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From Land Use Framework to Nature Markets

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 10:06:01 GMT

We strongly welcome the publication of the Government’s Land Use Framework for England. The Framework’s focus on integration over trade-offs aligns closely with our own submission , developed with partners across farming, development, infrastructure and environmental sectors.

For the first time, we have a clear national articulation of how land can support economic growth, nature recovery, climate resilience and food production together. The Framework’s central insight is that England has sufficient land to meet these objectives if it is used more effectively. Its emphasis on multifunctional land use reflects a growing consensus across Broadway's trade association members: that better outcomes will come not from separating priorities, but from designing systems that deliver multiple benefits in the same place.

The Government has also recognised the importance of improved spatial coordination and more accessible data. A more joined-up view across sectors, supported by better information, is an essential foundation for more informed and confident decision-making, as we made clear in our consultation response.

The Framework takes an enabling rather than prescriptive approach, seeking to support better decisions across national, regional and local levels. This is a welcome position; our submission argued that land use decisions ultimately sit with a wide range of actors, and any national framework must provide clarity without constraining the flexibility needed to respond to local conditions.

The test will be how the Framework is applied in practice.

The Land Use Framework helps create a more coherent picture of how different land use priorities fit together. At the same time, its high-level nature means that it will not, and is not intended to, resolve all of the complexities of land use on the ground. Local priorities, community perspectives and individual land management decisions will continue to play a central role in shaping outcomes.

The Framework also sets out long-term signals about the direction of land use change, including the protection of the most productive agricultural land and a gradual shift towards more multifunctional systems. These signals are helpful in providing clarity, but will need to remain sufficiently flexible to reflect the diversity of land types, businesses and local contexts across England.

There are also encouraging signals around the potential for more spatially targeted approaches to land management, including the alignment of agricultural support with environmental outcomes such as water quality and resilience. Alongside this, the emphasis on practices such as improving soil health and integrating features like buffer strips reflects a practical route towards lower-impact, more multifunctional farming systems that can deliver benefits across sectors.

The commitment to improved data is particularly welcome. Ensuring that this data is usable, trusted and relevant at different scales will be an important part of making the Framework effective in practice.

The Land Use Framework and Environmental Markets

A central theme of Broadway’s submission was the need to align land use policy with investment signals. The Framework recognises the growing role of private investment and the potential for land managers to access multiple income streams alongside food production. This is a positive direction. However, further work will be needed to translate this into clear, practical pathways that connect public policy, private finance and land management decisions.

In particular, unlocking investment at scale will depend not only on the supply of environmental outcomes, but on strengthening demand. Businesses depend on nature for their operations and resilience, and there is an increasing opportunity to connect that dependency more directly to investment in land-based outcomes.

Creating the conditions for that investment through clear signals, credible markets and confidence in delivery will be a critical next step.

This is a central focus of the Broadway Initiative’s Nature Markets Dialogue, which is bringing together partners across sectors to explore how demand for nature can be strengthened and how investment can be mobilised at scale.

A strong foundation for the next phase

The Land Use Framework represents an important and welcome development. It establishes a shared language and a clearer sense of direction for how land can deliver multiple outcomes in an increasingly complex policy landscape.

The next phase will be about building on that foundation: ensuring that the Framework supports practical decision-making, aligns with investment, and continues to evolve in response to experience and evidence.

Broadway looks forward to continuing to work with Government and partners across sectors to support this next stage.

Government Willow Review response champions collaboration with Broadway

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 12:24:22 GMT

The Willow Review has clearly shown it’s small businesses who stand to benefit the most from investing in sustainability. The Government's response to the Review highlights the role of Broadway Initiative in supporting those small businesses to realise that opportunity.

The UK Government has acknowledged the important role of the Broadway Initiative in its formal response to the Willow Review , particularly in relation to supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on the path to net zero. The response specifically references government investment in, and collaboration with, the Broadway Initiative to promote the UK Business Climate Hub as a central source of practical guidance for SMEs looking to cut emissions, manage energy costs, and identify new opportunities for growth.

The document also recognises the ongoing work to strengthen and expand the Hub’s resources. This includes efforts to improve the clarity, usability and reach of sustainability information for smaller businesses, ensuring that guidance is not only technically robust but accessible and relevant across sectors.

In addition, the Government highlights the intention to integrate the support offered through the Hub more closely with the forthcoming Business Growth Service. This will simplify how SMEs access both growth and sustainability advice, reducing duplication and making it easier for businesses to take confident, practical steps towards decarbonisation.

The response also notes that "Government advice on sustainability will be amplified by partners in the private sector within the Broadway Initiative coalition, who will also help to point SMEs to the UKBCH as a key source of information."

We welcome this recognition of the Broadway Initiative’s contribution and remain committed to working with government, business leaders and industry partners. Our focus continues to be equipping SMEs with the tools, information and confidence they need to take action on climate while strengthening their long-term resilience and competitiveness.

How the Government's new climate plan underpins the Sector Transition Plans

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 16:08:43 GMT

This week’s publication of the Carbon Budget and Growth Delivery Plan and last week's launch of the Sector Transition Plans represent two parts of the same story: the UK moving from climate ambition to coordinated delivery.

The Government’s plan sets out how the UK will continue to reduce emissions in line with the Climate Change Act, while capturing the benefits of clean energy: lower bills, good jobs, warmer homes and cleaner air. It provides the national framework for growth through decarbonisation.

The Sector Transition Plans , launched by the Net Zero Council and supported by the Broadway Initiative, take that framework relevant to the level of each industry. They provide a practical roadmap for how every major sector, from housing and transport to agri-food and finance, can work with government and investors to deliver the transition.

The climate plan defines t he destination and the benefits of the transition. The Sector Transition Plans map the routes and responsibilities to get there.

The timing of these announcements shows strong alignment between government policy and s ector delivery. It signals that the UK’s transition is moving into a new phase , one where ambition is matched by clear pathways, investment frameworks, and the shared effort needed to make the transition real.

Broadway and The Food and Drink Federation lead the way to a Nature Positive future

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 14:18:27 GMT

The Food and Drink Federation and Broadway Initiative has launched a Nature Positive Handbook, an output of the Nature Markets Dialogue , to help food and drink manufacturers take practical steps toward a nature-positive value chain by 2030.

The Handbook provides food and drink companies with the tools they need to understand and address their nature-related impacts and dependencies, a vital step for an industry whose success depends so directly on the health of the natural world. It sets out a clear business case for investing in nature: protecting supply chains, managing risks, and building long-term resilience.

The publication draws on the work of the Nature Markets Dialogue , convened by Broadway, which has brought together more than 180 professionals from 160 organisations to address the barriers to high-integrity investment in nature. The Dialogue identified the need for clear governance, stronger demand drivers, and early, no-regrets action from business. The Handbook shows how high-level principles can be translated into real-world business practice.

“We are grateful to The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) for showing remarkable leadership in this space,” said Liam Stokes, Nature and Communications Director at the Broadway Initiative. “Wildlife and the ecosystems they inhabit are dwindling at home and around the world, a crisis that presents not only a moral imperative but a specific challenge to a food and drinks sector that depends upon nature.

"Yet businesses are not only threatened by the perilous state of nature; they also hold the solution. This Handbook presents food and drinks manufacturers with the tools they need to lead the way in nature-positive action and build the resilient, sustainable businesses of tomorrow.”

From Ambition to Action
The new guidance builds on FDF's existing resources on decarbonisation and energy, expanding the Federation’s support for members to include practical pathways toward nature recovery. It walks food and drinks manufacturers through how to conduct nature-related risk and impact assessments and integrate those findings into procurement and farmer relationships. The Handbook also explores how businesses can engage with nature-related opportunities, and how nature finance can form part of a credible nature strategy.

The Broadway Initiative will continue to work alongside FDF, Defra, and partners across government and industry to ensure that governance structures evolve in step with the businesses driving change on the ground. The Nature Markets Dialogue will now move into its next phase, focusing on implementing governance recommendations and embedding private investment in nature across the full range of environmental policy.

The Nature Positive Handbook demonstrates what can happen when collaboration turns ambition into action. Together, the FDF and Broadway are showing that a nature-positive choice can be the financially positive choice, for companies, communities, and the environment alike.

The 2025 UK Net Zero Business Census Report is here!

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 11:48:23 GMT

The largest-ever survey of UK businesses on climate action finds that 79% of large firms continue to view net zero as a strategic priority. More than a third of SMEs also have net zero high on their agenda, a sign of both encouragement and of the work we still need to do.

The UK’s journey to net zero depends not only on the leadership of major corporates but on the engagement of the small businesses that make up the backbone of the British economy. Yet the Census highlights a clear communications challenge: while most SMEs (63%) are already seeing organisational benefits from climate action, one in four still perceive no business advantage in cutting emissions.

At the Broadway Initiative, we see this as an invitation to act. Through the UK Business Climate Hub , which we manage in collaboration with government, trade associations, banks, and energy networks, we’re helping to close the gap between environmental ambition and practical action. The Hub brings together trusted tools, guidance, and financial support so SMEs can not only reduce emissions but strengthen their resilience and competitiveness.

As Ed Lockhart, Convenor of the Broadway Initiative, observed:

“The finding that 25% of SMEs see no business benefits from cutting emissions is driving us to increase the amount of accessible information on the Hub about how to seize these commercial benefits.”

The connection between business success and environmental health is not abstract. Every sector ultimately depends on the natural systems that sustain our economy – from fertile soils to stable weather patterns, from water availability to biodiversity. Helping businesses recognise and act on that connection is essential to building an economy that is net zero and nature positive.

A night of optimism and collaboration at the Broadway and ISEP Annual Reception

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 09:49:25 GMT

The event marked the launch of the Net Zero Council’s Sector Transition Plan guidance , setting out how every major sector of the UK economy can co-create a pathway to net zero, supported by business, finance, and government.

It was a full house at the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals (ISEP) and Broadway Initiative’s Annual Reception, for an evening charged with optimism, energy, and a shared sense of purpose.

Attendees from across government, business, finance, and civil society commented on both the quantity of the turnout and the quality of the conversation. The sense in the room was that the newly published Sector Transition Plan guidance represents more than a new document: it’s a moment to align effort, policy, and investment behind a common framework for change.

Narrators of Hope

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband set the tone for the evening, calling on sustainability professionals to be “narrators of hope” and reminding the audience that clean energy is the economic opportunity of the 21st century.

“We are in the better-lives-today business, not just the disaster-avoidance-tomorrow business,” he said, a line that captured the optimistic spirit of the evening. Quoting Martin Luther King Jr., he added, “King didn’t say I have a nightmare. He said I have a dream,” urging the sector to focus on the positive vision of cleaner, fairer growth rather than the perils of inaction.

Miliband hailed the “incredible diversity” of the climate movement and spoke of the importance of partnership between government and business to deliver the transition. “We welcome this [ Sector Transition Pan ] guidance which will help businesses and investors identify what needs to be done, where investment is needed, and how we can work together to make the British people better off through homegrown, clean power.”

Unity, Urgency, and Stability

Following an introduction from the evening's host, Lord Gus O'Donnell, the speeches were opened with a call for “unity, urgency, and stability” in the clean energy transition from Rain Newton-Smith, CEO of the Confederation of British Industry.

“Clean energy is the opportunity of a generation. It’s not a cost to cut back on, it’s an investment to maximise,” she said , urging government and business to turn climate action “from a political debate into a partnership for growth, investment, and a fairer, greener economy.”

Emma Pinchbeck , CEO of the Climate Change Committee, built on that message, emphasising that the UK has already made huge progress on emissions reduction and now is the time to scale up and communicate the benefits.

“We need to make electricity cheap again. We’ve reached an inflection point — if we want the transition to gather pace and bring people with us, we need to bring the benefits forward as much as possible.”

Pinchbeck stressed that climate action should be seen as investment rather than cost, and that public support will follow when people see tangible improvements in their own lives from lower bills to new jobs and revitalised local economies.

