L

Lord Lucas (Con)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 18 December 2024

Debate

Data (Use and Access) Bill [HL]

Contribution

My Lords, environmental data, specifically such things as biodiversity data, is a key component to getting policy in this area right. To do so, we need to make sure that all the good data we are generating around the UK gets into our storage system, and that the best possible and most complete data is used whenever we make decisions. We currently run that through a system of local environmental records centres that are independent and not for profit. Since that is the system we have, it ought to be run right. At the moment, we are failing to capture a lot of quality data because the data is not coming in from the planning system, or from other similar functions, in the way that it should. We are not consistently using that data in planning as we should. Natural England, which ought to be intimately linked into this system, has stepped away from it for budgetary reasons. The environment is important to us. If the Government are serious about that, we have to get our data collection and use system right. I beg to move.

More from Lord Lucas (Con)

Other recent Hansard contributions by the same speaker.

About Hansard

Hansard is the official verbatim record of proceedings in the UK Parliament. Every word spoken in the Commons and Lords is recorded and published — this page is a single contribution from that record.