Environment Secretary, George Eustice, has today visited Delamere Forest to make a speech about the government's strategies for conserving our tree life and peatlands.

The speech, 'Tackling the Twin Threats of the Nature and Climate Crisis', was streamed by The Wildlife Trust on YouTube, where it can still be viewed.

"I think that the events of the last 12 months have led people to recognise the difference that nature makes to their lives more than ever before," Mr Eustice said. "There is an increased awareness of the link between our own health and economic prosperity and that of the planet.

"Restoring nature is going to be crucial as we build back from the pandemic."

Mr Eustice then announced an amendment to The Environment Bill which will introduce a legally binding target for species abundance by 2030.

"We hope that this will be the Net Zero event for nature, spurring on action and events required to address the biodiversity crisis.

"If we are to deliver this ambitious new target and reverse the downward trend we've seen in recent decades, we need to change our approach right now. We must move the emphasis away from approaches which simply moderate the pace of decline and instead put in place the governance regime that can deliver nature's recovery."

A busy day for Delamere Forest, which was also featured on BBC Breakfast this morning ahead of Mr Eustice's speech.