ISEP CEO Sarah Mukherjee MBE reflected on the shared responsibility that comes with the launch of the Sector Transition Plans:

“We need to focus on capacity building throughout the workforce in every sector, so we have the skills to drive the net-zero transition across the whole economy. Our ambition should be to weave green competences throughout the workforce and make all jobs greener — much in the way digital skills spread across entire organisations in previous decades.”

Her call for a “coordinated, whole-economy approach” captured one of the key themes of the night: that the transition cannot be driven by policy or business alone. It requires both to move in step, ensuring the benefits of the green transition are fair for families today and for generations to come.

Optimism as a Strategy

The night closed with a palpable sense of optimism. “Optimism can be a strategy,” Miliband concluded, to resounding applause. “We can’t plead ignorance and we certainly shouldn’t plead that it’s too late. We are the generation that still has the power to act.”

The Sector Transition Plans l aunched at the event embody that optimism, a framework for collaboration between sectors, government, and finance to chart credible pathways to net zero. They provide a practical foundation for the “better lives today” vision: cleaner, fairer growth that works for people, nature, and business alike.

The Energy Secretary led the room in a round of applause for Broadway and ISEP. For those of us in the room, it was a welcome moment of recognition, and a reminder that collaboration, not competition, will deliver the future we all want to see. Now the task is to take that energy out into the world : to win hearts and minds, build partnerships, and drive the better-lives agenda across the country.

Sector Transition Plans launched to accelerate investment and action across UK economy

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 14:34:47 GMT

At an event addressed by the Energy Secretary Ed Miliband on 20th October 2025, the Net Zero Council announced the launch of Sector Transition Plans (STPs), a major new initiative to accelerate investment and coordinated action across the UK economy in support of the Clean Energy Mission.

Net Zero Council announced the launch at the Annual Reception of the Broadway Initiative and the Institute of Sustainability & Environmental Professionals (ISEP) – formerly IEMA, hosted by Lord Gus O'Donnell at the Royal United Services Institute.

The Broadway Initiative, together with DESNZ, provides the secretariat for the Net Zero Council and has convened organisations from across the economy to help shape the STP approach. The Broadway Initiative is now supporting implementation of STPs through a three-year programme of collaboration.

The launch marks the publication of STP guidance, developed by the Broadway Initiative, in close liaison with the Transition Finance Council, at the direction of the Net Zero Council. The guidance provides a blueprint for each major sector of the economy to co-create a shared vision and pathway to net zero, supported by finance and policy frameworks.

The launch also confirmed three further developments:

A new collaboration agreement between the Net Zero Council and the Transition Finance Council to align financial and sectoral planning.
Co-investment by Government in the UK Business Climate Hub, expanding its role as the central platform for developing, hosting and maintaining STPs across the economy.
A new programme to ensure that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can easily access tailored support to decarbonise, cut costs and capture clean growth opportunities.

This moment marks a significant moment in the UK’s climate and economic strategy, with new guidance published to support sector-wide planning, investment alignment, and SME engagement. Broadway Initiative wishes to thank the wide range of organisations and individuals that collaborated on the production of the Guidance and the launch of the STP workstreams, including the members of both Councils. Read the Sector Transition Plan Guidance here .

Why the UK Business Climate Hub Matters More Than Ever

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 15:10:35 GMT

Economic uncertainty can make it tempting for businesses to focus only on short-term survival. But history shows that times of change are also times of opportunity – and today’s green transition is no exception.

The shift towards a low-carbon, nature-positive economy is creating new markets, driving innovation, and reshaping what success looks like in every sector. The challenge for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is knowing where to start and how to move forward with confidence.

That’s where the UK Business Climate Hub comes in.

The Hub is the UK’s go-to source for practical, trusted sustainability and net zero guidance for SMEs. Backed by government and industry, it provides clear, accessible resources to help businesses cut costs, improve efficiency, and seize the commercial opportunities of the green economy. Whether a business is just starting out on its sustainability journey or looking to accelerate progress, the Hub meets them where they are – offering everything from quick wins to deeper strategic advice.

Just some of the resources available on the hub:

In a volatile economic climate, these resources aren’t a “nice to have”; they’re essential. Energy efficiency measures can lower overheads. Meeting growing customer demand for sustainable products and services can open up new markets. Demonstrating strong environmental credentials can improve access to finance and supply chains. Far from being a cost burden, climate action can be a driver of resilience and growth.

The UK Business Climate Hub is uniquely placed to reach SMEs thanks to the powerful coalition behind it. The Hub brings together 25 major organisations, including the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), leading business groups, energy networks, high street banks, professional bodies, and the international SME Climate Hub. This breadth of support ensures that trusted guidance reaches businesses in every corner of the economy.

The Hub is managed by the Broadway Initiative , which played a pioneering role in bringing this coalition together. Our mission has always been to unite different parts of the economy to deliver practical solutions for reaching the UK’s net zero and environmental goals. The UK Business Climate Hub is a prime example of this approach in action – a single, trusted platform making it easier for businesses to take action that’s good for both the planet and the bottom line.

In uncertain times, clarity and direction matter. The UK Business Climate Hub offers both – helping businesses navigate change, build resilience, and grow in the green economy.

Net Zero Council building the tools for effective climate communication

Thu, 17 Jul 2025 12:35:44 GMT

The Net Zero Council is working on supporting businesses, organisations and civil society to talk about decarbonisation.

There is excellent work being undertaken to build the policy frameworks and transition plans needed to take UK business forward into a decarbonised future, much of it coordinated by the Net Zero Council . Yet anxiety remains over the prevailing political winds, sailing into the storm of misinformation and acrimony that characterises too much of our climate discourse.

Many participants in the Net Zero Council are adept at policy development and working up actual real world solutions to the dual challenges of decarbonisation and the better lives agenda. The Council has now stood up a workstream to build the messaging around that progress, to let the world know that Britain is taking the lead in clean energy and forward-thinking UK businesses are at the forefront of securing a healthier, happier today and a prosperous tomorrow.

This week workstream convened a workshop that brought together experts in climate messaging with Net Zero Council members including Broadway Initiative. The session examined and honed the framings that resonate with people and help the public get excited about the progress being made towards a cleaner, healthier, more prosperous future.

We will continue to bring our unique real-economy perspective and communications expertise to these discussions. Keep in touch with Broadway channels both here and on LinkedIn as this vital work continues to develop.

Nature Markets Dialogue responds to the VCNM Consultation

Fri, 11 Jul 2025 15:12:18 GMT

Following five workshops, two Ministerial roundtables, two stakeholder surveys and a consultation engaging over 180 professionals from 160 organisations, our Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD) has responded to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero consultation on Voluntary Carbon and Nature Markets.

Our response draws heavily on the recently published NMD Findings and Proposal paper, and in particular our proposal for a Nature Markets Governance Scheme.

We targeted our responses at consultation questions addressing insetting, high integrity governance and stacking. Our responses continually pointed to the findings and proposal derived from the findings of the Nature Markets Dialogue over the past 18 months, arguing that:

Insetting requires strong oversight
Assurance and standards are not enough alone
Legal clarity is crucial
A statutory governance framework is essential
Stacking should be enabled, not trialled
A robust three-level 'additionality test' would remove the need for the limiting 'investment test' that exists in the Carbon Codes

The NMD urges a holistic, legally grounded approach to market governance. Without decisive government action to establish robust, consistent, and enforceable rules, private sector engagement in UK nature markets will remain limited. Read the whole consultation response here .

The 2025 Net Zero Census is Now Live!

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 11:10:32 GMT

Add your voice to the largest UK industry study of business progress on the journey to net zero.

The UK Net Zero Business Census is an annual survey which creates a nationwide snapshot of how businesses are tackling net zero and climate action, and we need you to share your views and spread the word.

The pathway to net zero must be built on comprehensive data and credible industry intelligence, and with your help and participation that is what the UK Net Zero Census will deliver. We need as many businesses as possible to take the Census and tell us about their own experiences and opinions of the journey to net zero.

The 2025 Net Zero Census has been endorsed by the Net Zero Council , the key government grouping proposed by Broadway and chaired by Ed Miliband. The Census is delivered by the Broadway-led UK Business Climate Hub in partnership with Planet Mark, with insights from Sage, hosting support from British Chambers of Commerce, benchmarking support from Experian, SME-specific analysis supported by British Business Bank, and a wealth of business sector support. Last year over 2000 businesses took part: this second year should be even bigger, presenting a vital opportunity to benchmark our progress and see how far we have come in the past 12 months.

The Census will provide crucial data to support the pursuit of economy-wide decarbonisation, and help us further enhance the UK Business Climate Hub, ensuring the UK's single portal for SME net zero advice continues to meet the needs of the nation's small businesses.

The Census closes on the 18th July, so let's share the survey far and wide.

SME Data Taskforce, convened by B4NZ and The Broadway Initiative, launches new UK SME Emissions Standard

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 14:43:38 GMT

The UK SME Voluntary Emissions Standard produces a “create once, share many” model for sustainability data.

SMEs are the backbone of UK business and have a vital role to play in the pursuit of a decarbonised economy. Through our UK Business Climate Hub and our leading role on the Net Zero Council, we at Broadway are acutely aware of the challenges these small businesses face. This week we have collaborated with B4NZ and over 50 partners to launch a solution to one critical barrier to the low carbon transition: fragmented, duplicative emissions data requests.

The UK SME Voluntary Emissions Standard is unveiled in the report From Burden to Benefit: Streamlining SME Data Sharing to unlock Green Finance and Economic Incentives. The Standard is a practical, proportionate solution that aligns with PPN006 and public procurement frameworks, supports consistent emissions data from SMEs, and unlocks access to green finance, incentives and supply chain opportunities.

You can read the report HERE.

Nature Market Governance: a post-Spending Review Imperative

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 16:37:37 GMT

As public finances tighten, the need to find alternative funding mechanisms for nature recovery becomes not just important, but absolutely critical. The release of the Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD) "Findings and Proposal" report could not have been more timely.

For too long, the colossal challenge of restoring our natural environment has been shouldered predominantly by public funding. Yet, the scale of this undertaking demands far more than government budgets alone can provide. The UK has ambitious targets for securing private investment in nature, with a goal of £1 billion per year by 2030. But achieving this target remains elusive. While there's no shortage of private capital available, a crucial piece of the puzzle has been missing: a robust and credible governance framework for nature markets.

Our extensive engagement with 169 specialists from 147 businesses, government bodies, and third-sector organisations through the NMD has delivered an unequivocal message: business has lost confidence in environmental credit markets . The well-documented integrity issues in voluntary carbon markets have created a deep-seated distrust, acting as a fundamental barrier to widespread business participation and market development. As NMD Chair Peter Young put it, "private sector stakeholders in the NMD have made it clear their patience is wearing thin. They will not participate in nature credit markets that lack proper regulation and governance". Businesses and finance will simply "stay on the sidelines unless confidence in market integrity is restored".

The core of the problem lies in the nature of biodiversity and ecosystem services themselves – they are "credence goods". This means their quality and quantity are difficult for buyers and sellers to verify, creating significant risks of exploitation, fraud, and critically, greenwashing. Without a robust governance framework, market participation continues to be perceived as having significant risks.

This is why our report, “Towards a Governance Framework for UK Nature Markets,” is so critical. It represents, perhaps, "the last chance to establish effective nature markets governance". Our proposal crystallises twelve months of wide-ranging engagement into a practical pathway for building a robust governance framework for UK nature markets, one that ensures high integrity, transparency, and, crucially, investor confidence.

Our proposed framework is designed to provide the certainty investors need to unlock the substantial private capital required for nature recovery. It calls for:

Legal underpinning: Providing a strong foundation for the market.
Clear rules and standards: Establishing transparent processes for developing and approving methodologies for calculating environmental benefits.
Enforceable market rules: Ensuring compliance and the delivery of real and additional environmental improvements.
Independent oversight: Building on existing institutional architecture to provide the necessary assurance.

