As the Government abandons the Chalk Stream Recovery Pack, the House of Lords must act now to protect England’s chalk streams

By Stuart Singleton-White, Head of Campaigns at the Angling Trust, and
Zoe Wedderburn-Day, Head of Policy and Strategy at Fish Legal

This week, Peers have a choice: to back amendments that give England’s chalk streams the legal protection they need, or to let these globally rare rivers remain unprotected as the Planning and Infrastructure Bill moves through Parliament.

The Government’s surprising recent decision to abandon the Chalk Stream Recovery Pack (the one targeted, evidence-based programme designed specifically to restore these rivers) has left them dangerously exposed. The government claims the Pack “falls short” of their wider ambitions to clean up rivers, lakes and seas. Yet without it, and without the protections proposed in the amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, chalk streams risk becoming collateral damage in an accelerated growth agenda.

Why this matters

Chalk streams are unique to this country: 85 per cent of the world’s total lie in England, yet 83 per cent fail to reach good ecological status. They are not only ecological treasures but also the source of much of our drinking water, the foundation of local economies, and the birthplace of modern angling.

As Zoe Wedderburn-Day, Head of Policy and Strategy at Fish Legal, explains:

“The Government says it can ‘do more’ for chalk streams outside the Recovery Plan, yet its actions point the other way — voting against multiple amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill that would have offered greater protection, including ensuring these precious rivers are treated as the irreplaceable habitats they are.

“Protecting chalk streams isn’t anti-growth; it’s good economics and good sense. These rivers supply drinking water to millions and support local livelihoods and recreation. Clean growth starts with clean water. Dropping the Recovery Plan seems to fit into the Government’s wider rollback of environmental ambition and leaves our most fragile rivers exposed to exactly the pressures it was meant to prevent.”

Angling Trust Ambassador and lead consultant on the Chalk Stream Recovery Pack, Charles Rangeley-Wilson comments:

“The government has ditched the promised chalk stream recovery pack before it even saw the light of day. If can-kicking was a sport, Defra would be world champions. Chalk streams are beleaguered by over abstraction, pollution, and habitat destruction. Where are the time-bound commitments to address these things? We need the House of Lords to give this administration a clear signal that vague promises are not good enough, especially when they appear to be so easily broken.”

Stuart Singleton-White, Head of Campaigns at the Angling Trust, adds:

“Chalk streams are the birthplace of modern angling. These habitats are unique to England, part of our national heritage, and as precious as the Amazon rainforest yet most remain in poor condition. For ministers to claim that the Chalk Stream Recovery Pack ‘falls short’ of their own river plans is nonsense. The government’s plans are generic and vague, a rebranding exercise rather than a nature recovery strategy. Dropping a targeted, evidence-based plan to restore chalk streams shows once again that this government’s claims of a ‘win-win for growth and nature’ is a shallow promise.

“Healthy rivers support healthy communities. They provide clean drinking water, sustain local jobs in tourism and recreation, and are at the heart of many rural economies. With simple, sensible planning safeguards, we can deliver the homes and infrastructure the country needs and protect the world’s rarest rivers. Ministers should back the Lords’ amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill and prove they are serious and make delivering ‘clean growth’ more than just a slogan.”

A moment for leadership

The Commons has already rejected three amendments that would have afforded greater protections to chalk streams including shielding them from “offsetting” rules that allow damage in one place to be compensated for elsewhere. Peers in the House of Lords will now have the chance to put that right.

We urge the Government to back those amendments and to commit, in the forthcoming Water White Paper, to clear, time-bound targets for chalk-stream restoration.

Protecting chalk streams is not a barrier to growth — it’s a foundation for it. MPs should seize this moment to show that clean growth starts with clean water.

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