Question

To ask the hon. Member for Battersea, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps she is taking to support the campaign to rewild 30% of Church owned land.

The Church Commissioners have engaged with the campaign and note that ‘30 by 30’ is a national target, not one set for individual landowners. As a charity with duties to generate sustainable returns to support the Church’s work, the Commissioners’ rural portfolio comprises over 90% Grade 1-3 (productive to very productive land) and is 100% tenanted, which shapes how land use change can be delivered in practice. The Church Commissioners support nature recovery across the estate in a wide range of ways, including through participation in the National Estate for Nature (NEN) and other environmental schemes. They have also recently published an Estate Management Plan which includes nature-based targets and commitments alongside sustainable food production

At the recent IPE Real Estate Global Conference in Rome the Church Commissioners won two awards in the Biodiversity and Environmental Sustainability categories in recognition for their work across the Real Assets team covering the stewardship of the portfolio, which spans forestry, farmland, commercial real estate, and heritage buildings.