With public funding for nature facing increased pressure following the Spending Review, mobilising private investment is no longer an option, it's a necessity. Our report provides the blueprint for how to achieve this. It is a regulatory failure, not a market failure, that impedes private funding for nature . Government must now play its part by urgently establishing a legally binding, high-integrity framework that covers both credit and inset markets.

The time for decisive action is now. By embracing the proposals outlined in our report, the government can unlock the only credible route to reversing nature's decline and achieving our ambitious environmental goals. The private sector is ready to invest, but only if we collectively build a market worthy of their trust.

New Report - Towards a Governance Framework for UK Nature Markets: Key Findings and Proposal

Wed, 11 Jun 2025 11:10:35 GMT

The Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD), a Broadway Initiative project bringing together 169 specialists from 147 businesses, government bodies, and third-sector organisations, today publishes its “Findings and Proposal” report.

The report was presented to Nature Minister Mary Creagh at a roundtable last week and will now form the basis of the NMD's contribution to the Voluntary Carbon and Nature Markets Consultation.

However, NMD participants are clear: these governance principles are not limited to voluntary markets and are certainly not limited to offsets. NMD chair Peter Young has commented: "Business will not participate in nature credit markets that lack proper regulation and governance. If we are to achieve the Government’s £1 billion-per-year stretch target for private investment in nature by 2030, we must urgently establish a legally binding, high-integrity framework that covers both credit and inset markets. Experience around the world tells us that anything less will continue to fail."

The re port Towards a Governance Framework for UK Nature Markets: Key Findings and Proposal is a report of the Dialogue.

Read Broadway Initiative's press release: The last chance to establish effective nature markets governance?

The Willow Review and UK Business Climate Hub

Wed, 04 Jun 2025 16:48:42 GMT

The Willow Review has launched today, exploring the benefits small businesses could derive from embracing sustainability and the actions that will help UK SMEs realise that potential. One of the key recommendations is to boost the reach of the UK Business Climate Hub, the UK's single point of net zero and sustainability information for Small and Medium Sized Businesses pioneered by the Broadway Initiative.

At the same time, the Willow Review highlights a wider communications challenge. Nearly 75% of SMEs do not understand how ‘net zero’ applies to them, with the report finding that technical jargon and climate targets stretching decades into the future leave small businesses feeling estranged from the transition to sustainability. So, what does this mean for future enhancements and development of the UK Business Climate Hub ?

Drawing on surveys of over 400 small businesses, focus groups, and case studies, the Willow Review highlights the diverse ways in which business can benefit from a pivot to sustainability, from reducing operational costs and attracting new customers to building greater resilience. Yet the findings once again point to the key barriers we know are preventing SMEs from taking their first steps towards greening their business: fragmented incentives, funding barriers both perceived and real, and a struggle to find the right information.

Cutting through the information overload around net zero is a vital step in bringing small businesses along the sustainability journey. The review quotes the UK Net Zero Business Census , which found nearly one-third of small businesses “don’t know where to start.” Conflicting terminology, technical jargon, and disparate advice make it hard to see the path forward.

Happily, the Willow Review says that quality resources do exist, at the UK Business Climate Hub . Working with a wide range of business, NGO and government partners, the Broadway Initiative manages the site to deliver precisely the practical, easy-to-access content the Willow Review argues needs to be put into the hands of UK SMEs. The site aims to provide information that is accurate, up to date and, crucially, all in one place.

Thanks to support from the diverse range of organisations making up the UKBCH steering group, and with the support of the Net Zero Council , the UKBCH already helps business take each step of the Willow Review’s five-point plan for sustainability: sustainable materials, optimised logistics, minimised waste, renewable energy and sustainable supply chains. The site provides easy access to carbon calculators, a curated directory of finance opportunities searchable by region and sector, as well as providing the case studies and thought leadership that can inspire businesses to take the sustainability plunge. But there is room to do even more.

The Willow Review five point plan is ambitious, but might there be room to broaden the definition of sustainability still further? At UK Business Climate Hub we are following the steer of the Net Zero Council and starting to look at the full scope of environmental sustainability actions open to UK SMEs, including land use, water, and responding to the biodiversity crisis.

As the Net Zero Council continues to align Government departments and agencies and mobilises resources and expertise, the Hub can evolve to deliver a wider suite of sustainability content in line with the Willow Review recommendations. Opportunities to harmonise with the forthcoming Business Growth Service offer the exciting potential to reach vastly more businesses, placing sustainability guidance alongside all the advice and information SMEs need to succeed. The proposed Local Sustainability Champions could signpost and demonstrate UKBCH content. The potential to embed AI as a tool for matching businesses to funding opportunities is untapped and could be transformative.

The Willow Review recommendation that the Government campaign to drive uptake of UK Business Climate Hub is an acknowledgment of the value of this one stop shop for SME net zero guidance. Yet there is a second messaging recommendation that is just as important and just as crucial to the future of UKBCH: the need to reframe business sustainability as a question of growth, competitiveness and profitability rather than compliance.

At Broadway we bring together the partners required to build the frameworks the country needs to deliver its environmental goals. Through those forums and conversations we know the importance of getting the message right. Protecting the environment is a vital moral imperative, but it needs to be communicated in a way that is relevant to people’s lives. The British public consistently tell pollsters that they love nature and support action on climate, but there is also a strong case to be made for environmental action supporting economic growth and widespread prosperity and security.

Helping to hone and share that narrative will be essential in the implementation of the Willow Review recommendations, and vital to the increased uptake of the tools on UK Business Climate Hub. The development of a single point of timely, accurate net zero information is a significant step towards the sustainability transition. The giant leap will come when an energised SME community is seeking out the site and making its resources a central part of their business planning.

Driving Retail Action on Nature: Broadway speak at BRC Roundtable

Fri, 16 May 2025 14:37:07 GMT

The Broadway Initiative joins up business action and government policy making to achieve the UK’s environmental targets. Earlier this week, we spoke to a British Retail Consortium (BRC) roundtable, explaining the opportunities for business interaction with key areas of Defra policy making that may on first glance look far removed from retail, yet are in fact vital for both economic growth and nature positivity.

The roundtable concluded the BRC’s Plan for Nature 24/25, bringing businesses together to discuss barriers to retailer action on the environment and how government policy might help overcome those challenges.

Broadway’s Nature Director Liam Stokes and Chief Operations Officer Matthew Farrow were invited to provide an update on three critical work streams, and to source vital feedback from retailers at the sharp end of business engagement with nature.

We laid out our next steps for trade association participation in The Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) review and refresh, the development of the Land Use Framework and the Cunliffe review of the water sector regulation. Before we spoke however, proceedings were opened with a powerful framing by RSK’s Christophe Lavialle.

Too often, the technical, practical nature of these discussions can make the real world impact of nature policy feel distant and remote. Christophe reminded the room of the crisis the world is facing, the existential challenge of living and doing business on a finite planet populated by invaluable wildlife in catastrophic decline. Early findings from the BRC’s own surveys showed there is still a long way to go, with many businesses of all sizes still right at the beginning of their journey to nature positivity.

These findings reflected our own experiences and the conversations we have been undertaking with food and drink’s manufacturers as we put together the first sectoral Nature Positive Handbook with our partners at the Food and Drink Federation. Businesses of a certain size understand net zero , and smaller businesses are being helped along the way by the UK Business Climate Hub , but nature is the next frontier. Broadway’s convening and bridge building is central to meeting that challenge.

We outlined the relevance of the EIP to retailers, explaining our efforts to map business sector impact onto the plan’s goals and objectives and highlighting the importance of building a ground-up coalition of the willing to co-create the mechanisms to make those targets achievable. Two of those mechanisms, the spatial frameworks found in the Land Use Framework and potentially the Cunliffe Review and the funding structures we are proposing through our Nature Markets Dialogue , we addressed in detail.

The discussion was vigorous and energetic, with conspicuous themes emerging. Alongside fellow speakers from RSK and Helen Edmundson from Defra, we heard retailers temper their evident enthusiasm for action with a desire for coherent frameworks in which to act. Business wants nature and climate action to break free of their silos, with holistic nature plans clearly stating what retailers are required to demonstrate in their environmental interventions. We were left in no doubt that harmonising strategies and policies, spatially and governmentally, remains a top priority.

The session was optimistic. There is appetite for action and engagement, and a desire to learn the lessons of climate action and carbon markets. There is clearly work to do both within businesses and in building the frameworks that retailers will need in order to maximise their nature positivity, but the collaborative energy at the BRC’s final Plan for Nature 24/25 roundtable suggests we are very much on the journey.

Broadway's Land Use Framework Response

Thu, 01 May 2025 11:06:51 GMT

Towards a Coherent Land Use Framework: Aligning Growth, Nature and Governance

Last week we submitted our response to Defra’s Land Use Framework consultation, drawing on our role as the space in which trade associations and government connect on environmental issues to create a unique collaborative effort.

How we use land is central to the twin challenges of driving economic growth and reversing environmental decline. Land is where our ambitions for net zero, nature recovery, food security, housing, transport and energy infrastructure all meet. Yet the current landscape of land use policymaking is fragmented, with no single mechanism to coordinate these priorities across sectors or government tiers.

That’s why the Government’s proposal to develop a Land Use Framework for England is so important, and why Broadway felt it was important to bring together a wide cross-section of the land-using economy to formulate a response.

A Unique Contribution

While many of our members are submitting detailed sector-specific responses, our submission represents something different: a view derived from consultation across these diverse sectors on what the Framework must do to be effective. We believe this cross-sectoral consensus gives our contribution unique value: it’s not about defending individual interests but identifying the common ground where nature, climate, and the economy can advance together.

Key Insight: The Need for Joined-Up Spatial Planning

The core message to emerge from our members was simple: the Land Use Framework must act as a unifying tool, both across central government departments and across the various tiers of government, from national to regional to local. We see the Framework as a potential first step towards a single, coherent Spatial Plan for England , aligning efforts on energy, housing, infrastructure, agriculture, and environmental improvement. A guiding light for policy making with land use implications across the whole of government.

A Spatial Plan for England would integrate the spatially-relevant strategies being developed across departments, such as:

The 10-Year Infrastructure Plan
The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan by NESO
Revised National Policy Statements
Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP)
Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS)
Local Area Energy Plans
The Farming and Timber in Construction Roadmaps

Without a mechanism to bring these together, policies will continue to conflict, compete or duplicate effort, wasting resources and undermining the pace and quality of delivery.

A Learning: A Government Focus on the Regional Tier

While our members were interested in coordination at the national scale, much of our Defra engagement has suggested an appetite for policy cohering at the regional scale, at the level of Combined Authorities and metro mayors. This is a significant shift in emphasis, and one that presents both opportunities and risks.

Plans are already afoot to produce regional spatial strategies for development and energy, in the form of Regional Spatial Development Strategies and Regional Energy Strategic Plans. However, there is currently no obvious mechanism for these regional strategies to integrate with national environmental goals (such as those in the EIP) or with local implementation tools like LNRS or the Local Environmental Improvement Plans (LEIPs) originally proposed by Broadway and recently endorsed by the Corry Review.

This lack of mediation between national environmental priorities and local delivery structures risks creating a serious governance gap which could result in underpowered regional nature delivery misaligned with development planning, as well as missed opportunities to deliver multiple benefits through coordinated land use decisions.

Our consultation response therefore proposes that the Land Use Framework actively supports regional institutions to play this mediating role, while also calling on government to set clearer expectations for coordination across spatial strategies and levels of government.

Making the Framework Work

Of course, coordinated policy making is far from the only role for a new Land Use Framework, and our submission pointed to many further points of consensus. Drawing on input from trade associations working across land, water, logistics and construction, we said an effective framework would:

Provide stability and clarity to support investment and long-term planning across sectors.
Ensure high-quality spatial data is available and used consistently, underpinned by a clear governance structure and potentially led by a national 'data champion.'
Empower regional and local actors to plan coherently, aligning local development, nature recovery, energy planning, and catchment management under a shared vision.
Support innovation in land use decision-making, with flexibility to respond to local context and incentives to deliver multiple benefits.
Coordinate funding and market mechanisms, including private investment in nature and carbon markets, to ensure coherent outcomes and avoid perverse incentives.
Ensure robust oversight, with transparent progress reporting and adaptive management to evolve the Framework over time.

