If you’re waiting for a ‘green Brexit’, you might find yourself disappointed

Massive gaps in environmental regulations and enforcement have opened because of us leaving Europe, writes Craig Bennett

‘Clearly, the list of “must do better” for the government is long’ (PA)

Seventies staples are all the rage now: flared trousers and toad-in-the-hole are, I’m told, back. But do we really want that other throwback – to be the “dirty man of Europe” – once more?

That’s what the UK was called when we joined the European Economic Community in 1973; when there was sewage on our beaches, and otters were nearly extinct, poisoned by agricultural pesticides in rivers. Europe made us clean up, to an extent. And then, four years ago, the then secretary of state for the environment, Michael Gove, promised a “green Brexit” – and, more specifically, to “maintain and enhance” environmental standards as we left the EU. That promise was very welcome.

The Wildlife Trusts and 12 other green charities pledged to hold ministers to their word, but the government has mostly not delivered. Out of eight areas monitored, half are red alert: nature, chemicals, air quality and waste are all at the highest level of risk, with potentially disastrous consequences for standards and protections. The outlook for the others – water, climate, sea life and agriculture – is uncertain at best.