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Environment and business leaders urge UK government to get biodiversity net gain back on track

An open letter from industry leaders and environmental charities is published today urging the UK Government to get Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) back on track across England.

The letter (1) follows recent proposals to remove small and medium-sized developments from Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) commitments, a move The Wildlife Trusts has warned represents a weakening of the policy. 

Addressed to the Prime Minister, the letter, which has been co-signed by Knight Frank, Schroders Wealth Management and Triodos Bank among others, says: “Our collective voice sends a clear message: weakening BNG would come at a high cost, setting back this fast-developing economy and more widely threatening business confidence in nature policy.”  

According to The Wildlife Trusts, BNG is critical to unlocking win-wins for nature and development, having been introduced to ensure that new developments leave the natural environment in a better state than they found it.  

The Wildlife Trusts have joined forces with business leaders including finance providers and developers to call for BNG to be embedded in all development plans, no matter their size. 

The policy, they argue, is already delivering results for nature, businesses and communities, with nearly 100 sites now working to create habitats and greenspaces alongside new homes and infrastructure. The resulting Biodiversity Net Gain, when done well, benefits local residents and wildlife alike while also increasing neighbourhoods’ resilience to climate change, helping to safeguard communities from harms such as flooding and extreme heat. 

Joan Edwards OBE, director of policy and public affairs at The Wildlife Trusts, says: 

“Over recent months, we have been clear that nature and development must work hand in hand to deliver growth. Even small developments can have a huge impact on wildlife, and so if the legal requirement for Biodiversity Net Gain is lost from small sites, nature will be squeezed into smaller and smaller pockets.  

“Instead, Biodiversity Net Gain offers a real chance to align businesses and the nature-loving British public around a common goal; more nature-friendly spaces to live, work and relax in. This policy could be the cornerstone of a thriving economy, but a nature-positive future can only become a reality with the right support and direction from Government.” 

Common-spotted orchid - (Dactylorhiza fuchsii), Hardington Moor NNR, Somerset

Common-spotted orchid  Guy Edwardes/2020VISION

In order to reinstate businesses’ confidence in delivering BNG, the signatories to the letter argue that small and medium-sized developments must not be made exempt from protecting wildlife and making up for the loss of nature. Developments of this size represent a key driver of demand in the developing nature market, with around 80% of BNG allocation (2) being linked to minor developments in the year since the policy was introduced. 

Recent research from Wildlife and Countryside Link and Eftec (3) revealed that if developments up to and including 1hectare (ha) are exempt from the BNG requirement, 24,220 ha (an area equivalent to the size of nearly 35,000 football pitches) of extra developed land will not be required to deliver any mitigation for damage done to wildlife and habitats. This would also represent a loss of funding for nature’s recovery equivalent to around £250m per year.  

The progress BNG has so far made to ensure homes and infrastructure are nature-positive could therefore be undermined, The Wildlife Trusts warn, in removing this significant proportion of developments. Doing so could also result in fewer greenspaces which often benefit not just wildlife but are also enjoyed by residents for play and exercise, boosting the health and wellbeing outcomes of local communities. 

Joan Edwards OBE continues: 

“We’re standing shoulder to shoulder with industry leaders – from finance providers and developers to landowners and conservationists - to urge the Government to bolster their support for BNG, putting the mechanisms in place to ensure that all developments, no matter their size, can deliver for businesses, communities and nature. Weakening BNG at this pivotal moment would be a step backwards for both growth and nature’s recovery, and a huge missed opportunity to drive this world-leading policy forwards.” 

Having recently tabled amendments to Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, following months of campaigning by The Wildlife Trusts and other environmental organisations, the Government has committed to prioritising the avoidance of harm to wildlife in their plans to deliver 1.5 million homes.  

With this growth agenda in mind, The Wildlife Trusts are urging members of the public to get involved with the Government’s consultation on the proposed changes to Biodiversity Net Gain. Having already amassed over 10,000 responses, The Wildlife Trusts’ easy response action is live until the consultation closes at 23:59 on Thursday 24th July 2025.

Read the full letter to the Prime Minister

The Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer KCB KC MP 

Prime Minister 

10 Downing Street 

London 

SW1A 2AA 

 

24 July 2025

 

Dear Prime Minister, 

Biodiversity Net Gain could be a cornerstone for a thriving economy, with the right support and direction 

We write as a group of businesses and organisations who are united in strong support for the UK’s global leadership on Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). Our collective voice sends a clear message: weakening BNG would come at a high cost, setting back this fast-developing economy and more widely threatening business confidence in nature policy. 

The Treasury-commissioned Dasgupta Review made clear that nature and the economy are fundamentally linked. It called for a new economic approach that recognises the essential role of nature in sustaining long-term growth. 

BNG is a critical part of this new economic approach. This world-leading policy has established a consistent way of measuring improvements to wildlife habitats in association with development.  A new green market is growing, creating jobs and upping investment in rural and coastal areas, furthering the Government’s growth mission.  The burgeoning marketplace is starting to show its full value: ever more sites are being added to the BNG sites register, now standing at 97 across England with many more in the pipeline.

We fear the proposed changes to BNG, which are under consultation, threaten to undermine this progress by weakening requirements for minor and medium-sized developments. To date, these developments have been a main driver of demand in the developing market, with the majority of the number of allocations (around 80%) from the Biodiversity Gain Site Register to minor development. A recent study conducted by Eftec, commissioned by Lifescapes and Wildlife and Countryside Link, found that if developments up to and including 1ha are exempted from the BNG requirement, 24,220 ha of extra developed land will fall outside the BNG requirement and lead to avoided BNG compensation payments of a possible £250m/ year. The full findings of this study can be found HERE.

While local solutions aren’t always available for minor and medium developments yet, removing this demand will stifle the marketplace and neglect the vast potential of these developments to contribute to nature’s recovery. Instead of permanent changes and exemptions, temporary solutions, such as supporting SMEs to access offsite BNG units, could create conditions in which the marketplace can further flourish and become fully functioning. 

Although BNG is not yet perfect, it is a solid foundation on which to build a strengthening and improving market that delivers for nature, business, and communities alike. 

According to the Green Finance Institute, nature-related risks could result in losses of £150 to £300 billion to the UK’s GDP by 2030. Addressing this scale of risk will require innovative, blended finance approaches, of which BNG forms part. In the Nature Markets Framework, Government set a goal for at least £500 million of private investment to flow into nature recovery every year by 2027, rising to more than £1 billion by 2030. 

Despite this, the proposed relaxation of the BNG requirements, at just the moment that the sector has got itself geared up and ready to implement them, creates significant uncertainty in a nascent market that depends on long-term commitments and private investment. Long-term stability is vital to ensure consistent demand and supply and maintain investor confidence in nature markets. 

Businesses understand the need to invest in nature. Many are advancing sustainability commitments, and actively seeking to support nature-positive outcomes aligned with the Global Biodiversity Framework. They recognise that restoring biodiversity is essential not only for environmental reasons, but also for economic stability and resilience. 

As the UK faces urgent environmental and economic challenges, there is a unique opportunity to lead by example. Weakening BNG at this pivotal moment would be a step backwards, particularly as the Government seeks to expand private investment in nature recovery, as highlighted in its recent call for evidence. 

Instead, we urge the Government to stay the course, strengthen implementation, and build on this policy’s early success. The chronic under resourcing of council planning departments must be addressed to improve the pace of the planning system and deliver on the ambition required to see the natural world thrive alongside development across the UK. With the right support and direction, BNG can be a cornerstone of a thriving nature economy - and a lasting legacy of environmental leadership. 

Yours sincerely,

Roland Bull, Head of Rural, Bidwells

Andy Jasper, CEO, Eden Project

Guy Thompson, Managing Director, EnTrade

Catherine Spitzer, CEO, Environment Bank

Richard Speak, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Finance Earth

Zoe Le Grand, Managing Director UK/EU Team, Forum for the Future

Alistair Maltby, SVP Commercial, Great Yellow

Morgan Taylor, Director, Greengage Environmental

James Farrell, Proprietary Partner, Head of Rural Consultancy, Knight Frank LLP

Hilary McGrady, Director General, National Trust

Archie Struthers, CEO, Nattergal 

Dr Rich Stockdale, CEO, Oxygen Conservation

Jane Madgwick, Chief Executive, Plantlife

Robert Gardner, CEO and Co-Founder, Rebalance Earth

James Vaccaro, CEO, Repattern

Jon Davies FCIEEM, Director, RSK Wilding and RSK Biocensus

Beccy Speight, Chief Executive Officer, RSPB

Oliver Gregson, CEO, Schroders Wealth Management 

Anna Woodley, Managing Director, Trinity Natural Capital Group Ltd

Mark Clayton, CEO, Triodos Bank UK

Ben Heaven Taylor, CEO, Trust for Oxfordshire’s Environment

Cressida Curtis, Group Sustainability Director, Wates Group

Glenn Anderson, Strategy Lead, Wendling Beck

Richard Benwell, Chief Executive, Wildlife & Countryside Link

Anita Eade, Director of Fundraising, Marketing & Communications, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust

Craig Bennett, Chief Executive, The Wildlife Trusts

Abi Bunker, Director of Conservation and External Affairs, The Woodland Trust

 

CC

The Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP; 

The Rt Hon Angela Rayner MP; 

The Rt Hon Steve Reed OBE MP 

Editor's notes

  1. Read the full open letter, addressed to the Prime Minister, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Steve Reed here: 24-Jul - Open Letter to Prime Minister BNG.pdf
  2. To date, the majority (around 80 %) of allocations from the Biodiversity Gain Site Register are to minor development and a high proportion (around 75%) of these sales have been of fractional units - Consultation on improving the implementation of BNG for minor medium and brownfield development.pdf
  3. Removal of small developments’ requirement to deliver BNG would remove 24,220 ha of extra developed land representing funding loss of around £250m per year according to research from Eftec, The Lifescape Project and Wildlife and Countryside Link
  4. Using The Wildlife Trusts’ form, you can send a response straight to the BNG consultation here   

 

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