Habitats, Biodiversity & Green Spaces Winner - Alex Sobel MP
About the category
This category recognises UK politicians who have done the most to protect biodiversity and natural landscapes.
The ideal candidate will have gone above and beyond the role expected of them to protect at risk habitats, protect or improve biodiversity and increase access to green space.
The 2024 Habitats, Biodiversity & Green Spaces Award was presented to Alex Sobel MP, for his work leading the campaign for the Climate & Nature Bill.
This year, the Habitats, Biodiversity & Green Spaces Award is sponsored by Plantlife. You can read more about their work to protect British biodiversity here.
The 2024 Habitats, Biodiversity & Green Spaces Shortlist
Alex Sobel
Caroline Lucas
Caroline Lucas
In March 2024, Sobel introduced the Climate and Nature Bill (Private Members’ Bill) to codify Government targets on the climate and nature recovery. The bill seeks to establish a Climate and Nature Assembly to advise the Secretary of State in creating that strategy to implement targets on nature and climate.
Caroline Lucas
Caroline Lucas
Caroline Lucas
In May this year, Lucas introduced a Westminster Hall debate on Biodiversity loss to address the perilous state of UK biodiversity. In the debate, she urged the government to support, attend and establish targets in relation to the sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
Philip Dunne
Monica Lennon
Monica Lennon
In 2024, as chair of the Environmental Audit Committee, Dunne led the publication of the committee’s report into deforestation. The report recommended the Government prevent UK businesses from trading in commodities linked to UN-defined deforestation in all cases, regardless of whether the deforestation was illegal or permitted by local laws.
Monica Lennon
Monica Lennon
Monica Lennon
In November 2023, Lennon introduced a member’s bill in the Scottish Parliament that would make Scotland the first part of the UK to enforce tough penalties for ecocide. The ecocide legislation would make Scotland the first part of the UK to incorporate a crime of ecocide. The legislation would set a minimum jail sentence of 10 years for the crime of ecocide, with a maximum of 20 years.