For today’s Election Focus, I am looking at what the parties say about how they will protect our seas. I have split this into several headings: protected areas around our shores; international marine protection; plans to tackle plastic pollution; and fishing.
Click on the image to see it full size.
My reflections
- The Tories, Labour and the Lib Dems are all a bit vague on UK marine protected areas. How much (more) will they protect? What does that protection include? The Greens give a bit more detail.
- Only the Tories talk about marine protection around British Overseas Territories, and their plans sound ambitious. I am not sure if they are referring to the marine protection zone already announced, or if this is additional.
- Labour, the Greens, UKIP and Plaid Cymru all talk of introducing (or investigating) a plastic bottle deposit scheme to reduce waste. The Green Party seems to be the most ambitious in this area.
- With Brexit, future fishing policy is a big topic, and now is a good opportunity to improve management of our fish stocks. The Tories, Labour and the Lib Dems all mention sustainability in their plans. UKIP have a lot to say on fisheries, but it’s all about taking back control, with no mention of sustainability.
- Plaid Cymru and the SNP are both very quiet about protecting our seas.
Wild South 
One thought on “Election Focus 2017: protecting our seas”