What Comes Next?

The development of a Land Use Framework is an essential step towards making land use planning more coherent, sustainable, and effective. But it must not be a siloed Defra initiative. It must be a cross-government endeavour, embraced by departments responsible for energy, transport, housing, and economic growth as much as by those focused on environment, farming, and nature.

Broadway Initiative will continue to convene its members to support the development of this vital Framework. We remain committed to identifying practical opportunities for policy alignment, investment certainty, and delivery on the ground. The Land Use Framework is a vital opportunity to align public and private effort behind shared outcomes; we must not let it go to waste.

Nature Markets Dialogue Welcomes New Steering Group Members

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 12:50:47 GMT

The Nature Market Dialogue has added further authority and experience to its already expert Steering Group, with the addition of Penny Simpson and John Uttley.

The Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD) exists to build consensus around the future of high integrity nature markets. Assembling an exceptional Steering Group has always been central to that ambition, convening a group of professionals capable of harnessing the energy and knowledge of the 180 Nature Markets Dialogue participants.

NMD Chair Peter Young is delighted to welcome John and Penny at such a vital time for the Dialogue, as we invite Dialogue participants to hone our governance recommendations for Ministers, to inform the pending voluntary carbon and nature markets consultation (see here and here ), and bring the first of our nature-positive sector handbooks to completion.

John Uttley

John retired from a varied career spanning more than 30 years with NatureScot in 2024. He headed NatureScot’s work on developing the new field of Nature Finance from 2019, collaborating closely with Government, innovative businesses, finance, academia, civic organisations and NGOs. He originated and developed the Facility for Investment Ready Nature in Scotland (FIRNS) and co-led the Scottish Nature Finance Pioneers, the UK’s premier Nature Finance network. John is a Member of the Board of Trustees for Trees for Life.

Penny Simpson

Penny is a Partner at law firm Freeths LLP, where she leads the Environmental Law Team and Natural Capital Law Team. She is recognised as one of the UK's leading environment lawyers. With over 20 years of experience, Penny advises on the regulation of protected habitats and species, water resources, air quality and environmental impact assessment. Penny has led landmark environmental cases, including Harris vs Environment Agency in which the High Court affirmed the enforceability of key European nature conservation laws post-Brexit, a case for which she was named The Times Lawyer of the Week. Penny is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management and is recognised as an “elite leading individual” in the legal directories (Chambers & Partners and Legal 500). She previously served as in-house senior legal advisor at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Penny and John join our existing Steering Group members:

Peter Young

David Young

Balwinder Dhoot

Emily Norton

Helen Avery

Judicaelle Hammond

Rohit Kaushish

James Stevens

Dan Walker-Nolan

Richard Benwell

Mark Reed (corresponding)

Hails, Rosie

Rachel Solomon Williams

George Sethia

Liam McAleese (observer)

Business and the 7th Carbon Budget

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 14:28:59 GMT

The Climate Change Committee's 7th Carbon Budget will be hugely valuable in shaping the sector transition planning being done by Broadway Initiative’s trade association members, but it is not without its political challenges.

In undertaking its core job of telling the Government how to achieve net zero, the CCC publishes two types of report. Every 5 years it publishes advice on the size of future carbon budgets, usually including a ‘balanced pathway’ to net zero, a pathway as smooth and inviting as a post-lunch stroll down a suburban garden’s crazy paving. Then it publishes annual Progress Reports, where it points out that the UK is more loitering on the patio than striding along the balanced pathway.

Last week’s report was a carbon budget, setting out on what the 7th carbon Budget covering 2038-42 should be. When the 6th carbon Budget advice was published five years ago we were living in a different world: pre pandemic, pre-energy price crisis and with a Prime Minister in Boris Johnson who was a strong advocate of net zero. Today the nay-sayers argue against it on three fronts – too nanny-state; too expensive, and too ineffectual in a world less committed than us.

Against this backdrop, the Report makes a strong and technically detailed case that decarbonisation to meet net zero is both technologically possible and can be achieved without major disruption to the public and business. A core of the argument is that the electrification that drives much of the emissions cuts of the next 20 years 15 years will be delivered by consumers and businesses doing just two things – choosing an EV when they replace their household car or business vehicles and replacing gas heating with low carbon heating.

Dig a bit deeper though and one can also make out the areas where the politics and policy choices will be extremely difficult. Four clear ones would be:

Diet and farming: Agricultural emissions fall by roughly half by 2050 under the Balanced Pathway and a fall in meat consumption of 20% in the next decade and 35% by 2050 help enable this. The CCC also raises the possibility of including beef imports in a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)- to avoid reduced domestic beef production being replaced by imports. Given Labour’s outrage when Claire Coutinho, pre-election accused Labour of planning a ‘meat tax’, and the IHT dispute with the farming community, this will be territory Ministers will be very wary of.
Aviation: The CCC report backs up, to some extent, Rachel Reeves assertion that sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) will allow people to keep flying despite net zero. But it points out that technological developments in aviation are uncertain (not just SAF but whether, for example, the industry can keep on delivering the 1.3% annual increase in plane efficiency the CCC assumes) , and that ‘Government may need to take additional demand management measures’
Commercial buildings: The report argues that Heat pumps are suitable for the vast majority of non-residential buildings. But I was struck by the comment that Heat networks deliver 22% of heat demand in non-residential buildings by 2040 in the Balanced Pathway. In principle that makes sense as an efficient way to decarbonise this part of the infrastructure stock, but heat networks require a lot of public-private coordination along with smooth operation of the planning system, both of which have been the exception rather than the rule in recent years.
Energy-intensive industrial sectors: The likes of steel, chemicals and glass manufacturing have been on the climate policy frontline for decades. The report recognises that while their share of national employment is small, in some locations it is significant and that its future level will depend on maintaining the competitiveness of those industries. It also emphasises that this will require policy interventions (likely CBAM or some form of subsidy); again tricky ground for any government.

And across all of this, even where the necessary low carbon choices are widely available and no more expensive than the alternatives (as the report forecasts EVs will be by 2028), shaping the decisions of 20 million households and 2 million businesses is no easy feat. The CCC emphasise that the type of work that Broadway Initiative does through Business Climate Hub – providing trusted, accessible and actionable decarbonisation advice - will become ever more vital.

Planning and Infrastructure Bill Introduced to Parliament

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 11:15:19 GMT

Of interest to the Broadway coalition and relevant across our workstreams, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government have shared details of the Planning Infrastructure Bill.

The Bill will be introduced to Parliament today (11th March 2025), and intersects with our Business Climate Hub , Net Zero Council and Nature Markets Dialogue projects, as Broadway works to support the clean energy infrastructure and nature-positive frameworks Britain needs for environmentally-friendly growth.

So what's in the Bill?

- As was heavily trailed ahead of the Bill's publication, households near new electricity transmission infrastructure will save up to £250 a year on their energy bills for 10 years. The Bill also aims to encourage developers to fund community projects in affected areas
- The Bill introduces a national scheme of delegation setting out which planning applications can be administered by officials and which must be referred to committee. Committees will be streamlined, training for committee members made mandatory, and councils allowed to set their own planning fees to recover their costs.
- The Bill establishes a Nature Restoration Fund through which builders can meet their environmental obligations. The NRF aims to pool contributions and fund large scale environmental interventions while building proceeds.
- The Bill aims to improve the compulsory purchase process that allows land to be acquired for projects that are in the public interest
- The Bill aims to strengthen Development Corporations to make it easier to deliver large-scale development, like the government’s proposed 'new towns'
- The Bill will introduce spatial development strategies, working across planning authority areas to identify the best places to build in order to boost growth and aiming to join up development needs and necessary infrastructure
-The Bill aims to speed up the National Significant Infrastructure Projects regime. Alongside amendments to the Highways Act, the Transport and Works Act, and the process by which large projects can be challenged, the Bill aims to deliver major infrastructure more rapidly.
- The Bill introduces a ‘first ready, first connected’ principle to approving clean energy projects for grid connections, with a view to helping achieve clean power by 2030
- The Bill also aims to:
- Streamline the process to install EV charging infrastructure
- Unlock investment in long duration electricity storage (LDES)
- Change planning rules for electricity infrastructure in Scotland
- Extend the generator commissioning period to reduce the number of offshore wind farms requiring exemptions
- Allow forestry authorities in England and Wales to bring forward development proposals relating to the generation of electricity from renewable sources

The infrastructure necessary to decarbonise the grid is a vital element of Broadway's work to support business achieve net zero, while the introduction of the Nature Recovery Fund has significant implications for our work across the EIP and through the Nature Markets Dialogue. We will keep our members engaged and up to date with the Bill as it makes its passage through Parliament.

What Broadway Chair Peter Young told the launch of the Nature North strategic investment plan

Wed, 26 Feb 2025 20:43:13 GMT

Broadway Chair delivers a comprehensive overview of the state of nature markets in 2025, and what needs to change to unleash their power to restore nature in the north of England and across the UK.

On Tuesday 25th February, Broadway Initiative Chair Peter Young addressed the launch Investing for Nature , a strategic plan for a nature positive regional economy produced by Nature North .

This pioneering strategy aims to make the North of England the UK's first nature-positive economy. Bringing together 50 organisations and 400 contributors, the plan lays out a clear pathway to scaling up investment in nature's recovery.

The impact of this strategy could be truly groundbreaking, and we were delighted that our chair Peter Young was invited to address the launch. Speaking alongside Tony Juniper, Chair of Natural England, and Alan Lovell, Chair of the Environment Agency, Peter provided a comprehensive overview of the state of nature markets in 2025 and highlighted the possibilities and the challenges at this vital moment for environmental policy making.

Speaking to 200 delegates in the room and 400 online, this is what Peter had to say:

I am delighted to be invited here today to welcome this visionary new strategy for investing in the nature of the North of England.

Business finds the current array of initiatives, organisations and requests to help nature a bewildering barrier to investment.

This report heralds a new strategic, holistic and consistent approach, which I welcome, and is an essential precursor to increasing private investment to improve nature.

We all know that nature is in trouble, that we need to act urgently, and business is no different. Business is rapidly understanding its exposure to new risks triggered by nature’s decline and widely expects reporting through TNFD (the task force on nature-related financial disclosures) to become mandated in the future as these escalate. Businesses also share common purpose in the benefits of resilient, nature-rich environments. These are desirable places to live, they attract increasingly mobile talent and skills, they make for accessible places for the workforce and suppliers, they result in healthier and more productive employees, and they reflect long-term thinking and stability, making it easier to invest.

And business perhaps sees clearer than most that nature and climate risks are conjoined.

I want to share one recently confirmed indicator. Since 2008, nature’s decline has been adding to climate risk. As recently as the 1960s, nature in our hemisphere was capturing 0.8% more carbon dioxide every year, significantly slowing the cumulative effect of rising emissions; now nature sequesters 0.25% less as each year goes by, becoming a significant emitter of greenhouse gases over the annual cycle of the so-called Keeling Curve. This has a massive impact on climate targets, yet is arguably one of the easiest trends to reverse. In the light of such science, business is as baffled as anyone as to why nature restoration isn’t integrated into net zero plans , and why business and economic policies (and government departments) are not integrated with climate and environmental ones.

The North is in my mind an excellent place to overcome these headwinds. It already has leading projects to demonstrate nature’s recovery at scale. Industrialisation came here early, and so have examples of environmental recovery. Pioneering projects like - only 15 miles away - the Dearne Valley, creating SSSIs from closed glass works, collieries and sidings, extracting soil to cover contaminated land to make wetlands. Real biodiversity net gain before the term was coined. Creating a national wildlife destination where visitor revenues had previously been non-existent. Giving hope to communities left abandoned and derelict. But across all Northern landscapes, whether they be post-industrial urban centres, upland peatlands, coastlines like Co Durham’s or even mountains like Skiddaw – this strategy is peppered with inspiring exemplars.

