Member

I cannot help feeling when I look at the Bill that, for some reason—forgive me, civil servants—the JNCC has been slightly forgotten or omitted, either by mistake or on purpose. I went through the Bill last night and looked for mentions of the JNCC. There is only one brief mention, in a list of consultees alongside that other internationally renowned ecologist the Mayor of London. In an exercise that involves a major change to species protection legislation, the JNCC should be given a leading role. This slightly echoes what my noble friend Lord Roborough said earlier about the role the JNCC can and should have in this process.