Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill: equality impact assessment

Key Findings

Statutory targets for improving biodiversity

The provisions in the Bill are limited to establishing the framework required for the implementation of statutory nature restoration targets. As such they are not considered to have an impact on those with protected characteristics as defined in the Equality Act 2010. This is supported by the responses to the public consultation.

The target provisions in the Bill include high level topics for which specific targets will be set. Future legislation made under the Bill (via secondary legislation) will set out more details of the actual targets and how the Scottish Government will monitor its progress to achieve them. This approach allows for the target topics and targets to be adaptable to changing circumstances and ensures that parliamentary scrutiny is maintained.

Therefore, further EQIAs will also be conducted on any future secondary legislation that is made under the provisions in the Bill that set out further details of statutory nature restoration targets to ensure that any potential impacts on protected characteristics are considered when the individual targets are being developed. The actions taken to deliver statutory nature restoration targets set out in secondary legislation, will be undertaken via the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy Delivery Plans. These actions may have impacts which will be fully considered and assessed under the SBS delivery plans where necessary.

Delegated power for future amendments to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) legislation and the Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 1994

The EQIA process suggested that the provisions in the Bill that relate to the delegated power to amend the EIA legislation and Habitats Regulations will not directly impact on protected characteristics; this is supported by responses to the consultation carried out on these specific provisions.

However, as indicated in some of the consultation responses, there is the potential that future legislation made under this power may impact on protected characteristics.

Therefore, further impact assessments will be conducted on any future secondary legislation that is made under the delegated power in the Bill to ensure that any potential impacts on protected characteristics are considered when the legislation is being developed.

Modernisation of the aims and powers of National Parks

The provisions relating to the National Park proposals are anticipated to have an overall positive impact, on individuals but this is not expected to differ significantly for different equality groups.

The changes to the National Park aims to specifically include biodiversity regeneration and restoration, climate change mitigation and promoting health and wellbeing may positively impact on all individuals in protected groups who live near or visit a National Park.

The new policy will apply equally to all individuals who live within the boundary or visit a National Park in Scotland. However, the evidence gathered has demonstrated that children and younger generations specifically, may see greater long-term benefits of the effects of climate change mitigation and biodiversity regeneration and restoration.

A Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA) has been conducted to assess the impacts of the provisions in the Bill on children and young people specifically. More details on these impacts can be found in the published CRWIA.

The evidence gathered during the development of this EQIA demonstrated that older generations and those with long-term limiting illness or disability do not access nature or the outdoors as regularly as others, therefore this group could benefit from the amended aims of National Parks which will put a greater emphasis on accessibility of National Parks.

Public bodies operating within a National Park will have a strengthened duty to have regard to the National Park Plans which actively promote diversity and inclusion which may have a positive impact on individuals in all protected groups who visit a National Park or live and work within the area of a designated National Park.

The delegated power for National Parks to issue Fixed Penalty Notices will not have any direct impacts on individuals. However, future legislation made under these powers is likely to impact on persons aged 16 and over.

As any legislation made using these powers will have an impact on individuals a further EQIA will be undertaken when the legislation is being developed, to ensure that any potential impacts on protected characteristics are fully considered.

Reforming legislation relating to deer management

The EQIA process demonstrated that the deer management provisions in the Bill will affect those who wish to undertake deer management, stalk deer, own land in which deer are prevalent, landowners, land managers and those who have a role in enforcing the legislation, using regulatory and intervention powers. The provisions in the Bill will affect people who carry out these activities in the following ways:

They cannot shoot a deer with a shotgun without the appropriate authorisation from NatureScot.

Those who hold a shotgun certificate and seek an authorisation from NatureScot to use a shotgun to shoot deer will be required, when secondary legislation is introduced under the Bill, to be registered on the register of authorised persons, or be accompanied by an individual who is registered.

They must report the taking or killing of a stray farmed deer to the police within 5 days.

The provisions in the Bill relating to deer management will also affect anyone who commits any of the new offences which are being inserted into the Deer (Scotland) Act 1996, (shooting a deer with a shotgun, failing to report the taking or killing of a stray farmed deer to Police Scotland, providing false or misleading information).

However, it is a matter for the courts to decide, on conviction of any offence, the appropriate sentence to impose, after taking into account all the evidence and mitigating factors presented to them.

Whilst there is limited demographic data available, the evidence gathered during the EQIA process has identified that the deer management provisions are expected to have the biggest impact on the protected characteristics of age and sex as the evidence demonstrated that:

• males and those aged between 51-70 are the most likely to actively participate in stalking deer and related activities;

and

• males and those aged between 22-41 are the most likely to be prosecuted for the types of offences contained within the Bill.