Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to authorise the General Licence for land designated as (a) Special Areas of Conservation and (b) Special Protection Areas.

Dr Thérèse Coffey, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Environment: In his appearance at the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee hearing on 2nd July 2019, the Secretary of State stated our ambition to have a robust licencing scheme in place by February 2020. The new scheme will include provisions for protected sites.

Hansard

273303