Divergence in UK-EU Environmental Policy:
State of Play 2026
Key Messages
Divergence in environmental law since Brexit between the UK and EU, is significant
Immediately after Brexit, the EU’s European Green Deal laid much of the groundwork for the significant levels of legislative divergence we now see between the EU and UK. The EU have put in place over 50 new EU directives and regulations on the environment and climate and this divergence ‘gap’ is evident across a range of environment and climate policy for example on managing sewage in rivers, lakes and coastal waters; preventing microplastic plastic which is harmful to human health; mandating higher energy efficiency standards for buildings and homes; preventing textile waste; and restoring nature.
The EU is changing & this has implications for the UK if it is seeking further alignment
The EU’s march towards more environmental law making has slowed down markedly since 2024 as it looks instead to ‘simplify’ existing laws and secure ‘industrial competitiveness’ amidst (geo)political turbulence, raising fears of deregulation. At the same time, the UK has been looking to align more with EU law, reform its own environmental laws and shore up its industrial base. These shifting priorities have a number of implications for UK decision making and the evolution of environment policy, as it remains in many ways, in the same ‘regulatory orbit’ as the EU particularly those UK companies trading with/in the EU.
Warming UK-EU relations but not necessarily directed towards improving the environment
A warming of UK-EU relations has enabled more constructive discussions to take place including over how alignment of UK-EU law could help to ease barriers to trade and boost economic growth. The approach to alignment has been, ‘slow and steady’ rather than ‘gung-ho and prolific’. Measures for alignment proposed thus far though have not been connected directly to, or fuelled by, motives to improve the environment.
UK-EU alignment in areas of mutual concern
Subsequent to last year’s edition of the report which called for alignment in several specific areas, the UK government has committed to align in future on chemicals and deforestation measures. In other areas like circular economy policy, it is far less certain how far the UK government wishes to align with for example wider efforts in the EU to preserve critical raw materials, minimise food and textile waste and ensure everyday household products are sustainably made.
An ad hoc approach to managing the effects of divergence and alignment
There is no discernible policy published by the UK Government on how it wishes to manage divergence, alignment or its effects on policy – environment, climate or otherwise. Actions taken to align UK-EU law thus far appear to be an accumulated set of pragmatic actions, rather than as part of a wider strategic approach that acknowledges and explains for example the trade-offs or costs involved with further alignment or divergence from the EU.
UK/EU Divergence Thematic Policy Areas
Air
Agriculture & Land Use
Chemicals
Marine
Nature & Biodiversity
Pesticides
Water
UK/EU Divergence Overview
Air
Agriculture & Land Use
Chemicals
Circular Economy & Waste
Climate
Marine
Nature & Biodiversity
Pesticides
Water
England
N. Ireland
Scotland
Wales
Elements indicate a more progressive policy than EU policy
Policy is broadly similar to current EU policy
Elements indicate policy is not keeping pace with more progressive EU policy
Elements indicate a regression in policy since Brexit
What does IEEP UK Call for?
Target the low hanging fruit...
…by securing UK-EU alignment in areas where there are both economic and environmental benefits. This means putting the UK Government’s ambitions on a legislative footing, from the 2025 ‘Common Understanding’ around aligning Emissions Trading schemes, the Sanitary and Phytosanitary framework and involvement of the UK in the EU’s internal electricity market; to those areas of environmental policy it has publicly stated it wants to align on in future including deforestation and chemicals regulation. It should go further, by seeking to align on various aspects of circular economy policy too.
Put the environment at the heart of the UK-EU relations...
…by looking more seriously at the case-by-case argument for alignment in other areas of environmental policy – particularly those which have transboundary concerns or for shared resources but also in areas that do not necessarily have an immediate or obvious trade related benefit – for example around air, water, nature and marine protection. This would in many cases raise UK environmental standards, be symbolic and convey a serious intent to work more closely with the EU, and possibly aid negotiations in other more difficult, complex areas of the UK-EU relationship.
Turn the UK-EU ‘Common Understanding’ into a 'Common Direction'...
…by recognising there is common ground between the UK & EU, none more so than in environmental policy. In the last year, the case for greater cooperation has only become clearer – with wildfires, heat and drought across Europe – worsened by climate change and impacting everything from air quality to the resilience of nature and food and farming systems on which we depend. This is whilst shared interests exist to preserve manufacturing in Europe, plan for a greater rollout of green technologies and reduce the ‘leakage’ of critical raw materials out of the continent. These are common national security challenges as well as environmental ones.
Explore UK-EU divergence in environmental policy by thematic area
Toby Perkins MP
Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee
Foreword
The last year has seen the political winds shift back towards Europe, with the Labour government over recent months signalling intent to align more with the EU. Whilst a promised EU-UK reset conference was delayed from this summer to later in the year, policy work proceeds behind the scenes.
As the Environmental Audit Committee saw during our inquiry this year into PFAS or forever chemicals, environmental policy and the importance of UK-EU alignment is not just about the environment: it is also about the health of our citizens and supporting the trading prospects of our businesses and wider economy.
For example, divergence between the UK and EU’s chemicals regulations post-Brexit has increased compliance complexity and costs for businesses navigating different regimes, both between the UK and the EU, but also between GB and Northern Ireland. These sorts of trade barriers make the UK less competitive.
Divergence also risks the safety of our citizens and the integrity of our natural environment. Since Brexit, the EU added 42 substances to the candidate list and five to the authorisation list under their chemicals regulatory scheme. During the same time, the UK added none. The Environmental Audit Committee was warned about the prospect of businesses dumping surplus non-EU compliant stock into the UK market.
In other areas, divergence has allowed the UK to forge ahead: mandatory biodiversity net gain, the introduction of Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes to replace the previous basic payment scheme, and the 2030 commitment to phasing out petrol cars.
This report provides a timely and comprehensive analysis of divergence in UK-EU environmental policy. As ever, the picture is complicated and constantly evolving. Whilst the UK government may choose a different approach than the EU in some areas, alignment can help avoid unnecessary regulatory divergence, for the benefit of businesses, economic growth, and of course the environment.
The year ahead will be a crucial and formative one for the UK-EU relationship and environmental policy.
Download the full report
UK/EU Divergence Thematic Policy Areas
Across areas such as agriculture, chemicals and water, the UK and EU have taken divergent regulatory paths since Brexit. In this 2026 State of Play report, IEEP UK has conducted an in-depth analysis of UK/EU divergence across nine major thematic policy areas, which you can explore through the following links.
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