The Welsh Government has declared a nature crisis so how is the First Minister for Wales Vaughan Gething, doing when it comes to addressing the nature crisis. Are we confident that the First Minister gets the nature crisis and is prioritizing nature’s recovery?

We recently wrote to the First Minister to mark his first 100 days in office. In our letter we raised concerns that so far, he has made no clear reference to how his Government is going to respond to the nature and climate emergency.  This is extremely worrying. Future Generations will judge us harshly for failing to take decisive action on these vital issues.

We stressed the point that addressing these twin crises needs to be a central focus of Welsh Government. This is going to require strong leadership, bold ambition and strong environmental policies that are fully implemented and enforced if necessary. There is a massive opportunity to ensure Wales becomes greener and more resilient both economically, environmentally and socially.

Our letter to the First Minister also stressed 5 key areas where he needs to act.

Restore Nature in Wales on Land and Sea

Wales has already made clear commitments to ensure that at least 30% of land and sea is protected and effectively managed to protect and restore nature by 2030 as agreed at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP 15) in 2022 in Montreal, Canada. There is a real need for urgency here. Actions working towards achieving the 2030 target need to be put in place now and not at some point in the future. The clock is ticking to ensure that these commitments are met in just over 5 years’ time.

Strengthen Environmental Laws

The Nature Positive Bill, recently published as a White Paper, needs to be fast tracked through the Senedd. The international biodiversity targets agreed at the UN Biodiversity Conference 2022 need to be embedded into Welsh law. The proposed new environmental body to ensure compliance with environmental laws is urgently needed. This body needs powers to investigate where breaches of the law occur, take enforcement action if needed and also ensure people across Wales have the power to raise complaints to protect their local environment.

Fix the Food System

With over 95% of Wales as farmland it is clear that nature’s recovery will only occur if farming becomes more nature friendly. The new farming scheme in Wales must pay farmers for being stewards of the land. They need to be supported so that they farm in a way that reduces carbon emissions, restores nature and stops the pollution of Welsh rivers from agricultural runoff.

We have urged the First Minister to ensure the environmental ambition of the Sustainable Farming Scheme, which has now been delayed from 2025 to 2026, is not weakened. The uncertainty over payments to farmers needs to be addressed and sufficient funds needs to be made available to ensure a just transition for farmers to deliver the sustainable management of the land, addressing both the climate and nature crisis.

Green Stimulus

It is clear that more money is needed to address the climate and nature emergencies. We want the First Minister to be proactive in accessing capital to raise at least £1 billion every year for nature’s recovery and addressing climate change. This will also create high quality sustainable jobs – such as the 7,000-nature based green jobs through a new Nature Service for Wales over the next decade.

Let Nature Invest in People

We have asked the First Minister to tackle “nature poverty”. We need to help those people who don’t have walkable access to nature. This means improving access to already existing green spaces. But we also need new nature areas. This will help improve well-being and address inequalities in communities across Wales. Such an approach will reduce the pressure on the National Health Service through looking after both the physical and mental health of people.

Wildlife Trusts Wales is keeping a close eye on the First Minister and what he does next to address the nature crisis and the restoration of the natural world across Wales. The time for action is now.