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The Conservative Party is poised to break yet another environmental pledge as its bid to ban the sale of peat compost to gardeners looks set to fail. I can be revealed.
The extraction of peat for use in gardens has played a major role in causing significant damage to England’s peatlands, to the point that they are now largely degraded.
Boris Johnson’s government has pledged to take steps to make environmentally compromised soil illegal for domestic use by the end of 2024, but Rishi Sunak has not made it a priority and this parliament will refused to introduce the bill.
Instead, a bill was introduced to ban the I The company understands that the second reading, scheduled for next week, is unlikely to pass. This means gardeners can still buy bags of peat at garden stores this year.
Parliamentary sources said it would be “difficult” for the government to find time to re-introduce legislation through preliminary legislation that would increase the chances of it being passed by MPs before a general election expected this autumn.
Labor has not said whether it will reserve parliamentary time if the party wins the election, but that is unlikely to be a key priority in Sir Keir Starmer’s first weeks in office. .
A private member’s bill, Horticulture Peat: Ban on Sale, was introduced in the House of Commons last month by former Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers and several fellow Conservative MPs.
However, Conservative MP Sir Christopher Chope opposed the ban in the Commons and is expected to block it by shouting “No!” – This is enough to invalidate the bill – when it goes to second reading on Friday.
The bill is also number 22 on the list of backbench bills to be debated, raising concerns from campaigners that it will die.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) remained committed to the policy and insisted the Government would set out its plans after reading Mr Villiers’ bill twice.
But parliamentary officials say the “challenge” will be finding time to introduce new government legislation between now and the summer recess, or after that, when the prime minister is scheduled to be in parliament for just a few days. He says it will happen. Call autumn elections.
Johnson’s government has pledged to make peat illegal for domestic use by 2024 and for commercial use by 2030. In 2022, when the ban was announced, 70% of peat sold in the UK was sold in the retail sector.
According to the Wildlife Trust, 87 per cent of England’s peatlands have been degraded and damaged due to peat sales.
According to a government consultation, 95% of Brits support a ban.
In recent years, increasing awareness of the environmental damage caused by peat mining has led to a decline in peat usage, from 2.3 million cubic meters in 2020 to 950,000 cubic meters in 2022.
In the amateur horticulture sector, this was reduced by two-thirds, from 1.5 million cubic meters in 2020 to 471,000 cubic meters in 2022.
But opponents say the horticulture industry has not come up with a sufficiently effective and mass-producible peat-free soil alternative.
Iris Watt, head of communications at the Wildlife Trust, said: “We need the UK Government to push forward with this bill to ensure it does not break new environmental commitments.” Banning the sale of bagged peat compost is a very popular and essential policy.
“Leaving this to the next government is too late and will ignore the views of the people who believe this should be the law.”
The Conservative Environment Network, which worked with Mr Villiers to develop the bill, used the opportunity to call on ministers to ban the statute.
Kitty Thompson, CEN Nature Programs Senior Manager, said: “Eliminating the use of peat products in horticulture has been a long-standing ambition of successive Conservative governments.
“Peat sales have degraded and damaged 87 per cent of England’s peatlands. The government is currently spending millions of pounds to restore them.
“As this Parliament draws to a close and opportunities to legislate are scarce, MP Theresa Villiers’ bill will allow the Government to deliver on a long-standing commitment and gain political recognition for its peatland restoration efforts. .
“The Government must seize this opportunity to implement a ban on peat in horticulture, otherwise the problems facing our peatlands will continue.
“Removing this impetus for peat extraction would send a clear signal from the government that it is serious about protecting peatlands, and would encourage gardeners to ensure that their purchases do not harm the environment elsewhere by secretly storing peat. It gives you confidence knowing you are not causing destruction.”
However, Sir Christopher opposed the ban during its first reading last month, saying the bill would “not be unopposed”.
He said the bill “is not based on science or facts, is another exercise in charade politics, and appears disproportionate.” This should be remembered as another day when Banner appears to be out to destroy other people’s legitimate activities. ”
The Christchurch MP, who is himself a keen gardener, added: “If you have been to a botanical center in the past year or so, you will have noticed that the quality of those products has dropped significantly with the move to peat-free products.
“Plant longevity is decreasing because the plants do not have the natural water retention capacity provided by peat in their pots and cannot be replaced with peat alternatives.
“As a result, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the domestic horticulture industry to cope with pressures to reduce peat consumption.”
He said that although many of the plants sold in UK garden centers come from the Netherlands, there were no plans to ban peat in the Netherlands and that banning its use in the country would create “further unfair trade relations with the Netherlands”. “Competition” will be encouraged, he added.
A Defra spokesperson said: “We remain committed to ending the use of horticultural peat across the country.”
“Since setting out our plan to ban the sale of peat in 2022, we have reduced our use of peat by 59 per cent and continue to work extensively with industry towards a peat-free horticulture sector.”