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Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill

I added my name to Amendment No. 116 simply to ask for clarification, which I hope will be forthcoming. As we have just heard, Natural England will have the general purpose of protecting biodiversity under subsection (2)(a) of this general purpose clause. In the very helpful letter that the Minister sent to us all on 19 January, in which he drew our attention to Clause 40 on the duty to conserve biodiversity, he points out that in complying with the purpose of conserving—not protecting, as in the general purpose clause—the Minister of the Crown, a government department or the National Assembly for Wales must have particular regard to the 1992 convention. He continues:"““it would be wrong to expect all 388 principal local authorities to be fully conversant with the 1992 convention””." I understand that, but the local authorities are mentioned in Clause 40. They are a public authority, so they have the duty to conserve biodiversity. The Minister need not reply; it would be easier to write to us to explain how the general purpose of protecting biodiversity runs alongside the duty to conserve in Clause 40, and the particular requirement for certain of the public authorities to have regard to the 1992 convention. It is a little confusing.