By Abbas Nazil
The Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals (ISEP) has welcomed the UK Government’s updated Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) but insists that decisive implementation across all departments is essential to secure both environmental recovery and long-term economic growth.
The government’s revised plan, released today, includes a commitment of £500m for landscape recovery projects, focusing on large-scale restoration of ecosystems in collaboration with farmers and landowners.
It also sets a new target to restore or create 250,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitats by 2030, alongside long-term measures to restore nature, clean waterways and improve air quality over the next two decades.
Signe Norberg, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at ISEP, emphasised that the environment underpins a healthy society and a strong economy, saying the plan must now unlock concrete delivery.
She stressed that the government must set clear frameworks and levers that will drive private sector action and accelerate progress on national environmental goals.
Norberg highlighted that partnerships across public, private and civil society sectors will be vital to achieving the ambitions outlined in the updated plan.
She noted that restoring ecosystems and safeguarding natural assets is inseparable from securing future economic resilience.
She welcomed the refreshed focus on delivery, responsibility and clearer target timelines, saying that better alignment of deadlines can strengthen dialogue across industries and sectors.
However, she warned that these improvements will only matter if followed by rapid, coordinated implementation.
Norberg also endorsed the Secretary of State’s recognition of the need to deliver environmental and economic gains simultaneously, describing the environment as fundamental to economic growth.
She argued that achieving a win-win outcome is essential as the government works to fulfil its broader missions.
Despite the positive direction, Norberg cautioned that the EIP must become a genuinely cross-government plan rather than one largely driven by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and its agencies.
She noted that transformative environmental change cannot be achieved unless all departments embed the plan’s objectives in their work.
She warned that concentrating responsibility within Defra limits the scale of impact and risks slowing the environmental transition the country urgently needs.
ISEP’s response comes as environmental groups and oversight bodies continue to scrutinise national progress on the UK’s long-term environmental commitments, with several earlier assessments warning that government delivery has fallen short in key areas.
The organisation reaffirmed that decisive, collective action across government, industry and communities will determine whether the new Environmental Improvement Plan achieves its aims or becomes another missed opportunity for environmental recovery.