Marine Legislation Working Group

Chair (Policy): Joan Edwards, The Wildlife Trusts
Vice Chair: Sharon Thomson, RSPB
Secretary: Joanna Fisher

The Marine Legislation Working Group works to ensure better protection of marine wildlife and effective management of our seas by seeking the full implementation of the Marine and Coastal Access Act. The group also monitors marine BAP activities and is considering its role in the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy and implementation of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

QUARTERLY UPDATE: April to June 2010

Work continues apace for Link’s Marine Legislation Working Group on the implementation of the Marine and Coastal Access Act. This quarter we submitted a Joint Links response to the pre-consultation discussion paper on the draft UK Marine Policy Statement (MPS). Link expressed a number of concerns with the draft, including its lack of steer and insufficient integration of sustainable development and the ecosystem-based approach. Defra is now re-drafting the MPS ahead of a formal consultation over the summer.

Earlier this year, Natural England and JNCC published their Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) Project draft Ecological Network Guidance. The draft guidance excluded nearly all mobile species as features for which MCZs should be selected; an issue that greatly concerned Link. We outlined these concerns in a briefing on mobile marine species, which was sent to the Board members of Natural England and JNCC as well as the Marine Protected Area Science Advisory Panel. Link was disappointed that these concerns were not taken on board, and that the final version of the MCZ Ecological Network Guidance, which was published in May, still excludes nearly all mobile species. Link will continue to call for the regional MCZ projects to locate MCZs so as to meet the conservation needs of mobile species.

In May Link had an encouraging meeting with Defra’s Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) Team, during which Defra agreed with us on a number of the points we had made in our response to the UK Government and Devolved Administrations’ consultation on the draft MSFD Regulations earlier this year. The final Marine Strategy Regulations have now been laid before Parliament and are due to come into force in July.

Link members attended the launch event of the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) in June. Following the launch, Link had an introductory meeting with the MMO Chief Executive and other key staff where we were able to outline our priorities for implementation of the Marine Act and our expectations of the MMO.

Link published a new leaflet in June; Marine Planning Principles, which is being distributed to key marine stakeholders. We are also launching a new series of Marine Act Bulletins to be sent to MPs to gain and maintain their support for the Marine Act. The first bulletin in the series, ‘Making the Marine Acts Work: the path to effective implementation’, summarises the provisions within the Act and outlines what needs to be done to implement the legislation effectively.

Follow the links on the right to view our recent publications.