IEMA evidence cited by MPs in EU policy report IEMA evidence was widely quoted in a report on the UK's role in Europe published last month by the House of Commons environmental audit committee.
With the referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU being held on 23 June, the report explores the influence of the UK in EU policymaking. Setting the context, the opening summary states: ‘On the one hand, the EU has led the UK to improve environmental standards in areas such as air and water pollution and biodiversity.
It has also given the UK a platform to pursue its environmental objectives internationally and has provided access to a useful pool of knowledge. On the other hand, the UK has been a major player in the EU, influencing the strategic and long-term direction of EU environmental policy and the design of specific laws and policies. The UK’s membership of the EU has ensured environmental action was taken on a faster timetable and more thoroughly than would otherwise have been the case.’
The committee held its inquiry into UK membership of the EU in November 2015 and IEMA submitted seven pages and 32 points of written evidence. The report comments on the environmental impact assessment directive, referencing IEMA’s 2011 report, The State of Environmental Impact Assessment Practice, as well as the EU emissions trading system, the energy efficiency directive, environmental taxes, the role of standards, and the pitfalls of policy overlap and/or inconsistency.
As well as referencing the EIA study, the committee’s report incorporates eight of IEMA’s evidence points, including the institute’s belief that the UK has been a key player in influencing and supporting the EU’s role as an international environmental negotiator and has been prominent in the development of new environmental policies in Europe.
The report also referenced the institute’s view that environmental standards could be improved if the UK government took a more ambitious approach to implementation.
IEMA’s evidence was cited alongside contributions from more than 50 influential bodies, including the Aldersgate Group, Friends of the Earth and the Institute for European Environmental Policy.
The full report, including links to IEMA’s full evidence document, is available at bit.ly/26nIWWN.
