Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Northern Ireland’s First Environmental Improvement Plan: missed deadline, OEP investigation, strategic objectives and targets, monitoring, and interaction with the Environment Act 2021 and Climate Change Act (NI) 2022

Published on: 17 October 2024

Published by a LexisNexis Environment expert

Legal News

Article summary

What is the background leading up to the publication of the Environmental Improvement Plan in Northern Ireland?

The Environment Act 2021 (EA 2021) entered into force on 25 July 2022. Under Schedule 2 of that Act, DAERA was placed under a statutory duty to prepare and publish an Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) within twelve months of commencement, namely by 25 July 2023. DAERA did not meet that timeframe and the first EIP for Northern Ireland was not issued by the deadline set by statute. On 8 July 2024, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) announced an investigation into DAERA for an alleged breach of environmental law arising from the failure to adopt the inaugural EIP by 25 July 2023. That step followed a period of fraught correspondence between the OEP and DAERA, during which the OEP sought a formal account of the reasons for the delay. In its responses, DAERA cited the collapse of devolution in 2022 and the absence of a Minister to approve the EIP as the principal cause of slippage and as the main reason for the delay. Ultimately, Northern Ireland’s first EIP was agreed by the NI Executive and then published on 27 September 2024...

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