But, however good these projects are, they won’t be enough, nor realise the North’s potential. Now we need to scale up and act in concert. Business needs the North to convey certainty and consistency in its asks for nature. This means a collaborative approach with transparency and all the attributes to deliver high-integrity, fast-growing and well-regulated nature markets.

It is 4 years since Professor Dasgupta said in his Review of The Economics of Biodiversity and I quote:

‘Nature’s worth to society – the true value of the various goods and services it provides – is not reflected in market prices because much of it is open to all at no monetary charge’

Sponsored by the Treasury we were promised that nature’s worth would be integrated into all policy making and business stood by to see what this would mean. But that clarity is still not evident, risks are rising, nature loss continues, and business is impatient to take action to protect itself from these market failures, the so-called tragedy of the commons. Business knows that nature markets provide a mechanism to help align economic interests with nature recovery, by enabling more of the goods and services delivered by nature to be paid for by those who benefit from them, directly and indirectly. They also create economic growth and activity by themselves, requiring high skilled, widely distributed, and rewarding jobs.

I believe the North is well placed to solve this conundrum and will explain why.

11 months ago we at Broadway launched our Nature Markets Dialogue which has turbo-charged the national conversation on what the private sector needs to ramp up investment in nature, culminating in the current consultation ending this month on nature markets governance. Please respond if you can to help us make the changes the North needs to underpin delivery of this strategy being launched today.

I want to just clarify a few things about how I and business see nature markets. Nature markets can unlock the investment needed to scale up nature restoration. If designed properly, they allocate resources in the places that deliver the greatest benefit for the lowest cost. This strategy sets out how the North can do that now, not least through the Local Nature Recovery Strategies. But it is important to also say that nature markets are not :

an alternative to effective environmental regulation
a substitute for public funding for the environment
a way for business to avoid eliminating or minimising their impact on the environment;
a pathway to privatise nature or
a mechanism for greenwashing

When this happens, and it does at the moment, it shows nature markets are not yet operating as they should. This is fundamentally a regulatory failure not a market failure. The solutions are the subject of our consultation which I commend to those who recognise that this strategy for the North needs help not hindrance from national policy making and regulators.

Nevertheless, this strategy can steer the North to promote integrity in the market participants, projects and the units by which nature’s improvements are measured. By working together, the North can pioneer the necessary governance framework underpinned by authorisation, standards, accreditation and assurance. I guarantee this approach will unlock business participation and private sector capital to upscale the quality of nature across the North.

So are business sitting on their hands? No. Broadway is currently working with the Food and Drink Federation, whose member businesses are particularly important to the North’s economy, to produce a handbook on nature. This handbook will provide food and drink manufacturers with a user-friendly, practical guide to understand:

Their dependency on nature.
Why there is an urgency for action and what is meant by ‘nature positivity.’
Their business’ impacts on nature.
What nature-based solutions they can support and invest in now.

It will offer clear examples on the most readily achievable actions that businesses can take now within their operations and along their supply chains.

And for more evidence of business’ appetite to act, another business-led organisation I am involved with, the Aldersgate Group, published two months ago a briefing ‘Why Nature Matters for Business’ I want to pick 3 of the 8 recommendations, and I quote:

Increase the ambition of Biodiversity Net Gain and progress next steps towards Environmental Net Gain or Environmental Benefit for Nature.
Set up a taskforce and sandbox to accelerate the design of creative and effective environmental regulation to encourage innovation and partnerships in the private sector.
Efficiently resource regulators and local authorities to play their critical role supporting delivery, monitoring and enforcing regulation, to build private sector confidence to invest.

Yes, that’s right, business is asking for higher ambition, new regulation and better resourced regulators and local authorities. The need for Biodiversity Net Gain is understood, but a half-hearted, half-applicable, half implemented and under-regulated scheme is an enemy of good business. I look to my colleagues here from Natural England and the Environment Agency to redouble their efforts to claim the resources you need to play your part in these new and rapidly expanding nature markets. Business and the kind of coalition Nature North is building need you to do your job properly. Business must be able to rely on compliance being rewarded and not undermined by free-riders.

The need for good governance and well-regulated environmental markets is not new. My first Government commission report in 2007 could be summed up in three words - long, loud and legal. In 2013 I sat on the business-led Ecosystems Markets Taskforce and our no.1 recommendation, disliked greatly by the then government, was to mandate a biodiversity net gain system for all development. The Environment Bank in York was founded on that expectation. It took 10 years to come about but the Bank now reports a pipeline of £210m of projects, their cup is half full. But – cup half empty -Wildlife and Countryside Link report the delivery of just 13% of the amount of nature improvement deemed ‘likely’ to be created by this policy. This tells us two things, the massive potential for the North of planning all activities to contribute to nature restoration, and the massive gap between where we are now and a level playing field which commands business confidence that high quality and efficient outcomes for nature will be delivered in all cases.

So, in conclusion, I appeal to our leaders in the North - and especially those from our combined authorities with devolved powers – now is the time to be brave and set the bar high and wide on nature recovery. If you ensure you are consistent across all your endeavours, if you message strongly that the North is open for business which enhances nature, and if you envision Northern progress as resilient, sustainable and enduring, you will make the North more attractive to business and investment, not less.

I believe this strategic plan creates the space for Northern leadership to show the way. Let’s start now and make the North the best place for people, for business, for investment and for nature!

Broadway Initiative Welcomes the Relaunched Net Zero Council

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 13:12:31 GMT

The Broadway Initiative was delighted to attend the first meeting of the relaunched Net Zero Council (NZC), the central forum where Ministers, the financial community, and leaders from business and civil society can coordinate the business transition to net zero.

Broadway worked hard to secure the future of the NZC, and now jointly provides the secretariat, ensuring our members are connected to the heart of the Council's activities.

The Net Zero Council has a renewed emphasis on offering expert insights to shape government policies on net zero. It is dedicated to supporting the creation and implementation of sector-specific roadmaps, equipping businesses with transition planning tools, and enabling investors to identify key opportunities.

Commenting on the relaunch of the Net Zero Council, Broadway Initiative Convenor Ed Lockhart said:

"UK businesses need certainty, including on the transition to a clean energy future, to invest, grow, and ultimately improve living standards.

By launching the Net Zero Council aligned to the clean energy mission, the government is providing a much-needed platform for the business community, financial institutions, civil society, and government to work in partnership on a shared and inclusive long-term plan.

The Broadway Initiative looks forward to bringing business and environmental organisations together to make the most of this opportunity."

As the Net Zero Council moves forward, Broadway remains committed to facilitating meaningful engagement between policymakers and business leaders. We will continue to advocate for the practical measures and regulatory clarity needed to accelerate the UK’s transition to a net zero economy.

Read the Government's Press Release: Net Zero Council relaunched to supercharge Clean Energy Superpower Mission

Nature Markets Dialogue Workshop

Mon, 10 Feb 2025 12:44:07 GMT

On the 6th February the Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD) hosted the first workshop of 2025. Professionals drawn from across the demand, supply and operational sides of nature markets met to continue the discussion of the critical need for robust governance.

The workshop built on 12 months of effort to convene a consensus around the future for nature market development, rooted in the belief that by working together we can reach the best possible outcome. Government is engaged and listening, at a crucial moment for environmental policy development, so we were delighted so many knowledgeable individuals joined us to pool their experience and expertise.

The session was characterised by both a realism that these issues have been under discussion for some time and there has been some disappointment along the way, and by a strong sense of optimism that we will eventually secure market integrity in the UK. Perhaps inspired by the ideas in the NMD Governance Paper or by the healthy turnout of professionals prepared to collaborate, 61% of attendees counted themselves as positive that our goals will be achieved.

The purpose of the event was to workshop answers to the NMD Governance Consultation , which remains open to everyone until the 28th February. From the 15 questions, six were identified as being of particular interest via a pre-meeting poll. Those six were subject to rigorous discussion in smaller breakout groups, as the attendees helped shape and form each other’s responses.

The true outcome of this process will be recorded in the responses to the consultation itself , but the workshop highlighted some key themes that are sure to come out in the conclusions:

The need for government leadership and action
The need to learn from existing good practice at home and abroad
The vital importance of the government’s new Land Use Framework consultation
A clear focus on nature recovery at all times
The significance of data platforms and emerging technologies

The results of this consultation will build towards a governance framework that the NMD will propose to government at a future Ministerial roundtable. Everyone at the Broadway Initiative is extremely grateful to all participants, and to Bruce Howard from the Ecosystems Knowledge Network who so ably facilitated the workshop.

Consultation on a governance framework for high-integrity nature markets

Mon, 23 Dec 2024 01:29:10 GMT

At a time of significant change in UK environmental policy making, the Broadway Initiative's ' Nature Markets Dialogue ' (NMD) is seeking your views on how investment in nature is governed. Your responses will help shape our approach to Government, as we plan to propose a governance framework for high integrity nature markets.

To that end, you are invited to share feedback on the latest consultation paper: Towards a governance framework for high integrity nature markets.

The consultation paper has been informed by the feedback, roundtables and online workshops that NMD participants have supported over the past 12 months. A key message from the Dialogue to date is that well-designed and governed nature markets are first and foremost about providing an efficient mechanism for the delivery of verified improvements to the natural environment. Nature markets can deliver improvements to meet voluntary or regulated obligations, provide insets for supply chains and offsetting for development, and efficiently deliver government investment in nature.

This is a vital moment for environmental policy development: the Environmental Improvement Plan is under review and revision; the Cunliffe Commission and the Planning Reform Working Paper on Development and Nature Recovery are seeking evidence; and we expect the Government will soon consult on the governance of Voluntary Carbon and Nature Markets. We have a unique opportunity to highlight the need for a robust UK governance mechanism that ensures UK nature markets are high integrity and make a significant contribution to nature’s recovery.

We have created an online portal to obtain your feedback and views here, where we have 15 specific questions on which we would value your thoughts . In addition, we will be hosting a series of workshops in the coming weeks to progress the Dialogue around the issues raised in the paper. The process will culminate in a roundtable to present the results and recommendations to Ministers.

Find out more about the UK Nature Markets Dialogue .

Broadway’s Nature Markets Dialogue and the EIP Review converge at UN Global Compact events

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 02:08:50 GMT

The Broadway Initiative has collaborated with UN Global Compact at two recent stakeholder events, bringing together corporates and professionals from across the economy to discuss the future of business’s contribution to nature recovery.

The events proved especially timely as Broadway works to shape the current Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) review and revision being undertaken by government, channeling our members’ and stakeholders’ views into the Defra process.

The first event took place at the fabulous London Guildhall, venue for the UN Global Compact UK Annual Summit. Broadway were invited to run a breakout session at the Summit, a session we chose to theme around the government’s EIP review. We asked Defra’s Deputy Director for Strategy Andrew Jackson to join us and engage our invite-only attendees in a lively workshop. UN Global Compact’s Sarah Cook set the scene and explained the relevance of the EIP review to business, Andrew Jackson outlined Defra’s proposed procedure, while Broadway’s Liam Stokes explained how the Broadway Initiative will be linking business into that process.

The heart of the session, however, was the interaction with business colleagues. Vigorous discussion gave rise to clear steers for government and for Broadway to take away: a strong appetite for both science-based targets and immediate drivers of nature positive action, with an understanding that robust targets will take time to develop but nature needs action now; sector planning is needed to drive engagement with the EIP, but also planning that harmonises across sectors, across government and across targets (such as net zero, EIP and economic growth;) and the vital role that credible nature markets have to play in achieving a nature positive contribution.

The following week, Broadway joined UN Global Compact again, this time online for the final webinar of their Nature Based Solutions for Business series. Speaking on the subject of Unlocking Finance, Liam Stokes took the opportunity to tell hundreds of delegates about the development of nature market policy, the significant work left to do, and how they can play a role in that work by signing up as a participant to Broadway’s Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD). Since highlighting the timeliness of this work, as government seeks to revise and review the EIP that could drive demand for nature based solutions, many new professionals have signed up to engage with the NMD. An excellent example of instant, real world impact!

