Office for Environmental Protection | |
Type: | Non-departmental public body |
Jurisdiction: | Government of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland Executive |
Status: | Active |
Headquarters: | Worcester, England |
Employees: | 74 (2023) |
Budget: | £12.1million (2022-23) |
Chief1 Name: | Dame Glenys Stacey |
Chief1 Position: | Chair |
Chief2 Name: | Natalie Prosser |
Chief2 Position: | Chief Executive |
Parent Department: | DEFRA, DAERA |
Footnotes: | [1] |
The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) is a regulatory body for environmental protection in England and Northern Ireland[1] "to provide independent oversight of the government's environmental progress". It was created as a statutory body by the Environment Act 2021.
The OEP was launched as an interim body in July 2021.[2] The first chair is Glenys Stacey, who has called delays in the passage of the bill "extremely disappointing".[3] [4] Its first chief executive is Natalie Prosser and its headquarters are in Worcester. Concerns have been raised about potential lack of powers, independence, funding and about freedom of information.[5] [6] The OEP is intended to replace the environmental protection functions of the EU, but a report by the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law expressed concerns that the bill as of June 2021 would provide no equivalent legal remedy for breaches.[7] The OEP was formally legally constituted on 17 November 2021,[1] and was given an environmental governance role in England in January 2022,[1] and in Northern Ireland in February 2022.[8]