Environmental NGOs have written to Nature Minister Mary Creagh, Environment Secretary Steve Reed and Chancellor Rachel Reeves, urging the Government not to cut funding for research into temperate rainforests.
Last December, the then Government published a temperate rainforests strategy for England, which included a commitment to invest £750,000 on research into protecting England's rainforests.
However, an FOI request by Lost Rainforests of England has established that this funding remains unallocated. There are fears that the new Government may cut this funding in the upcoming Budget - a cut that, the NGOs argue, would be a big mistake.
The letter, signed by the National Trust, Woodland Trust, Plantlife, Wildlife Trusts, Thousand Year Trust and Guy Shrubsole, author of The Lost Rainforests of Britain, urges the government to keep the funding.
"Temperate rainforests are a vital part of our country’s biodiversity and heritage, as well as having a vital role to play in helping combat the climate crisis. The Government cannot achieve its ambitious national and global biodiversity targets without protecting and restoring this habitat", they write.
"To save England’s rare rainforest habitat, investment into research and development to support landscape scale management is vital. We understand the current pressures on public finances but this is a relatively small sum which would have a significant impact. We urge you to maintain this commitment and ensure that the funds are made available for delivery without further delay."
You can read the letter in full here:
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