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Marine Bill Campaign

It's time to have your say and help protect our seas!

The Wildlife Trusts have launched a major, national campaign to help ensure a better future for the amazing wildlife that depends on our seas for survival. Winter 2006 is the critical time to get involved.

Did you know that less than 0.001% of our seas is fully protected from damaging activities such as fishing and gravel-dredging? The Government is currently working on a Marine Bill which could bring in new laws to protect marine habitats and wildlife. Alternatively, the Marine Bill could end up helping the marine industries but doing very little to improve protection for wildlife. We need your help to convince Government to do the right thing, to ensure a healthy future for our seas. In particular, we want the Government to introduce Highly Protected Marine Reserves - areas of sea that are fully protected from harmful activities.

In July 2006 Ben Bradshaw, the Minister responsible for the Marine Bill, stated in a note to our supporters: "Your input will be crucial to realising the opportunity that a Marine Bill represents. That is why we welcome the efforts that The Wildlife Trusts and other organisations are making to raise awareness about what needs to be done and the work that Government is doing."

There are several ways in which you can support the campaign:

1. Sign our online Marine Reserves Petition, which is emailed direct to the Government.
2. Take part in our quick Marine Reserves Poll - tell us what you think about protection of UK seas.
3. Write your own letter or email to the Government. This is one of the most powerful ways to have your say. To help you, we have written a standard letter with instructions, plus a brief Supporters' Guide, telling you more about the Marine Bill Campaign.
4. Print out copies of our Campaign Petition and encourage friends, family and colleagues to sign it.

Marine Bill Consultation

From March to June 2006, the Government ran a public consultation on the proposed Marine Bill. The Wildlife Trusts' initial response was supportive overall, though we were critical of certain aspects. Our full response gave detailed feedback on all of the Government's proposals, from a marine planning to protected areas.

Ben Bradshaw, the Minister responsible for the Marine Bill issued a statement to The Wildlife Trusts and our supporters in July 2006, welcoming our campaigning activity.

Exclusive interview with the marine Minister

Ben Bradshaw MP, the Minister responsible for the marine environment (in the centre of the photo, with Wildlife Trust staff on either side), gave an exclusive interview with The Wildlife Trusts for our Natural World Magazine, sharing his views on marine conservation. Click here for the unabridged text.

About the Marine Bill

The 2005 Queen’s Speech programme included a commitment from the Government to develop a Marine Bill. The Bill is intended to improve planning and management of marine industry and provide better protection for marine habitats and wildlife.

The commitment to a Marine Bill was a landmark event, representing the culmination of more than five years of research, advocacy and campaigning by The Wildlife Trusts and other environmental groups.

The Wildlife Trusts and other major environmental NGO’s are calling for a package of comprehensive legislation to ensure that our seas are better managed and and that wildlife ranging from seals, basking sharks, jewel anemones, sponges and corals are better protected.

In order to save this marine wilderness on our doorstep, we are calling for comprehensive legislation to achieve better protection for marine wildlife and effective management of our seas, to benefit both the environment and sea users. Holistic and wide-ranging reform is needed, which must include:

• Systematic and coordinated approach to the governance of the sea, to protect our biological and cultural heritage and better manage marine resources
• Greater, properly enforced protection for marine wildlife, including the identification of protected areas
• A spatial planning system to enable strategic and integrated management of the seas.

Marine Bill petition

The Wildlife Trusts (and other members of Wildlife & Countryside Link) have been been running a public petition over the past year in support of their marine bill campaign.

The petition has been a key campaign in our tool to persuade the UK Government to introduce this much needed marine legislation. The Wildlife Trusts would like to thank everyone who has signed their marine bill petition so far.

The petitions were presented to Westminster on World Ocean's Day 8 June 2005. (see below for full story).

The Wildlife Trusts go to Westminster

On 8 June World Oceans Day 2005, six representatives from Wildlife and Countryside LINK went to Westminster to present over 165,177 petitions to 10 Downing Street , to show the huge public support for comprehensive new legislation to improve the protection and management of the UK’s seas. Joan Edwards, Head of Marine Policy, represented The Wildlife Trusts at this event.

Ben Stafford, Chairman of Link's Marine Campaign, said: "The presentation of so many pledges of support for marine legislation at Downing Street shows that the public see a Marine Bill as a real priority. LINK believes that the new legislation will be good for industry as well as the environment. The Government must now get on and make it happen."

Ben Bradshaw, Minister for Local Environment, Marine & Animals Welfare, also said of The Wildlife Trust campaign: "The Government is committed to publication of a draft Marine Bill in the first session of this Parliament. Introduction of the Bill will follow later in this Parliament once we have considered the outcome of both a public consultation and pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Bill."

Wildlife & Countryside LINK is a coalition of the UK’s major environmental non-governmental organisations. The Link marine campaign is led by: the Marine Conservation Society; the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds; the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society; The Wildlife Trusts; and WWF-UK, and is supported by other Link members including: Buglife – the Invertebrate Conservation Trust; the Council for British Archaeology; the Herpetological Conservation Trust; the Shark Trust; the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

Please click here for a copy of the Wildlife and Countryside Link press release related to the above event.