For more information: https://www.unglobalcompact.org.uk/nature-based-solutions-for-business/

Net Zero Census Report released

Wed, 11 Sep 2024 00:30:48 GMT

Today Broadway Initiative and Planet Mark are unveiling the Net Zero Census report .

The Census is delivered by the UK Business Climate Hub coalition, managed by Broadway, in partnership with Planet Mark, and analyses the experiences and opinions of over 2000 UK businesses grappling with the path to net zero.

The transition to clean power and a zero-carbon future is both an environmental imperative and an economic opportunity. SMEs are well- placed to capture the economic benefits of the low carbon revolution, through developing solutions needed across the economy and accessing new markets globally. But we need to make decarbonisation action straightforward and accessible.

Broadway has worked with the whole business and finance community, including through leading trade associations and with the Government, to create the UK Business Climate Hub , the UK’s net zero portal for authoritative, free to access business advice on energy efficiency and decarbonisation. UK Business Climate Hub is at the heart of the joined-up support framework for SMEs that we and our partners want to create.

To make these frameworks effective we need to understand the SME perspective, and how it is evolving. That’s why Broadway partnered with Planet Mark to create the Net Zero Census. The Census is the first research on SME net zero engagement to be done at such a large scale, with such a wide range of partners.

We plan to build on the Census capability to monitor trends annually. This first set of results is already shedding new light on issues such as net zero supply chain requirements, and my thanks go to the Planet Mark team for their hard work in delivering the survey.

You can find the headline figures here or head over to UK Business Climate Hub now to download your copy of the report and register for the Net Zero Census webinar, where we will be unpacking what we have learned about the state of SME decarbonisation from over 2000 business responses.

Read the press release: Largest ever UK industry study finds 73% of organisations prioritising net zero, but over half face barriers

Labour, Broadway and the Sustainability Agenda

Fri, 05 Jul 2024 14:46:29 GMT

We have a newly elected Labour government which a huge majority of over 200 seats. So what does this mean for sustainability and for Broadway?

Comparisons have been drawn with the New Labour landslide of 1997, though the more accurate parallel may be the Wilson government of the 1960s: elected on the promise of modernising the economy through a government-business partnership and playing to our scientific strengths, yet faced with a challenging economic environment.

What to expect from a Labour govt?

People

We anticipate no changes as the Shadow Cabinet becomes the government, but we will update and confirm as necessary as the news unfolds.

Net Zero: We expect Ed Miliband to be back in the role he left in 2010. Miliband is well known to us as he is to many of you. Starmer has talked of keeping Ministers in post for sustained periods to bring more stability to government, so it is possible that he will be leading on net zero for the next 5 years. In his team the key minister is likely to be Kerry McCarthy as Climate Minister. Those of you at our Parliamentary Reception back in January will remember her speech in which she expressed support for Broadway, and we have discussed with her both the role of the Net Zero Council and our wider net zero work.

We have strong relationships with Mr Miliband’s advisors. It is also rumoured that Chris Skidmore may be appointed to some sort of net zero role; members may remember the session we ran with him as part of his net zero review for the last government.

Environment: We expect Steve Reed to be confirmed as Defra SoS, with Daniel Zeichner, whom we know well, as Minister of State. We have ongoing dialogue with Defra policy officials in both the Labour Party and the department itself, to make sure we are ready to work with the incoming government on their nature priorities.

MIssions

Starmer is championing mission-led government and has set five missions in particular, the two most relevant to Broadway being ‘become a clean energy superpower’ and ‘kickstart economic growth’.

“Mission-led government’ refers to a focus on outcomes over process and may result in the creation of ‘mission boards’ with authority to pursue these goals across departments.

Below the Net Zero and Growth Mission Boards the outlines of possible structures are emerging: a statutory Industrial Strategy Council, possibly an ‘Office of Net Zero’, and a National Wealth Fund expected to crowd in private finance to support the industrial strategy and clean energy missions.

Steve Reed has talked about a need for a stronger partnership between Government, stakeholders and communities to deliver environmental goals, and Broadway stands by to deliver trade association engagement.

Agenda

On net zero, Labour is likely to focus heavily on decarbonising electricity in order to meet its extremely ambitious target: to fully decarbonise the electricity supply by 2030. New Ministers will want to move quickly to show this is achievable, while coming under pressure in 2025 to flesh out their longer term plans. Recent court judgements mean they must publish a new net zero strategy by May next year and they will also need to respond to the CCC’s proposed 7th Carbon Budget. On industrial decarbonisation, the National Wealth Fund is earmarked to support industrial sectors, with an emphasis given to the roles of CCS and CBAM.

On the wider environment, the priorities are less clear. A Land Use Framework is the one clear specific manifesto commitment and is likely to be an immediate priority, with Steve Reed outlining other policy proposals in the press during the campaign. Broadway is looking forward to working with the new government to identify ways in which our coalition of business and trade associations can help join up the environment policy landscape and translate goals and targets into relatable, realistic and effective action on the ground.

What it means for Broadway

Broadway exists to create the collaboration mechanisms and policy frameworks to enable business to combine economic growth with delivering society’s environmental and climate goals. That goal remains unchanged, and like many of you we have spent recent months having extensive conversations with Shadow Ministers and advisers, discussing with them how our work relates to their desire to work with business to deliver the Green Prosperity Plan.

There are clear opportunities ahead: Labour has both a desire to work closely with business and is likely to be keen to do this through formal structures. This instinct will support our aim of joining up and simplifying the business/government dialogue on green issues. Our strong relationship with both officials and the NGOs from whom Labour is likely to seek input will be invaluable.

Immediate steps

As a Broadway member, you will shortly receive a briefing outlining our immediate approach to the new government, and inviting your engagement. The briefing will cover opportunities to question officials and contribute to early communications, and provide an overview of our priority policy areas. We will mobilise and represent our members and supporters as we move forward with net zero roadmaps, SME engagement, marrying environmental improvement and economic growth, and ensuring high integrity nature markets. We will want to hear from our entire coalition as we progress into this new era.

Nature Markets Dialogue Steering Group Revealed

Mon, 20 May 2024 14:04:42 GMT

Announcing the members of the Nature Markets Dialogue Strategic Steering Group.

The Nature Markets Dialogue is Broadway's new initiative to build a consensus around the detailed steps needed to scale up high-integrity nature markets. The Steering Group brings together experts from the business, finance, NGO and policy communities and we are delighted to be working with such a distinguished group of colleagues on such an important issue.

The Dialogue will work with stakeholders and experts on three critical issues, each central to the success of these markets: the governance and market oversight arrangements needed; the scaling up of demand in these markets; and creating a cross-party consensus on the way forward to ensure policy continuity.

These priorities reflect the conclusions (pp32-33) of Broadway’s report State of UK Nature Markets 2023 . Each priority will be explored in a specific workstream of the Dialogue with the Steering Group maintaining an overview of the project as a whole.

Steering Group Members:

Peter Young (Chair), Broadway Initiative
Helen Avery, Green Finance Institute
Richard Benwell, Wildlife & Countryside Link
Bal Dhoot, Food & Drink Federation
Rosie Hails, ,National Trust
Judicaelle Hammond, Country Land & Business Association
Rohit Kaushish, National Farmers' Union
Emily Norton, Environmental Markets Board
Mark Reed, Scotland's Rural College
George Sethia, The British Standards Institution
Rachel Solomon Williams, Aldersgate Group
James Stevens, Home Builders Federation
Dan Walker-Nolan, Water UK
David Young, Broadway Initiative
Liam McAleese (observer), Esmée Fairbairn Foundation

Liam Stokes, Director of Nature at Broadway Initiative, will act as Secretary to the Steering Group.

BT announce their partnership with UK Business Climate Hub

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 13:26:24 GMT

BT marked Earth Day by announcing their partnership with UK Business Climate Hub, the one-stop-shop for UK SME net zero advice managed by Broadway Initiative.

BT announced they were joining the UK Business Climate Hub partnership to help small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) to take steps to halve emissions by 2030, and pointed their SMB clients to the Hub's ‘Seven Steps to Sustainability’.

The UK Business Climate Hub is the UK portal for SME net zero advice, developed with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), the international SME Climate Hub and the UK’s main business organisations, energy networks, high street banks and professional bodies. The coalition is managed by the Broadway Initiative and endorsed by the Net Zero Council .

Existing members of the coalition include Barclays, British Business Bank, British Chambers of Commerce, Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Electricity North West, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), HSBC UK, Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA), Institute of Directors (IoD), Lloyds Bank, Make UK, NatWest, National Grid, Northern Powergrid, and Sage.

Broadway Initiative Net Zero Direction Chris Taylor spoke to Chris Sims, BT's Managing Director for Small and Medium Business.

PRESS RELEASE: Nature Market Dialogue arrives to build vital unity and consensus

Mon, 25 Mar 2024 22:45:27 GMT

The Broadway Initiative has launched the Nature Market Dialogue, the space in which stakeholders and influencers can collaborate on the future of UK nature markets. The launch took place on the 25 ^th March during a roundtable that marked the commencement of the Dialogue’s first workstream, a deep dive into nature market governance.

Nature remains in decline. Biodiversity and ecosystem services continue to suffer despite increased public interest and funding, philanthropic efforts and government regulation. Conventional markets have proved incapable of driving investment in the natural capital on which human flourishing and planetary health rely, so nature markets have emerged as a solution.

The Nature Market Dialogue is bringing together all the key voices to realise the potential for high integrity nature markets. The Broadway Initiative’s State of UK Nature Markets 2023 built on the work of multiple partners to identify three key challenges: governance, demand drivers and policy continuity.

Supported by Esmée Fairburn, the Nature Market Dialogue aims to harmonise and synergise the excellent work being undertaken to crack these barriers and secure agreement on what needs to be done next. The Dialogue will develop a new consensus to respond to the government’s pending consultation on mobilising voluntary green finance and negating greenwash, building the necessary momentum to carry nature markets into the future. The first workstreams are intended to take 18 months to complete, but the Dialogue is here to stay.

The Dialogue launched on the 25th March with the initiation of the governance workstream, at a roundtable in partnership with the Environmental Markets Board, Frontier Economics and Arup. Ministers, officials, finance experts and leaders from business and farming gathered to learn both from each other and from the mistakes of the voluntary carbon markets. The roundtable marked the beginning of a process that will surface a consensus among all market participants.

Peter Young, Broadway Chairman and Chair of the Nature Market Dialogue steering committee, said: ‘The Nature Market Dialogue is a vital intervention in the development of high integrity nature markets precisely because it is a dialogue. We are asking everyone with expertise or opinions to head to the project website https://www.naturemarketsdialogue.uk/participation to register their desire to participate. Only by building true, broad consensus and working in a co-ordinated way will we be able to unleash the potential of nature markets to reverse the biodiversity crisis.’

Annabelle Ong, a Director at Frontier Economics, said: ‘Frontier Economics is delighted to host the first Roundtable of “The Nature Market Dialogue”. We urgently need to find ways to accelerate nature recovery and Nature Markets can play an important role in facilitating private investment in nature recovery. I am looking forward to bringing together stakeholders from a wide range of sectors to discuss how we can avoid the pitfalls of voluntary carbon markets and create high integrity nature markets that deliver for the environment and society.’

NOTES TO EDITORS

The Broadway Initiative is the coalition of major trade associations working with business, government and ENGOs to drive collaboration towards achieving the UK's net zero and environmental goals. Broadway have created the Nature Market Dialogue with support from Esmée Fairburn to build on the conclusions of the Financing Nature Recovery programme and Broadway’s State of Nature Markets 2023 report.

PRESS RELEASE: New report finds interest in UK nature markets still high, but more rapid progress needed to ensure impact and integrity

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 20:30:40 GMT

The Broadway Initiative today released a review of the progress towards establishing high integrity markets for nature across the UK. The State of UK Nature Markets Report 2023 found that ‘some progress’ has been made towards the goals outlined in the ground-breaking Financing Nature Recovery UK Report published in July 2022, but the most significant opportunities lie ahead.

