The government will not meet its commitments to stop biodiversity loss by 2030 if it scraps new payments to incentivise wildlife-friendly farming in England, the head of its nature watchdog has said.
Tony Juniper, the chair of Natural England, told the environment secretary, Ranil Jayawardena, in a letter this week that if the government did not keep its commitment to move from area-based farm payments to “public money for public goods” – rewarding farmers for work to replenish soil, prevent floods and restore pollinators – it will not meet its legally binding target to halt biodiversity decline by 2030.
