Government provide interim statement on their Environmental Improvement Plan rapid review 

Following an announcement in July 2024 to undertake a ‘rapid review’, Defra have released their first statement on the Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) review. This interim statement confirms that the rapid review is complete, and a revised EIP will be introduced this year. 

What is the Environmental Improvement Plan? 

The Environmental Improvement Plan, published in 2023, is the first revision of the 25 Year Improvement Plan, establishing ways that government will take action to reduce environmental pollution and restore nature. 

Find out what this means for our industry and how goal 2 of Clean Air relates to domestic combustion in our explanatory article. 

Rapid review 

After the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) released multiple progress reports where the annual pace and scale of action were deemed insufficient across multiple areas (see 2022-2023 report and 2023-2024 report) and the Labour government came into power, an announcement was made stating that a new, statutory plan will be developed to ensure our ambitious Environment Act targets can be met. 

This rapid review was announced 30 July 2024, and was followed by Steve Reed, Defra Secretary of State, formally requesting advice from the OEP. Read more in the OEP’s advice letter to Steve Reed. 

Environmental Improvement Plan revision 

The latest interim statement from Steve Reed confirms that the government has undertaken their rapid review. This review will contribute greatly to a new revised EIP, due to be released in 2025. The revision aims to be streamlined, prioritising actions that government, external partners, and stakeholders have agreed to need the most decisive action for our natural environment to be protected and restored. The rapid review has assessed three key areas to determine how the EIP has been performing: 

1. Progress in delivering the EIP since the last review in January 2023. 
2. Environmental data and indicators of change in the natural environment 
3. Expected delivery of existing measures against targets set out in the Environment Act. 

The now-completed rapid review has also revealed key areas where improvements could be made, such as: 

• Evidence co-ordination with other parties to establish where action can be accelerated or improved 

• Delivery and accountability clarification 

• Process prioritisation to better assess competing demands across overlapping areas 

• Engagement and collaboration with stakeholders across different sectors 

• Creating more simplified, sustained funding 

Environmental Improvement Plan rapid review aims 

The government aim to achieve a number of key goals in revising the EIP, with the rapid review revealing the importance of these aims. In the revised EIP, government aim to: 

• Make their actions clearer, providing clarity on how cross-cutting enables for environmental delivery work together to improve our environment 

• Highlight the positive societal and economic growth that follow environmental enhancement and protection 

• Clarify Environment Act target delivery plans and update any interim targets 

• Communicate clearly how the EIP will be delivered, explaining the role that each party has to play in its implementation 
• Streamline non-statutory commitments to make sure the EIP can continue to focus on relevant key actions and produce meaningful results towards environmental improvement 

This interim statement is broad, covering all areas of the EIP and the Environment Act targets, so there are no specific mentions of air quality nor future actions to continue to reduce emissions. When the full revised EIP is released, we will update you on new delivery plans, aims, and objectives. 

HETAS works with all UK governments and devolved administrations, and we will continue to provide our impartial, independent expertise to minimise emissions and improve air quality. The forthcoming revised EIP grants us the opportunity to further our work – and for wider industry to continue innovating as we – as we work together for a cleaner, safer, and more sustainable future.