2 December 2025
Today statistics on the UK Biodiversity Indicators were released. They show broadly a trend of decline in the long-term and short-term. For species, only 2 indicators are improving in the long term and none in the short term.
The numbers show particular problems for specialist species which rely on woodland, wetland or farmland, such as turtle doves, corn buntings, and marsh tits. As the EIP recognised yesterday, the continuing decline of nature will result in economic and public health losses too.
Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link, said:
“Today’s biodiversity figures show business-as-usual is failing wildlife. We have strong ambitions on paper – but these indicators show we are far off track to meet our legal nature targets. Nature cannot recover on the back of isolated projects. We need consistent regulation, funding, and enforcement across farming, planning, water and infrastructure.
“People across the country want richer wildlife, cleaner rivers and thriving green spaces, but today’s data shows that reality is moving the other way. Government must treat this with the seriousness they would in any national crisis: not a sideshow, but an economy-wide, country-wide programme of national renewal. That means fully funded recovery plans, strong legal targets, and urgent action to restore habitats, revive species, and make nature an organising principle of policy.”
Today's biodiversity indicators come off the back of the latest Environmental Improvement Plan yesterday, read here.
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