Proposed cuts to Britain's most beautiful landscapes pose an “existential threat”, the managers of the National Landscape Association have warned.
These 46 areas, including the Chilterns, Cotswolds, Wye Valley and North Pennines, were once known as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, but this year they were renamed 'National Landscapes'. It covers 15% of England, including 20% of the coastline.
But officials who manage the park say Environment Secretary Steve Reid has given no guarantees about the funding for the national landscape. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)'s day-to-day spending budget will be cut by 2% in 2025-26. This is known to be widespread across the sector, with national landscape teams being told to expect a 12% reduction.
Sarah Gibson, Tamar Valley National Landscape Manager, said: 'We are being told we have to prepare for budget cuts. Funding for the national landscape is woefully inadequate. We are under great pressure from destruction, development and reduced funding. But we have a responsibility to provide for natural recovery.”
She said it was an impossible situation, with the Valley facing a 20% cut in core services as a result of the proposed budget cuts.
National park chiefs this month said the area is at risk of becoming a “paper park” without a visitor center or ranger as Defra considers cutting budgets to unsustainable levels. he warned.
National landscapes are even more at risk than national parks. This is because national parks are almost twice as large in area and are under significantly higher levels of pressure from agriculture and development.
Despite legally equaling landscape values, they receive 16% of national park core funding and have experienced funding cuts of more than 40% since 2010.
Mr Gibson said: “It's not enough to just accept that these places continue to go unprotected. It's vitally important to our communities that we look after these places. It is home to 17 special species, including the dormouse and black-bellied fritillary, and we are doing more to protect and protect them.”
John Watkins, chief executive of the National Landscape Association, said: “The government has high hopes for the national landscape as the backbone of natural restoration to meet international commitments and legal targets. But the situation is more dire than ever.”
Fragile ecosystems in these areas include degraded peatlands, eroded coastlines, and ancient forests, all of which require management and restoration, and protection from overgrazing and development. .
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Mr Watkins said the country's landscape was at a “crisis point” and further cuts would mean cuts to the core team, meaning there would not be enough people to apply for external funding and restoration efforts would be brought to a standstill. He said he was deaf. Many landscape teams are in the single digits, which means cuts of this magnitude exist.
Mr Watkins said: 'Twenty-five years ago, the New Labor Government was recommended by the Countryside Commission to increase funding for national landscapes to £19 million. [£35m in today’s money]but they didn't heed that advice. Twenty-five years later, we are in the same situation with a new Labor government, but under threat of further cuts in the face of the nature and climate crisis. We are calling on governments to make real investments in nature. ”
National landscape managers are calling for a recommitment to the current £35m annual funding for the National Landscape Partnership. This includes funding a scheme called Farming in Protected Landscapes. This scheme is under threat and essential in areas where overgrazing is common.
The scheme provides support for farmers to transition to more nature-friendly farming methods. It also aims to rebuild the capacity of national landscapes and establish the association's status as an organization to help achieve the goals of legally binding environmental legislation that obliges governments to halt the decline of nature by 2030. It is also seeking an additional investment of £11m.
A Defra spokesperson said: “Our country's landscape plays an important role alongside our national parks and we are committed to making these special places greener, wilder and more accessible. I will give you strength to do so.” We are currently considering the best approach and will work closely with the National Landscape Association on this. ”
