Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP - Chancellor, Treasury

1st May

Dear Chancellor,

Pandemic risks and the destruction of nature

We are writing to draw your attention to warnings from world-leading scientists on the relationship between the destruction of nature and increased pandemic risks. We urge you to heed their call for protection of the natural world to be designed into current economic and financial responses to Covid-19, in order to avoid sowing the seeds of future pandemics.

In particular, on 27 April, four leading experts from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) set out the disturbing relationship between human activities and the emergency of diseases such as Covid-19, alongside several key recommendations for governments to ensure that actions taken in response to the current pandemic do not themselves amplify the risks of future outbreaks and crisis.

It's clear that deforestation, exploitation of wild species, and the unrelenting expansion of intensive farming, mining, infrastructure, and global air travel have created a 'perfect storm' for the spill-over of diseases from wildlife to people. Additionally, the scientists state that "recent pandemics are a direct consequence of human activity - particularly our global financial and economic systems, based on a limited paradigm that prizes economic growth at any cost."

They warn: "Future pandemics are likely to happen more frequently, spread more rapidly, have greater economic impact and kill more people if we are not extremely careful about the possible impacts of the choices we make today."

The links between the destruction of biodiversity and the emergence of pandemics have been ignored in policy making for far too long. That must now change. This crisis shows that the Government's own commitment to make ours the first generation to leave our environment in a better state than we found it could not be more important, including from a public health perspective.

Therefore we would urge you to take personal responsibility for ensuring that the protection and recovery of nature is at the heart of short- and long-term economic and financial decisions being taken in the Treasury and across government.

As a group of cross party MPs, we would urge you to take action based on the proposals put forward by the four leading IPBES scientists this week, as follows:

*Strengthening and enforcing environmental regulations, and ensuring that any economic support for industries such as aviation and intensive agricultural is conditional on their commitment to drive a fundamental and urgent transition to sustainability

*Properly funding health systems on the frontlines of pandemic risk including by mobilising international finance to build health capacity in emerging disease hotspots

*Adopting a 'One Health' approach at all levels of economic and development decision-making that recognises the complex interconnections between the health of people, animals, plants and our shared environment - by taking into account the full costs and consequences of policies and actions, for people and nature.

*Embarking on a fundamental system-wide reorganisation of the economic and financial system that marks an end to 'business as usual' - so that we emerge from the crisis stronger and more resilient, by protecting nature so that nature can in turn help protect us.

There's nothing new about the idea that humans will stay healthy only if we conduct our economic activities within the physical limits that ensure the health of ecosystems. But for too long, policy makers have persisted with outdated ideas of progress and measures of economic success that have not taken this into account.

The urgency of doing so is plain to see. The nature and climate crises have continued to get worse as the world's attention has rightly turned to protecting public health in the face of this pandemic. We must continue to put human health first as we move forward, by recognising the interdependence of human health, animal health, and the health of natural ecosystems. The concept of planetary health provides one framework for such an approach.

The opportunities for the UK to show true global leadership are great, not least as countries prepare for the international climate and biodiversity summits next year.

We urge you and your cabinet colleagues to ensure the UK leads the way towards a new paradigm of economic development that respects planetary boundaries and recognises human dependence on a healthy natural environment, starting with our own country's plans to build back better in the wake of Covid-19, and starting today.

We look forward to your reply

Yours sincerely,
 

(The letter was also signed by Ed Davey MP – Liberal Democrat Leaderm, Liz Saville Roberts MP – Plaid Cymru Parliamentary Leader, Chris Law MP – SNP International Development and Climate Change Spokesperson, Apsana Begum MP, Lisa Cameron MP, Wendy Chamberlain MP, Daisy Cooper MP, Jonathan Edwards MP, Stephen Farry MP, Claire Hanna MP, Neale Hanvey MP, Wera Hobhouse MP, Christine Jardine MP, Ben Lake MP, Clive Lewis MP, Kenny MacAskill MP, John McNally MP, Layla Moran MP, Grahame Morris MP, Sarah Olney MP, Barry Sheerman MP, Tommy Sheppard MP, Zarah Sultana MP, Hywel Williams MP, Mohammad Yasin MP)