Share

‘Please don’t let us down’ wildlife youth group’s plea to MPs

If you’ve been lucky enough to have not had your hope of a liveable future destroyed by our current government, let me quickly destroy it for you now: earlier this year, the government introduced their new Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Part 3 of this bill is being heavily criticised and campaigned against as it removes the (already subpar) existing protections nature has against developers. Instead, developers are to pay into a pot of money which very vaguely promises to pay for the offsetting of habitat and species loss. 

Even when done well, these ‘cash to trash’ schemes don’t come close to replacing what’s been lost. This is terrifying news for nature and people. As we’ve reiterated in our messaging around this bill, nature underpins our health, food and economy and shouldn’t be viewed as something separate to us. 

A group of students at a youth forum meeting

At the last youth forum meeting which took place in the Green Heart Venue of Chesterblade Hills, the youth forum dedicated the afternoon to learning about the Planning and Infrastructure Bill and deciding how to campaign against it.

After brushing up on the heart-breaking basics (the government sacrificing what remains of UK wildlife in the name of ‘growth’), we had some further questions, one being if any land was safe from the reaches of this Bill. We were pretty horrified to find out that not even sites dedicated for wildlife conservation such as SSIs or Ramsar sites would still be protected if this bill becomes law: it fundamentally weakens almost all laws in place to protect wildlife from development. 

Those in the youth forum studying environmental science or wildlife conservation at GCSE, A Level or degree level had recently learned about these sites and their importance to wildlife on their courses, so it was incredibly jarring for them to discover that these historical protections were being ripped away. 

We started by checking who everyone’s MPs were and their current stance on the Bill. As well as planning ways to engage with their MP on an individual level, the group wanted to take immediate action and create something tangible on the day. 

A forum member had the idea to split into constituency groups and write a letter to each of their MPs from the group Wilder Youth. We wrote these letters on A3 paper using colourful pens to try and make them stand out – we even attached a polaroid picture of some of the group so the MPs could see whose future was at stake. 

The quiet and inspiring surroundings of Chesterblade Hills’ Green Heart Venue allowed the group to properly think about what they wanted to say to their elected representatives, and what the impending loss of nature would really mean to them and their generation. 

As the person lucky enough to be able to call working with our youth forum part of her job, I’m always so inspired by the group. The full letters can be seen in the picture, but I’ve also included some sentences below. 

The open woodland canopy supports an impressive display of bluebells and ramsons.

The effect of light availability on ground flora; the open canopy supports an impressive display of bluebells and ramsons. Image: Chris Eyles

A view across the flat landscape of the Somerset Levels in summertime. Photo taken from a hill side, with the grassy slope in the foreground and the flat fields, criss-crossed with ditches, stretching into the background.

Image: - Guy Edwardes/2020VISION

View south over the Somerset Levels from Walton Hill in summer View includes Butleigh Moor, Somerton Moor, Street Moor, Low Ham Moor, Walton Moor, Pitney Moor, Huish Moor

Mystical image of Aller & Beer Woods Nature Reserve

Somerset Wildlife Trust’s Reserves category winner (18 and over) and overall winner- Aller and Beer Woods Nature Reserve, 2024. Image: Andy Lewington

Related blog posts