 until the seat's abolition in 2024 and Brent West since 2024. He is a member of the Labour Party. The s ...
(Labour) stressed the urgency of tackling the interconnected crises, whilst
Wera Hobhouse Wera Benedicta Hobhouse (' von Reden, 8 February 1960) is a British-German Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician who has been the Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath (UK Parliament constituency), Bath sinc ...
(Lib Dem) praised the ''Declaration'' and the bill's "holistic" approach.


Reactions

Rob Hopkins, co-founder of Transition Network and author o
'''From What Is to What If
wrote that:
A future in which this Bill has been implemented would be the time of our lives. Anything would feel possible. We would feel like there was, finally, a shared collective purpose. It would be transformative. Our cities would fill with trees, delicious air, performers, gardens and wildlife. Our countryside would once again buzz with biodiversity and wildness. While the impacts of climate change that we are already locked into wouldn’t somehow magically disappear, we would know we were now heading for a future that was the result of our having done everything we could possibly have done, rather than the result of our inaction, apathy and political paralysis.
John Harris (critic), John Harris wrote in ''The Guardian'' that:
The bill is a neat means of doing two things. It highlights how much our politicians are defying the urgency of the moment and—by presenting clear and precise proposals to drastically reduce carbon emissions and Biodiversity loss, restore biodiversity in the same typefaces and official vocabulary as the laws that define whole swathes of our lives—it makes the prospect of radical action eminently imaginable.
George Monbiot, journalist, author and environmental activist, wrote in ''The Guardian'' that:
[One of] three big policies I would try to insert into the [Labour Party's 2024] manifesto [is the Climate and Nature Bill], drafted by the Zero Hour campaign, which was presented to Parliament by
Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who was the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales from 2003 to 2006, 2007 to 2012, and 2016 to 2018. She was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parli ...
in 2020. Unlike current environmental laws, it tracks both the science and our international commitments. It would bring our reliance on fossil fuels to an end as quickly as possible and restore and expand our ecosystems.
Dale Vince, a green energy industrialist and founder of Ecotricity, said that:
If we’re serious about tackling the biggest threat we face, climate breakdown and nature’s destruction, we need the right laws to guide us, and we need them fast. Let’s be real, we’ve got a small window left and the next five years are make or break. That’s where the bill comes in. It’s the only thing out there that tackles the twin crises of climate and biodiversity at the same time.
Chris Skidmore, former Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Minister of State for Energy and Chair of th
''Net Zero Review''
(an initiative of an earlier Conservative Government), wrote in ''LabourList'' that:
It's time for a new generation to carry us forward. A Climate and Nature Act can deliver the bold, new, science-led framework Britain needs; and begin to restore the UK's position as a leader on climate and nature action. As the Climate Change Act did in 2008, this is the moment to offer hope. Hope that—yes—this generation of political leaders can turn the tide.
George McGavin, a zoologist, entomologist, and Research Associate at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, wrote in Comment Central that:
The UK already has the Climate Change and Environment Acts. Are they not enough? Sadly, no. Since the Climate Change Act was made, our understanding of the 1.5°C target has changed significantly. Sticking to these now outdated targets would leave the UK missing its Nationally determined contribution, international 2030 commitment by a third. Meanwhile, the Environment Act is not strong enough either, as we have signed up to more ambitious global targets since, with the aim of reversing nature loss by 2030, not just halting species populations decline by then.
Nathalie Pettorelli (Zoological Society of London) an
Paul Behrens
(University of Oxford) wrote in The Conversation (website), The Conversation that:
What we do now will dictate the future of our planet and our society. The bill presents us with a clear choice: we can either rise to the challenge of our time, safeguarding our planet and future generations, or continue down the path to destruction. The science is clear, the solutions are within reach, and the bill provides the roadmap.
Olympians—Etienne Stott (canoeist) and Sarah Winckless (rower)—said that:
The bill is about recognising the contribution and importance of nature, and protecting it forwards for future generations. We know how critical it is to restore nature and protect critical ecosystems here in the UK, and around the world. Healthy rivers, oceans and waterways are essential; not only the future of our sports, but also the future of our health.


Similar proposals

Some commentators have called for similar UK legislation to simultaneously address climate, nature and public health challenges. Others, such as WWF-UK, have proposed legislation to tackle a "triple challenge" of climate, nature and food security via a similarly joined up approach.


Opposition and criticism

According to ''The Guardian'', before the 24 January debate, Starmer ministry, Labour Ministers "insisted" on the removal of bill clauses that would have required the UK to meet the targets agreed to at 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COPs and other international summits. A Labour source was quoted as saying that the bill, as it stood, would have "forced the Government to renegotiate" its international climate change agreements. Many Shadow Cabinet of Kemi Badenoch, Conservatives—including Andrew Bowie—object to the bill's proposed citizens' assembly—arguing that it would "bind" Ministers to follow an "unelected and unaccountable" body's recommendations, which they see as "undemocratic". However, not all Conservatives are opposed to citizens' assemblies. Former Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Secretary of State for Business, Alok Sharma, welcomed Climate Assembly UK's work and report as "[representing] the very best of civil society, [showing] the benefits of working with a dedicated group that's been given time and information to consider complex issues in full". Opposing the bill in 2025, the National Federation of Builders said that, despite its "noble cause", the bill is likely to have "negative, unintended consequences that may cause more harm than they solve". Right wing commentators via ''GB News
,
' ''The Daily Sceptic, Daily Sceptic'', and ''The Spectator'' opposed the bill ahead of its second reading, though assertions that its enactment would "decimate the UK economy" lack detailed substantiation. Some (former) members of Reform UK and the Heritage Party (UK), Heritage Party]

voiced their opposition on social media, urging MPs to reject the bill due to perceived "threats" to jobs, property rights, and economic stability. Such skepticism to the bill was largely anecdotal and is not representative of broader Public opinion on climate change, public opinion. Countryside Alliance, The Countryside Alliance, which also opposes the bill, noted that many of these "attacks" were misinformed and "ill-founded", and stated that—though the Alliance supports decarbonisation and nature restoration—plans for achieving those aims "must be both viable and capable of maintaining public support, particularly from rural communities, [and the bill] is neither".


See also

*Climate change in the United Kingdom *Private Members' Bills in the Parliament of the United Kingdom *UK Climate Assembly *Climate Change Act 2008 *Environment Act 2021 *Paris Agreement, Paris Agreement 2015 *Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework 2022


References


Further reading

*{{cite news , url=https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-10176/CBP-10176.pdf , access-date=21 February 2025 , archive-date=21 February 2025 , title=Climate and Nature Bill 2024–25 , date=7 February 2025 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250221104241/https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-10176/CBP-10176.pdf , url-status=live , publisher=
House of Commons Library The House of Commons Library is the library and information resource of the lower house of the British Parliament. It was established in 1818, although its original 1828 construction was destroyed during the burning of Parliament in 1834. Th ...
, work=Research Briefing , first1=Nuala , last1=Burnett , last2=Ares , first2=Elena , number=10176 , first3=Iona , last3=Stewart


External links


Campaign for the Climate and Nature BillClimate and Ecology Bill
as introduced by Caroline Lucas in 2020
Climate and Ecology Bill
as introduced by Caroline Lucas in 2021
Climate and Ecology Bill
as introduced by Lord Redesdale in 2022
Climate and Ecology Bill
as introduced by Olivia Blake in 2023
Climate and Nature Bill
as introduced by Alex Sobel in 2024
Climate and Nature Bill
as introduced by Roz Savage in 2025 Proposed laws of the United Kingdom Open environmental policy proposals