The State of UK Nature Markets 2023 Report is the first annual review of progress made against the Financing Nature Recovery (FNR) roadmap and recommendations published in June 2022. The FNR Report was described as reflecting an ‘emerging consensus from the farming, business, finance and environment sectors across the country as to the actions needed to support development of these markets’ In the Government’s recently published Nature Markets Framework.

The review was undertaken by the Broadway Initiative with input from experts drawn from across the environmental, business, public and land-based sectors and independently reviewed the actions taken since the publication of the FNR report.

The report highlights three important developments: the British Standards Institution’s Nature Investments Standards Programme; the Nature Markets Framework for England; and the Scottish Government’s Interim Principles for Responsible Investment in Natural Capital. However, the report also found ‘limited progress in translating strategic goals and policy ambition into specific actions to facilitate market development,’ a situation exacerbated by the recent policy uncertainty over Nutrient Neutrality, and recommends rapid action is needed on demand drivers and governance to ensure impact and integrity.

Broadway Initiative Convenor Edward Lockhart-Mummery said: “High integrity nature markets are crucial to addressing the funding gap for UK nature recovery. The UK Government aims to generate £1bn of private investment in nature every year by 2030, and our report has highlighted the structural barriers to reaching that goal. Some progress has been made, but Defra and other departments can do even more, so we are calling on the Government to make the best use possible of the upcoming consultation and review of carbon and nature markets as a vital opportunity to renew the momentum.

“COP 28 is absolutely the moment to make this happen, to reassert the UK’s role as a global leader in green finance."

The Broadway Initiative is ready to support the UK and devolved Governments in delivering the four priorities for action identified in the State of UK Nature Markets 2023:

Create and deliver an implementation plan for a robust governance and institutional architecture for nature markets
Quantify and stimulate private and public sector demand for purchased nature services
Build capacity among Local Authorities, regulators, and land managers of all types, to deliver nature-based projects that can attract private income and investment
Ensure the continued evolution of the stacking principle as a means of future-proofing the supply of land delivering multiple nature benefits

NOTES TO EDITORS

The Broadway Initiative is the coalition of UK trade associations working to 'mainstream' sustainability into the UK economy. Broadway works across the breadth of the business community to understand what is needed to achieve environmental and climate change objectives, then collaborates with UK governments on the frameworks required and develops plans and partnerships in the private sector to implement change.
For further enquiries, please contact liam@broadwayinitiative.org.uk

Cross-sector interest in UK Business Climate Hub

Wed, 13 Sep 2023 12:41:35 GMT

Since the launch of the UK Business Climate Hub , Broadway Initiative has been reaching out across the economy to highlight the value of this unprecedented new tool.

Designed in collaboration with the UK government, Broadway's coalition of trade association members, and the SME Climate Hub, the UK Business Climate Hub is the one stop shop for SME's seeking net zero guidance.

The story has been picked up most recently in the industry-press of the fleet operations and chartered accountancy sectors, illustrating the diversity of businesses that can find value at the UK Business Climate Hub.

Our Net Zero Director Chris Taylor wrote for Greenfleet magazine here

Our Convenor Ed Lockhart spoke to Insights magazine here

Visit the UK Business Climate Hub at businessclimatehub.uk

PRESS RELEASE: New One-Stop-Shop for UK Small Business Net Zero Advice

Sun, 13 Aug 2023 23:24:52 GMT

The Government’s Net Zero Council has announced the creation of a single platform for net zero advice for UK small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) . The website is an unprecedented collaboration between UK government, all major business organisations acting under the umbrella of the Broadway Initiative, and the SME Climate Hub.

Lack of accessible support, tools, and guidance are major barriers often cited as preventing SMEs from beginning their journey to net zero. As part of the Net Zero Council’s commitment to support all UK SMEs with user-centred guidance, the new UK Business Climate Hub website creates one single, easy to find point of information that all net zero champions can signpost to their UK SME members and clients. The Net Zero Council is the Government’s collaboration with finance and business leaders spearheading the green transition.

The new UK Business Climate Hub website is the UK partner of the SME Climate Hub, the global initiative founded by the We Mean Business Coalition and the Exponential Roadmap Initiative that empowers SMEs to take climate action. The new platform was developed in partnership with the UK Government and a consortium of business groups, banks and other businesses working through the Broadway Initiative. The UK-specific content for the site was originally developed by experts on business decarbonisation and business associations brought together by the Broadway Initiative in response to a request by the Federation of Small Businesses.

Broadway Initiative Convenor Ed Lockhart said: “UK Business Climate Hub provides a front door for advice for businesses on how to reduce carbon emissions and succeed on the journey to Net Zero. Through collaboration and partnership, we have created a widely accepted single point of information. Now we need to keep on improving the content and promote it widely so as many businesses as possible can benefit.”

Pamela Jouven, Director of the SME Climate Hub said: “Bringing small and medium sized businesses on board to the fight against climate change is essential. However, to facilitate their action, corporations, government, and climate leaders must come together to provide the necessary support and resources for them to embark on their climate journey. By collaborating with the Broadway Initiative, the SME Climate Hub will continue to mobilize businesses in the UK to take climate action and expand the regional resources available for SMEs to build a more resilient future."

Martin McTague, Chair, Federation of Small Businesses, said ““We are pleased to have contributed to the new Business Climate Hub that will provide businesses with trusted tools and information to help them navigate the net zero transition.

“SMEs recognise their role in net zero but many still find it challenging to access the relevant support and resources to play their part. This new official platform for advice and support will really help.

“In addition to helping small firms become more energy and resource efficient, the hub also has the opportunity to empower small firms to take ambitious steps towards net zero, ultimately ensuring that they also benefit from the economic opportunities created in a net zero economy.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

Traffic from Broadway Initiative’s www.zerocarbonbusiness.uk and SME Climate Hub’s UK landing page www.smeclimatehub.org/uk  and  www.businessclimatehub.org/uk  has been redirected to the Hub’s landing page at www.businessclimatehub.uk
The Broadway Initiative is the coalition of UK trade associations working to 'mainstream' sustainability into the UK economy. Broadway works across the breadth of the business community to understand what is needed to achieve environmental and climate change objectives, then collaborates with UK governments on the frameworks required and develops plans and partnerships in the private sector to implement change.
For further enquiries, please contact liam@broadwayinitiative.org.uk or schebil@wmbcoalition.org .
The SME Climate Hub is an initiative of the We Mean Business Coalition, the Exponential Roadmap Initiative, and the United Nations Race to Zero campaign. In collaboration with Normative and the Net Zero team at Oxford University, the SME Climate Hub provides tools and resources to enable SMEs to make a climate commitment, take action and measure their progress towards emissions reductions. This partnership allows SMEs to join the United Nations Race to Zero campaign — an international campaign that brings together an unprecedented coalition of real economy actors and 120 governments committed to achieve net-zero emissions by no later than 2050.

Progress of the recycling and waste sector in the UK in meeting net zero

Mon, 07 Aug 2023 13:23:06 GMT

Emily Greene, Policy Analyst with the Broadway Initiative, provides an update on the progress of the recycling and waste sector in meeting net zero.

On Wednesday 19 ^th July, I attended an afternoon reception hosted by the Environmental Services Association (ESA) and Policy Connect in the House of Lords. The event focused on the progress of the recycling and waste sector in the UK in meeting net zero. The event also highlighted the launch of the ESA’s new report Supporting a Net Zero Recycling & Waste Sector: Policy Scorecard 2023.

The event had speeches from the Parliamentary host, Lord Teverson, Shadow Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Alex Sobel MP, Policy Connect’s Chief Executive Claudia Jaksch and Senior Executive Vice President of Veolia Gavin Graveson.

A key commonality of the speeches was the sector’s need for clear policy that provides certainty for the sector as they navigate the demands of net zero. The sector has pledged to invest more than £10 billion over the next decade in recycling infrastructure, however, this relies on long term certainty in the market. While government has published a robust policy plan in the 2018 Resources & Waste Strategy, key delivery has been delayed.

The event was an excellent opportunity for me to hear more about sector plans for net zero and the barriers, particularly those in policy, that the sector faces. This is a key focus of my own role in the Broadway Initiative as we are the secretariat of the Net Zero Council. A key delivery for the council is to support and help develop business sector net zero roadmaps. ESA’s Policy Scorecard concisely lays out progress in key policy areas for the sector that will support efforts for a circular economy and decarbonisation in the UK.

Net Zero Council focuses on developing sector-specific plans for Net Zero

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 14:39:28 GMT

Yesterday the Net Zero Council met for the second time, bringing together industry leaders with Minister Graham Stuart in a group for which Broadway Initiative provides the secretariat. Our convenor Ed Lockhart played a key role in calling for the Council and bringing it together, and joined the discussions yesterday at Admiralty House.

We were delighted this second meeting managed to get into more depth on industry's plans for Net Zero. The Council discussed the principles that might be used by each sector of the economy to develop strategic frameworks that will underpin the transition, and attendees planned how to secure the widest possible engagement.

We were especially pleased the meeting focussed on developing sector-specific plans, an area of work Broadway has been developing since our 2021 report Sector Wide Net Zero Plans, summarised here https://www.broadwayinitiative.org.uk/sector-plans . We believe these plans are invaluable in the quest for Net Zero, and we are looking forward to supporting the council in taking this work forward and excited to get more business sectors getting involved over coming months.

The Net Zero Council brings Government together with business and finance leaders to support the UK’s key sectors in the race to net zero, adapting to and unlocking the opportunities of the green transition. The Net Zero Council provides a vehicle through which we can pool our expertise, taking advantage of the UK’s world leading position in the race to net zero to secure a transition that is both pro-business and pro-growth.

Tackling Scope 3 emissions

Thu, 29 Jun 2023 11:20:42 GMT

It was back in 2001 when the concept of different ‘scopes’ of corporate emissions was launched (in the first edition of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol). More than twenty years on, Scope 1,2 and 3 emissions are widely referred to in climate change circles. Yet Scope 3 emissions in particular (defined as those occurring outwith the organisation’s direct control but within the value chain of their services and products) remain one of the most complex and challenging concepts for companies.

I was reminded of this last week when I spent a day discussing the topic with major corporates, having been invited to chair some breakout sessions at EDIE’s event on Scope 3.

In our work at Broadway, which particularly involves working with sectoral associations on their net zero roadmaps, the debate over Scope 3 is very much live. Some sectors, such as retail, incorporate Scope 3 emissions into their roadmaps and aim to reach full net zero through the supply chain by a particular date, while other sectors have restricted themselves to the more easily identifiable and manageable Scope 1 and 2 emissions.

This challenge is replicated at company level. In the discussions I chaired three concerns were particularly apparent.

First, most large companies have ambitious Scope 3 targets (either set by themselves or set at parent company level but applying to subsidiaries), but unlike with Scopes 1 and 2 they are trying to backfill the data for current Scope 3 emissions and clarify boundaries. This can slow down the process of prioritising action and developing the right emissions reduction strategy.

Second, there is still heavy reliance on ‘spend-based’ emissions calculation methodologies for Scope 3. Everyone at the event felt strongly that this is ‘sub-optimal’, but in many areas it is the only option available.

Third, there was a worry that the market for calculating and recording Scope 3 emissions is becoming atomised. Different proprietary software platforms are available, but hard to know which will become dominant and which may disappear. Consultancies, meanwhile, do a great job in supporting firms calculate and analyse Scope 3 emissions but often use their own proprietary methodologies which are not shared.

On a more optimistic note, most firms felt that despite the opacity of the data they had a reasonable handle on where they should focus their efforts. And there were some thoughtful discussions about how to help supply chains deliver emission reductions, for example by giving suppliers a clear ‘line of sight’ to future requirements that would be placed on them.

So some encouraging signs for sure but I expect ‘Scope 3’ will remain a popular topic for event organisers for a while to come.

