Today, Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivers her Spring Statement—an economic update billed, for many, as a showdown between “nature vs. growth”. For weeks, the Government has cast nature as a pesky hurdle—think bats, newts, and jumping spiders—using the media to argue environmental protections choke development. It’s a tired tactic, straight from the MAGA playbook. Trump and Musk pulled a similar stunt, painting USAID’s complex global security programs as ‘wasteful’ to justify cuts. Downing Street now does the same, reducing nature to an afterthought.
This is nonsense. Nature’s our cheapest, most effective weapon against climate change. Peatlands alone could yield £109 billion in benefits—five to ten times their cost—per Zero Hour’s report, Creating a Nature-rich UK. Floods cost the UK over £1.3 billion annually, but tree shelterbelts could slash that by 40%, saving £500 million. Restoring nature isn’t just about flood-proofing rural communities though—it’s about green jobs and an agenda for economic security—now and into the future, a ‘win, win’ we didn’t hear from the Chancellor today.
After abruptly pausing the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme, this was the moment for an ambitious pivot to power up nature-friendly farming. Hedgerows deliver £4 per £1 invested and 25,000 jobs. Agroforestry traps carbon at £9-20 per tonne, leaving BECCS’ £100-600 in the dust. Farmers are key to this green boom, yet Labour’s left them hanging. However, today’s cuts to the DEFRA budget—and consequently the nature-friendly farming budget—reveal a Government prioritising short-term savings over long-term prosperity. As nature groups and farmers said, we needed a bold recommitment to sustainable agriculture—not silence.
Reeves ran on ‘Securonomics’, promising economic stability rooted in long-term security. But nature isn’t just a cuddly species—it props up 55% of global GDP, according to PwC. Ignoring that guts her own vision. A truly serious Spring Statement would’ve mapped a stable economy fueled by renewables and green jobs, paired with clean rivers and thriving ecosystems.
The CBI pegs the net zero sector at £83 billion in 2024, growing 10%—triple the UK’s sluggish average—and supporting 951,000 jobs. Cheap renewables like wind, solar, and tidal are poised to cut bills, secure energy, and turbocharge this surge. Instead, we’re still waiting for grid upgrades to unlock Labour’s ‘clean energy superpower’ pledge.
This isn’t about picking growth or nature—it’s about rejecting that false choice. Labour vowed to end divisive politics and prioritise the country. Undermining nature betrays that promise. Reeves’ July pledge for ‘long-termism’ rings hollow against rollbacks of environmental rules and cries of ‘build, baby, build’. HM Treasury’s own Dasgupta Review warns nature’s decline could shrink UK GDP by 12%. That’s not long-term growth—that’s self-sabotage.
Yes, our housing stock’s creaking. But development should sync with nature, delivering the net zero, nature positive homes we need. These homes could halve heating bills—£500 saved per household annually, per (our report) Net Zero: The Ambition Gap. Retrofitting them would spark jobs and slash emissions. But where’s the investment? And what’s the plan for nearly one million empty homes in Britain? We don’t always need to reinvent the wheel—by improving existing housing stock, we can significantly reduce bills and increase much needed access to homes fit for the future.
The Government has misjudged the public mood. Over 70% reject Trump’s rhetoric, yet it echoes in today’s Spring Statement. Nearly 80% of us see nature as vital to well-being and prosperity, yet it’s framed as a drag. Labour needs to be very, very careful here. The RSPB alone has more members than all political parties combined, not to mention other eNGOs, making an “attack on nature” a clear lose-lose.
This Statement could’ve been a catalyst for renewables, nature, and more; unlocking billions in returns, with millions of tonnes of carbon slashed, and building a Britain that’s cleaner, healthier, and happier.
Labour MPs must champion this now: nature and net zero aren’t sinkholes—they’re vote-winning opportunities. And more than that, they’re the foundation of life as we know it.
