Minister Noonan welcomes stakeholder review of the National Biodiversity Action Plan

From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage 

• Minister Noonan acknowledged the value of the Biodiversity Forum’s work in independently monitoring the third National Biodiversity Action Plan 2017-2021’s progress
• He welcomed the report and pledged to consider its findings in detail in advance of the preparation of the next National Biodiversity Action Plan
• He also more than doubled the group’s annual funding to €25,000

Minister for Heritage and Electoral Reform has welcomed the publication of a new independent review of Ireland’s third National Biodiversity Action Plan 2017-2021. The review was conducted by the Biodiversity Forum, a group of biodiversity experts from across academia, NGO, public and private sectors, whose role is to provide independent monitoring of progress of the implementation of the National Biodiversity Action Plan, highlighting progress and bottlenecks, and providing progress reports to the Minister for Heritage.

Reflecting on the Group’s findings regarding

Ireland’s efforts over the 2017-2021 Plan period, Minister Noonan said:

“This report offers an extensive and in-depth analysis of Ireland’s progress in implementing our capstone biodiversity policy from some of Ireland’s leading ecologists and biodiversity experts. Its findings – while stark – outline the scale of the ambition and the strategic approach that is needed to deliver on our shared goals for nature. As my team in the National Parks and Wildlife Service works to develop the successor Plan for 2022-2026, I pledge to consider the report’s findings carefully to ensure that the next National Biodiversity Action Plan is one that delivers real impact.” >

The report is an outcome of a workshop that the group undertook in late 2020, which was funded by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage as part of the 2019 'Seeds for Nature' initiative in order to provide independent advice to Government. Minister Noonan committed to more than doubling funding to the Biodiversity Forum from €10,000 per annum to €25,000 per annum in order to further support its work.

Acknowledging the value of independent analysis, Minister Noonan said:

“Expert-led analysis and oversight is an important element of effective policy development. By supporting the Biodiversity Forum to continue and expand its work through this increased funding, I hope that my Department will continue to benefit from its valuable insights.”

Link to the report of the National Biodiversity Forum