Technical Notes 2021, Issues 207 - Consultation on the newly proposed ‘guiding principles on the environment: draft statutory guidance’

The purpose of this Technical Note is to make Elected Members aware of the draft statutory guidance on guiding principles on the environment, being introduced as part of the new European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021 (‘the Continuity Act’), an act that stemmed out of the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union.   The Continuity Act introduced new duties on Ministers and public authorities to have due regard to the five guiding principles on the environment.  The legislation requires that those subject to the duty (including all public authorities) have regard to the guidance. The consultation includes details of the guiding principles to be incorporated into the Act to ensure continuity after the withdrawal process. In effect, this will keep Scotland aligned with the environmental principles that guide policy development in the EU and will contribute to sustainable development.

The five guiding principles, which are set out at section 13(1) of the Continuity Act, are as follows:

• the principle that protecting the environment should be integrated into the making of policies;
• the precautionary principle as it relates to the environment;
• the principle that preventative action should be taken to avert environmental damage;
• the principle that environmental damage should as a priority be rectified at source; and  
• the principle that the polluter should pay.

The guiding principles form a part of Scotland’s strategic approach to environmental policy, supporting the objective to maintain and improve environmental standards, contributing to Scotland's response to the twin crises in climate and nature and keeping aligned as far as possible with EU standards. The guiding principles sit alongside Scotland's arrangements for environmental governance through Environmental Standards Scotland, a new body established to ensure the effectiveness of environmental law and enforcement, and the Scottish Government’s Environment Strategy. More information on these can be found  on the Environmental Standards Scotland and Scottish Government websites 

The guidance focuses on interpretation of the principles, how they relate to each other, how the principles apply in relation to other duties relating to the environment, and how compliance can be achieved and clearly demonstrated.

Full details of the consultation on the guiding principles can found on the Scottish Government website.

Local authorities and others have been invited to provide comments on the document. The Sustainability Policy Team is co-ordinating a response on behalf of the Council and would welcome any comments that elected members may wish to feed in.  Please contact Iain Duke at iain.duke@eastdubrtonshire.gov.uk by Friday, 14th January should you wish to provide comments or discuss the Council’s response.