and to understand the needs of all users, especially victims, vulnerable people and those from ethnic minority backgrounds.
This means police, teachers, health professionals, youth workers and social services all working closely together to prevent young people falling prey to gangs and violence.
Improve cooperation with our European neighbours on tackling cross-border crime, such as human trafficking, the illegal drug trade, cybercrime and terrorism, including by:
Protecting our precious natural environment lies at the heart of the Liberal Democrat approach.
Everyone should be able to enjoy open green spaces, clean blue rivers and the beauty of Britain’s coast.
The UK is facing a nature crisis.
One in six species are threatened with extinction from Britain.
Air pollution claims tens of thousands of lives every year, and costs the NHS billions.
The Government’s own Office for Environmental Protection has rebuked the Conservatives for falling “far short” of the action needed.
The Conservatives are using Brexit as an opportunity to erode previously high environmental standards.
Nowhere is the Conservatives’ lack of care for the environment clearer than the national sewage scandal.
They are letting water company bosses get away with paying themselves millions of pounds in bonuses while dumping millions of tonnes of raw sewage into our rivers, lakes and coastal areas.
Just one in seven of England’s rivers are in good ecological health,
and every single one is below chemical pollution standards.
Liberal Democrats have a bold plan to restore the UK’s natural environment, and give everyone access to a clean and healthy natural world.
We will: End the sewage scandal by transforming water companies into public benefit companies,
banning bonuses for water bosses until discharges and leaks end,
and replacing Ofwat with a tough new regulator with new powers to prevent sewage dumps.
increase the use of sustainable wood in construction,
and reach net zero.
In addition, we will: Tackle the national scandal of sewage-polluted rivers, waterways and beaches, and make water companies work for people by:
Hold businesses to account for their responsibility to the environment by:
Make planning work for our natural environment and ensure that developers pay their fair share by:
Create a nature-positive economy,
tackle plastic pollution and waste, and get Britain recycling by:
Introducing a deposit return scheme for food and drink bottles and containers,
and finalising a Global Plastics Treaty to cut plastic pollution worldwide.
Ensure that nature-based solutions form a critical part of our strategy to tackle climate change by:
Restoring our peatlands as a carbon store,
protecting and restoring blue carbon
and ensuring climate resilience at sea.
The UK’s food system is failing to serve the interests of citizens, whether they are farmers or consumers.
Too many families simply can’t afford enough healthy, nutritious food.
Ultra-processed foods, high in saturated fat, sugar and salt, are usually much cheaper than healthier foods – contributing to serious health problems, especially among poorer households.
Farmers are key allies in tackling climate change and the nature crisis, caring for and restoring the countryside while producing high-quality food for our tables.
But their ability to do this is threatened by the Conservative Government’s botched transition away from the Basic Payment Scheme.
We support the move to public money for public goods, but many farmers are seeing their incomes threatened as old payments are cut and new payments are not fully rolled out or properly funded.
Meanwhile, farmers have had to contend with increases in bills for energy, fertilisers and feed.
It is hardly surprising we have seen food shortages in the supermarkets.
The Conservatives’ botched deal with the EU is also contributing to food shortages and high food prices,
and severely damaging farmers’ and fishers’ ability to export to their main markets in Europe
while new trade deals undermine animal welfare and environmental protection,
undercutting responsible British farmers and setting a dangerous precedent for future deals.
Liberal Democrats will stand up for British farmers and ensure everyone can get affordable, healthy and nutritious food,
produced to high welfare and environmental standards.
ensuring that Britain’s farmers and food manufacturers are not put at an unfair disadvantage.
creating new natural flood protections and managing land to encourage species recovery and carbon storage,
while producing food for the table.
Exploring additional funding options to ensure an intelligent transition to better farming practices.
Fishers, scientists and conservationists should all be at the centre of a decentralised and regionalised fisheries management system.