Corporate report

Non-qualifying regulatory provisions summary report 2019 to 2020

Updated 21 December 2022

Applies to England

Regulator: Natural England

Non-qualifying regulatory provisions - 13 December 2019 to 16 December 2020

Excluded Category[footnote 1]	Summary of measure(s), including any impact data where available
Measures certified as being below de minimis (measures with an equivalent annual net direct cost to business (EANDCB) below +/- £5 million)	During the reporting period, Natural England made amendments to its wildlife licensing regime as follows: The addition of Stoats to Schedule 6ZA of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 following introduction of the Humane Trapping Standards 2019, now requires those engaged in trapping of the species to hold a General licence. It is not possible to quantify the cost to business of this move, but it is anticipated to be below de minimis due to the relatively low costs of accessing a General licence and the long lead in time provided by the international agreement on which the Standards are based which has enabled trap suppliers and users to conform with the new requirement. Moved the control of both herring and lesser black backed gulls from a General to an Individual Licence. It has not been possible to quantify the costs of this move to business as no baseline data on the cost of General licensing for gulls was available. Natural England will work with Defra to quantify the cost of this change following the 2021 breeding season and report thereafter.
EU Regulations, Decisions and Directives and other international obligations, including the implementation of the EU Withdrawal Bill and EU Withdrawal Agreement	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Measures certified as concerning EU Withdrawal Bill operability measures	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Pro-competition	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Systemic Financial Risk	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Civil Emergencies	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Fines and Penalties	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Misuse of Drugs	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Measures certified as relating to the safety of tenants, residents and occupants in response to the Grenfell tragedy	Following consideration of the exclusion category there are no measures for the reporting period that qualify for the exclusion.
Casework	13 December 2019 and 16 December 2020 Natural England responded to 49,874 items of casework. See the Casework breakdown below.
Education, communications and promotion	Natural England has continued to update and make minor amendments to 106 pieces of guidance on GOV.UK, covering wildlife management, protected species and protected areas in response to customer feedback and requests. It made 20 new publications available on its Access to Evidence portal, which includes the Agri environment Evidence Annual Report. It has published 213 items of new information on GOV.UK including corporate reports, updates to its services, policy and an outline for a shared vision to use nature-based solutions to tackle the climate emergency. Also included was training, advice and grant support for farmers and land managers to reduce water and air pollution from agriculture. It continues to make available, free of charge, maps and geographic information through its MAGIC website as well as updating and maintaining its designated sites database.
Activity related to policy development	During the BIT reporting period, Natural England supported Defra in its ongoing consultations around wildlife management and protected species. The organisation also published 46 open access restriction consultations or reported on their outcomes. It published proposals or updates on 70 stretches of the England Coastal Path and 7 Marine Area Site Packages. It also provided 30 updates relevant to Countryside stewardship.
Changes to management of regulator	Natural England appointed Marian Spain as Chief Executive of Natural England in May 2020. Four new members were appointed to the Natural England Board, with effect from Monday 1 June in line with the introduction of the Natural England Roadmap and the focus on four programmes of work.

Casework breakdown

Area of work	Number
Terrestrial planning consultations	26,645
Marine planning consultations	1,243
Wildlife Licensing applications	15,861
SSSI and Land Management Consents/Assents	6,125

1. For full, legal definitions of these exclusion categories, please see https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2018-06-20/HCWS776/ ↩