Consultation on the Conservation (Natural Habitats) Regulations
On 8th May, the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) issued a consultation seeking views on the draft Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) (Amendment) (England and Wales) Regulations 2006, in particular changes made to the regulations since the last public consultation in 2003.
On 6th August 2003 Defra carried out a consultation on a number of proposed amendments to the Habitats Regulations for England. The amendments were principally to address a number of gaps and inconsistencies in the transposition of the Habitats Directive and to provide greater legal certainty in a number of areas. A similar consultation was carried out for Wales.
Following the consultation in 2003 the transposition of the Habitats Directive in the United Kingdom was subject to two European Court of Justice judgments. The amendments now subject to consultation include:
(a) amendments to take into account changes required to meet these court judgments;
(b) amendments taking into account the responses to the previous consultations in England and Wales; and
(c) other amendments considered desirable to ensure the regulations meet the requirements of the Directive.
The deadline for receipt of consultee responses is 30 June 2006. Electronic copies of the consultation document can be obtained from: www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/current.htm.
Source: http://www.defra.gov.uk/ (accessed 05/06/06)