Future Countryside: Achieving a healthy environment and a healthy living for farmers

Sun, 18 Jun 2023 07:57:39 GMT

On Tuesday 6th June Lord Salisbury opened his home to 200 rural leaders for an invite-only conference dubbed Future Countryside .

Broadway Initiative were in attendance, taking the opportunity to network with a group that Holkham’s Jake Fiennes called "the most influential rural gathering we're likely to see for some time".

It was an excellent chance to promote the role business can play in promoting carbon capture and conservation.

The theme that emerged from the conference was the cultural value of the countryside. Lord Herbert presented polling and focus group evidence suggesting the countryside was second only to the NHS in the esteem in which it is held by urban and rural people alike. Rory Stewart splashed colour on the data, invoking Wordsworth and the intense pathos that the British landscape inspires.

Henry Dimbleby spoke of the need for change detailed in the Food Strategy, and identified the least productive 20% of land as the areas in which environmental gains could most readily be achieved. These are of course the parts of the country in which countryside culture is at its thickest, providing a real challenge to implementation in the face of the emotional attachments Rory Stewart had described.

Just before lunch, the conference heard from Therese Coffey. The Defra Secretary laid out the government’s rural commitments, including the publication of a Land Use Framework in the summer and a report entitled “Unleashing the Countryside”, released that same day. Coffey joined all the speakers in saluting the working countryside, who she called “the original friends of the earth, the custodians of the countryside.”

Lord Mandelson called for policies that bring town and country together, that embrace with optimism the fact that the countryside is “magnificent”. Farmer and agro-ecological champion Johnty Brunyee agreed with the sentiment but cautioned against complacency, pointing to the evident climate and nature crises.

Shadow Defra Minister Daniel Zeichner also hailed farmers as food producers first, but pointed to the diversity of the rural economy and called for a policy framework that acknowledged that the countryside needs people.

Throughout the speeches and the interventions from the floor, it was made clear that a great deal is expected from the countryside: food, nature, access, carbon sequestration, flood prevention, even beauty and recreation. Farmers pointed out the difficulties in achieving all of this on finite land, in a regulatory framework that can be contradictory and an economy that struggles to pay them a living wage. The challenge is both eased and compounded by the affection people hold for the historic landscapes as they are, at a time when change is inevitable.

The solution is surely to work on a spatial environmental policy that puts both people and culture at its heart, as it seeks to resolve the shifting demands society places on the countryside. If we can get the governance and the regulatory frameworks right, nature and carbon markets have an exciting role to play in achieving both a healthy living for farmers and a healthy environment. The green revolution is the economic opportunity of the 21st century. Broadway Initiative will continue to work towards realising that opportunity for our members, for nature and for the countryside.

PRESS RELEASE: Government, business and finance leaders launch “vital” Net Zero Council

Tue, 09 May 2023 11:50:31 GMT

The first meeting of the new Net Zero Council, hailed as a giant step on the journey to net zero, was co-chaired today (9 ^th May 2023) by Rt Hon Graham Stuart, Minister for Energy Security & Net Zero, and Co-op CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq.

The Broadway Initiative and its business association members have worked hard behind the scenes to bring this group together and is calling on everyone involved to make the most of this immense opportunity.

The transition to net zero will provide the economic opportunity of the century. The Net Zero Council has launched to ensure the UK takes advantage of this opportunity, by providing the structure for greater collaboration between government, business and the finance community.

The meeting brought Ministers and officials together with CEOs from some of the most significant players in the UK economy, alongside a highly experienced joint secretariat bringing the combined expertise of the Broadway Initiative, Aldersgate Group and the Green Finance Institute. Leaders from Siemens, the Federation of Small Businesses, the National Grid, Barratt Developments, Rolls Royce, HSBC, Octopus, Impax Asset Management and Lloyds of London gathered to discuss action across the economy to achieve Net Zero, with other Council Members scheduled to join future meetings.

Broadway Initiative helped to consolidate the Net Zero Council to drive forward the vision for net zero and is now acting as joint secretariat alongside the Green Finance Institute and Aldersgate Group. Broadway is calling on all participants to grasp this collaborative moment and drive towards achievable change.

Broadway Initiative Convenor Edward Lockhart said: “The formation of the new Net Zero Council is a giant step on the journey to net zero. For the first time it brings together leadership from across business sectors, finance and the relevant government departments. In doing so, it creates the mechanism capable of giving businesses vital clarity and consistency to design a low carbon future that works for us all. To be successful the Net Zero Council must be inclusive and open in the way it works. Thanks to all the business groups who have worked alongside the Broadway Initiative to bring this collaboration together. Let’s make the most of it.”

Martin McTague, National Chair of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said: “Small businesses play a vital role in helping the UK achieve its net zero targets by 2050, by decarbonising their own businesses, delivering green jobs, and supporting the transition. There’s a lot of potential for small firms to go further in their net zero journey but the right policy framework is needed. We’re glad to be a part of the Net Zero Council and look forward to working with the Government and like-minded peers to bring down net-zero barriers and incentivise greater investment with smart policies that work for the five and a half million small businesses in the UK.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

The full membership of the Net Zero Council is: Siemens, the Federation of Small Businesses, the National Grid, Rolls Royce, HSBC, Octopus, Impax Asset Management, Cemex, Atkins, Severn Trent Water, Electron, SSE, NatWest, Barratt Developments and Lloyds of London
The Broadway Initiative works to 'mainstream' sustainability into the UK economy. Broadway works with trade organisations to understand what is needed to achieve environmental and climate change objectives, then collaborates with UK governments on the frameworks required and develops plans and partnerships in the private sector to implement change.
Business association members of the Broadway Initiative include: Federation of Small Businesses, British Chambers of Commerce/East Lancashire Chamber, CBI, IoD, Make UK, British Retail Consortium, Carbon Capture and Storage Association, Cold Chain Federation, Country Land and Business Association, Environmental Services Association, Food and Drink Federation, Home Builders Federation, Mineral Products Association, Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, Tech UK, UKHospitality, Water UK.
For further enquiries, please contact liam@broadwayinitiative.org.uk

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From Land Use Framework to Nature Markets

We strongly welcome the publication of the Government’s Land Use Framework for England. The Framework’s focus on integration over trade-offs aligns closely with our own submission , developed with partners across farming, development, infrastructure and environmental sectors.

Government Willow Review response champions collaboration with Broadway

The Willow Review has clearly shown it’s small businesses who stand to benefit the most from investing in sustainability. The Government's response to the Review highlights the role of Broadway Initiative in supporting those small businesses to realise that opportunity.

How the Government's new climate plan underpins the Sector Transition Plans

This week’s publication of the Carbon Budget and Growth Delivery Plan and last week's launch of the Sector Transition Plans represent two parts of the same story: the UK moving from climate ambition to coordinated delivery.

Broadway and The Food and Drink Federation lead the way to a Nature Positive future

The Food and Drink Federation and Broadway Initiative has launched a Nature Positive Handbook, an output of the Nature Markets Dialogue , to help food and drink manufacturers take practical steps toward a nature-positive value chain by 2030.

The 2025 UK Net Zero Business Census Report is here!

The largest-ever survey of UK businesses on climate action finds that 79% of large firms continue to view net zero as a strategic priority. More than a third of SMEs also have net zero high on their agenda, a sign of both encouragement and of the work we still need to do.

A night of optimism and collaboration at the Broadway and ISEP Annual Reception

The event marked the launch of the Net Zero Council’s Sector Transition Plan guidance , setting out how every major sector of the UK economy can co-create a pathway to net zero, supported by business, finance, and government.

Sector Transition Plans launched to accelerate investment and action across UK economy

At an event addressed by the Energy Secretary Ed Miliband on 20th October 2025, the Net Zero Council announced the launch of Sector Transition Plans (STPs), a major new initiative to accelerate investment and coordinated action across the UK economy in support of the Clean Energy Mission.

Why the UK Business Climate Hub Matters More Than Ever

Economic uncertainty can make it tempting for businesses to focus only on short-term survival. But history shows that times of change are also times of opportunity – and today’s green transition is no exception.

Net Zero Council building the tools for effective climate communication

The Net Zero Council is working on supporting businesses, organisations and civil society to talk about decarbonisation.

Nature Markets Dialogue responds to the VCNM Consultation

The 2025 Net Zero Census is Now Live!

Add your voice to the largest UK industry study of business progress on the journey to net zero.

SME Data Taskforce, convened by B4NZ and The Broadway Initiative, launches new UK SME Emissions Standard

The UK SME Voluntary Emissions Standard produces a “create once, share many” model for sustainability data.

Nature Market Governance: a post-Spending Review Imperative

As public finances tighten, the need to find alternative funding mechanisms for nature recovery becomes not just important, but absolutely critical. The release of the Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD) "Findings and Proposal" report could not have been more timely.

New Report - Towards a Governance Framework for UK Nature Markets: Key Findings and Proposal

The Nature Markets Dialogue (NMD), a Broadway Initiative project bringing together 169 specialists from 147 businesses, government bodies, and third-sector organisations, today publishes its “Findings and Proposal” report.

The Willow Review and UK Business Climate Hub

Driving Retail Action on Nature: Broadway speak at BRC Roundtable

Broadway's Land Use Framework Response

Nature Markets Dialogue Welcomes New Steering Group Members

Business and the 7th Carbon Budget

The Climate Change Committee's 7th Carbon Budget will be hugely valuable in shaping the sector transition planning being done by Broadway Initiative’s trade association members, but it is not without its political challenges.

Planning and Infrastructure Bill Introduced to Parliament

Of interest to the Broadway coalition and relevant across our workstreams, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government have shared details of the Planning Infrastructure Bill.

What Broadway Chair Peter Young told the launch of the Nature North strategic investment plan

Broadway Chair delivers a comprehensive overview of the state of nature markets in 2025, and what needs to change to unleash their power to restore nature in the north of England and across the UK.

Broadway Initiative Welcomes the Relaunched Net Zero Council

Nature Markets Dialogue Workshop

Consultation on a governance framework for high-integrity nature markets

Broadway’s Nature Markets Dialogue and the EIP Review converge at UN Global Compact events

Net Zero Census Report released

Labour, Broadway and the Sustainability Agenda

Nature Markets Dialogue Steering Group Revealed

BT announce their partnership with UK Business Climate Hub

PRESS RELEASE: Nature Market Dialogue arrives to build vital unity and consensus

PRESS RELEASE: New report finds interest in UK nature markets still high, but more rapid progress needed to ensure impact and integrity

Cross-sector interest in UK Business Climate Hub

PRESS RELEASE: New One-Stop-Shop for UK Small Business Net Zero Advice

Progress of the recycling and waste sector in the UK in meeting net zero

Net Zero Council focuses on developing sector-specific plans for Net Zero

Tackling Scope 3 emissions

Future Countryside: Achieving a healthy environment and a healthy living for farmers

On Tuesday 6th June Lord Salisbury opened his home to 200 rural leaders for an invite-only conference dubbed Future Countryside .

Broadway Initiative were in attendance, taking the opportunity to network with a group that Holkham’s Jake Fiennes called "the most influential rural gathering we're likely to see for some time".

It was an excellent chance to promote the role business can play in promoting carbon capture and conservation.

PRESS RELEASE: Government, business and finance leaders launch “vital” Net Zero Council

The first meeting of the new Net Zero Council, hailed as a giant step on the journey to net zero, was co-chaired today (9 th May 2023) by Rt Hon Graham Stuart, Minister for Energy Security & Net Zero, and Co-op CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq.

﻿ The Broadway Initiative and its business association members have worked hard behind the scenes to bring this group together and is calling on everyone involved to make the most of this immense opportunity.

The first meeting of the new Net Zero Council, hailed as a giant step on the journey to net zero, was co-chaired today (9 ^th May 2023) by Rt Hon Graham Stuart, Minister for Energy Security & Net Zero, and Co-op CEO Shirine Khoury-Haq.

The Broadway Initiative and its business association members have worked hard behind the scenes to bring this group together and is calling on everyone involved to make the most of this immense opportunity.