Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of National Landscape status on biodiversity.

Natural England has the statutory responsibility for identifying areas for new or extended National Landscape designations.

National Landscapes have a statutory purpose to conserve and enhance natural beauty, and biodiversity is a key consideration within this purpose.

The Protected Landscapes Targets and Outcomes Framework is supporting delivery of our EIP and statutory biodiversity targets in Protected Landscapes, empowering Protected Landscape bodies, relevant authorities, farmers, land managers and other organisations to work together in planning and targeting resources and activity.

We have also extended our Farming in Protected Landscapes programme, providing £30 million to support nature recovery and other projects in our National Landscapes and National Parks, until March 2026.