IEEP UK spoke at a Labour Party Conference fringe event A new chemical romance? How closer UK-EU collaboration could benefit the environment organised by CHEM Trust in the SERA (Labour’s Environment campaign) tent, on 22 September. Michael Nicholson, IEEP UK’s Head of Environmental Policy, shared a panel with the new chair of the Environment Audit Committee (EAC), Toby Perkins MP, and Stella Creasey MP, a senior figure in the Labour Movement for Europe, Chloe Alexander, CHEM Trust, Emilien Gasc, Delegation of the European Union to the UK, and Dr Francesca Ginley of the Marine Conservation Society, chaired by political economist and journalist Will Hutton.
The well attended event was an opportunity for IEEP UK to put forward key areas of environment and climate policy where the EU and UK could usefully be working on together to not only improve our collective environment, but support economic growth and boost cross-channel relations. Stella Creasey MP highlighted the significance of the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill currently in the House of Lords, and how secondary legislation from this could be used to allow for dynamic alignment on product standards. Dr Francesca Ginley and Chloe Alexander highlighted the damage caused by chemical pollution, particularly on marine biodiversity, and the benefits of aligning with higher EU chemicals standards. Toby Perkins MP outlined some of those areas where he saw the UK had gone further on the environment since leaving the EU, but crucially noted that there were clear areas that both UK and EU would benefit from closer collaboration, including around Emissions Trading Standards alignment, a veterinary agreement, recycling schemes, and collaboration with European regulators and institutions including the European Chemicals Agency, and European Environment Agency, and noted that the issue of divergence on environmental policy would be an appropriate topic for the EAC to consider looking at when the Committee is formed.
A briefing prepared for the event by IEEP UK and CHEM Trust was handed out to all delegates and speakers and is available for download below.