Draft Environment (Wales) Bill introduced

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The Welsh Government has today (Monday the 2nd June, 2025) introduced its Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets) (Wales) Bill.

The three primary purposes of the bill are to:

  1. establish environmental principles and an environmental objective;
  2. establish an independent environmental governance body, the Office of Environmental Governance Wales (“the OEGW”);
  3. establish a biodiversity target setting framework aimed at halting and reversing the decline in biodiversity in Wales, as well as imposing a duty on the Welsh Ministers to promote awareness in Wales of the importance of, and the threats to, biodiversity.

While environmental organisations in Wales — including Wales Environment Link (WEL) — welcome the introduction of the bill, there are widespread concerns that it does not go far enough to meet the urgency of the nature crisis or sufficiently address the gaps in environmental law, governance, and action in Wales.

WEL have said that in order for the bill to deliver on its full potential, it is essential that it:

  • Clearly enshrines environmental principles and a duty of integration in law, recognising biodiversity as the foundation of a healthy, sustainable planet.
  • Establishes a genuinely independent governance body, with the authority and resources it needs to fulfil its remit.
  • Introduces a robust and ambitious targets framework that drives immediate action for nature.

CIEEM responded to a White Paper on the bill in 2024, outlining what we consider to be important to it’s success. We will be reading the bill closely in the coming days.