The chief executive is away...This week LI Policy Chair Noel Farrer on:
The White Paper on the environment – The Natural Choice: securing the value of nature; Landscapes of the Future from the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology; and the launch of the National Ecosystem Assessment.
I attended the Landscapes of the Future launch at the House of Commons this week, discussing not only the new ‘POST Note’ on the Future of Landscape but also the Government’s first White Paper on the environment for 20 years. This is a fantastic platform for the landscape agenda and an opportunity not to be missed.
It is clear from the White Paper that the government are taking seriously their pledge to be the ‘greenest-ever’ government and are even using language that demonstrates this. Caroline Spelman opens by expounding on the basic human need for landscapes that we all ‘cherish’ for individual well-being as well as safe-guarding the inheritance of future generations. They are looking to ‘strengthen connections between people and nature’ – a message I have been advocating for many years. The White Paper also recognises the European Landscape Convention and Green Infrastructure. So far so good.
There is however, an undeniable tension when understanding the relationship between the economic agenda and that of the social and environmental. The Paper sets out the case that sustainable economic growth goes hand-in-hand with meeting improvements in social and environmental sustainability. Great! I whole-heartedly believe getting the social and the environmental right is central to the economic goal.
My greatest fear, however, is that the drive behind this Paper (as well as the Localism Bill, the NPPF and the NEA) is without doubt, an economic one. So when the economic agenda directly conflicts with the environmental and social, we are left wondering how much the government will truly ‘value’ landscape, as their language at first glance may suggest. I remain sceptical.
So, whilst there is great joy to be taken from the sudden spotlight that our landscapes have received, I do not believe that landscape can simply be used as a vehicle for economic growth. We need to continue to press for changes that will benefit our landscapes first and foremost, recognising that getting this right is important to meeting the government’s long term economic goals.
The National Planning Policy Framework
It is critical that following the demise of Regional Spatial Strategies, the forthcoming National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) enables the promising intentions and initiatives outlined in the White Paper to actually be delivered on the ground as a matter of course.
The forthcoming NPPF is critical to our work as landscape professionals. The Landscape Institute’s Policy Committee will be leading on a response to the consultation document, expected shortly. But all of you can have a say in the proposals so please contact Stephen Russell, Policy and Public Affairs Officer, to get involved. This affects you!
Thank you and congratulations!
Finally it remains for me to offer many congratulations this week: