Financial Services and Markets Bill

Debate between Lord Randall of Uxbridge and Baroness Boycott

Consideration of Commons amendments
Tuesday 27th June 2023 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Boycott (CB)]

My Lords, I will speak to Amendment 36, which was in my name and those of the noble Baronesses, Lady Sheehan and Lady Chapman, and the noble Lord, Lord Randall. I echo the words of the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, by thanking the Minister very much for the time she spent working with us on this amendment and trying to lay out exactly why it has not quite passed. I am super grateful for the efforts that were made. I support everything that the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, just said. We have to make sure that nature runs through everything we do like a stick of Brighton rock. It is extremely important. We cannot survive without it.

Amendment 36 would have introduced mandatory checks to protect the UK financial sector from lending to or investing in companies that engage in illegal deforestation and land grabs against indigenous peoples. It passed a vote in our House, which was wonderful, but sadly it was defeated in the other place, so instead of a new law to stop finance flowing to companies that plunder the environment, I am afraid we have ended up with another review.

I say that with sadness, because we have only just finished the last review into how to stop deforestation finance. That was the three-year inquiry by the Government’s expert body, the Global Resource Initiative —GRI—task force. I suppose many people have said this, but I will say it again: just to commission another review until one of them churns out an acceptable policy is not great governing. The GRI task force was composed of finance and business leaders, as well as civil society. It was excellently put together. It was tasked to provide a cross-sector blueprint to reduce the UK’s contribution to deforestation. In May last year—just over a year ago—it recommended that UK financial services firms should be obliged to check for the risk of any deforestation, legal and illegal, as well as any human rights abuses. The GRI recommended a due diligence regime much more far reaching than the one we proposed under Amendment 36, which, I hasten to emphasise, was limited to illegal deforestation only. Even the financial sector itself does not want this approach, as evidenced by the fact that investors representing £2.7 trillion publicly supported our amendment.

I will not push this Motion to another vote but, given the strength of support we have seen and the consensus behind the introduction of mandatory due diligence, I will ask the Minister for three clarifications. First, can she confirm that the Treasury’s review will put forward a specific proposal for a comprehensive due diligence system to prevent the financing of deforestation rather than another re-evaluation of what type of intervention is needed? It is vital that we do not waste any more time or money repeating the work of Sir Ian Cheshire and his GRI task force. This is not an excuse to wriggle out of due diligence and derogate to more reporting under frameworks such as the TNFD, which we discussed extensively at our meeting last week. I really hope to see a much more ambitious plan.

Secondly, can the Minister confirm that all forest risk commodities will be regulated under Schedule 17 to the Environment Act? Thirdly and finally, can she confirm here today a final date for when the now extremely delayed secondary regulations under Schedule 17 to the Environment Act will be made? The Treasury’s review will be limited at the moment to an investigation of how the UK finances prohibited commodities. This is fraught with problems, not least the fact that these regulations are nearly two years delayed. It also means that if the Government choose not to cover all forest risk commodities in that regime, the review will not be worth anything. For example, Defra’s June 2022 consultation proposed covering only two commodities. There were 14,000 respondents, and 99% of responses said that the law should cover all forest risk commodities, including cattle, palm oil, soy, rubber, cocoa, coffee and maize. This is the approach that the EU has taken. We risk becoming a laughing stock if our apparently world-leading secondary regulations cover only cocoa and soy, for instance.

To sum up, I am thankful that the Minister and the Economic Secretary have adopted a sensible proposal to allow the country’s financial regulators to address the threat of biodiversity loss. Our regulators should pay attention to nature because it is the bedrock of all our systems, but there is an irony to accept that an amendment merely commissioning a review into deforestation is all we are going to do. I spoke last week to the head of science at Kew, Alex Antonelli, and asked him to give me the up-to-date data from Kew about the state of deforestation across the world. He told me that illegal logging is the most important resource crime in the world and is valued at between $52 billion and $157 billion a year. Illegally obtained timber accounts for between 10% and 30% of all global timber that we all use, but in south-east Asia, central Africa and South America, between 50% and 90% is illegally obtained, so I think that the Government’s efforts need to be speeded up. But I will not oppose Motion C, and I thank the Minister for her considerations.

[Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con)]

My Lords, it is a great privilege to follow the noble Baronesses, Lady Boycott and Lady Hayman. I congratulate my noble friend the Minister on her diligence in trying to come to some solution to our demands. As we have just heard, it is not quite what we wanted but it is getting there, pretty much. Personally, I am sure that the Minister shares our concerns, but sometimes the Treasury is a bit like one’s parents in saying, “You can’t have it all at once; you have to wait and be ready for it”.

I reiterate the questions asked by the noble Baroness, Lady Boycott, regarding regulating all forest risk commodities under the secondary regulations, and ask also for a firm date. I am delighted that we have got as far as we have but I would say, not just to my noble friend the Minister but to all other noble friends and Ministers, that we will not rest here. As we have heard, deforestation is one of the biggest crimes going on in the world and a threat to us all. We shall continue with this.