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Biodiversity

Volume 508: debated on Monday 22 March 2010

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department spent on biodiversity conservation in (a) England and (b) the UK Overseas Territories in each of the last five years. (322616)

Details of expenditure on biodiversity conservation in England are provided in the following table. These figures represent DEFRA programme spend and spend by the wider DEFRA network but do not include staff costs. They also include total agri-environment scheme expenditure, of which a major share is judged to be spent on biodiversity.

Estimated public expenditure by DEFRA network organisations on biodiversity conservation in England (figures are given in £ million)

2004-05

2005-06

2006-07

2007-08

2008-09

DEFRA: Agri-environment schemes

167.8

187.2

254.6

330.4

353

Other DEFRA programme expenditure

4.9

5.6

5.4

4.7

6.7

Environment Agency

5.9

10.5

11.6

7.3

23.5

Forestry Commission

14.7

17.7

22.8

28.1

33.3

Natural England

55.5

57.3

54.1

52.7

50.4

Joint Nature Conservation Committee

1.4

1.8

1.8

2.1

1.7

DEFRA network total

250.3

280.2

350.4

425.3

468.6

Note:

Totals may not add due to rounding

Details of spending commitments on biodiversity conservation in the UK Overseas Territories are provided in the following table. These include commitments under the Darwin Initiative and other additional support for projects to address invasive non-native species, in each of the last five financial years. They also include spend by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. They do not include spend by others, for example the Governments of the Overseas Territories themselves, who are principally responsible for biodiversity conservation in their territories.

(£)

2004-05

125,840

2005-06

226,970

2006-07

211,130

2007-08

152,379

2008-09

178,527

In addition, DEFRA spent approximately £19,000 and £10,000 on biodiversity conservation in the UK Overseas Territories through the Flagship Species Fund in the calendar years 2005 and 2008 respectively.