Smoke from industrial action in the environment

As the Environment Bill faces scrutiny in the House of Lords, we explore how the proposed ‘environmental review’ can avoid being a toothless remedy to enforcing the law.

Our Briefing sets out why we support Amendments 27 and 28 to ensure the proposed new Office for Environmental Protection has adequate enforcement mechanisms, particularly in respect to environmental review and the resulting implications for the rule of law.

Read PLP’s House of Lords Report Stage Briefing

PLP has also submitted a response to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) consultation on amending the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) to establish environmental review.

Amendments to the CPR are needed to establish environmental review in the High Court, but proposals in the Bill unnecessarily burden interveners – a key role in upholding an environmental review procedure that seeks to promote transparency, accountability and good governance – with new requirements for submitting evidence which will be detrimental to the quality, timing and positive impact that interventions can make.

Read PLP’s response to the DEFRA consultation to establish ‘environmental review’