UK reveals first assessment of progress towards national biodiversity targets today as government publishes its 7th National Report (7NR) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
The report assesses the UK's progress against 23 national biodiversity targets which are aligned with the 23 targets in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).
The GBF targets are designed to meet the CBD’s 2030 mission – to take urgent action to halt and reverse biodiversity loss to put nature on a path to recovery for the benefit of people and the planet. The targets are focussed on achieving the GBF’s goals; by 2050, biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored and wisely used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people.
This is the first comprehensive assessment since the UK published its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) in 2024, setting out how the UK will meet its 2030 biodiversity commitments. The report has been published in advance of the 17th meeting of the CBD’s Conference of the Parties (COP17) in October 2026 and is the UK’s contribution to the global stocktake.
So far, the UK is on track to achieve three of the 23 targets by 2030:
- Target 13: Increase the sharing of benefits from genetic resources, Digital Sequence Information (DSI) and traditional knowledge;
- Target 17: Strengthen biosafety and distribute the benefits of biotechnology;
- Target 20: Strengthen capacity-building, technology transfer, and scientific and technical cooperation for biodiversity.
However, for 19 targets, progress is being made at an insufficient rate and progress against one target is unknown. This initial assessment of progress is not unexpected because the GBF Targets are intentionally ambitious. However, it clearly signals that further action is needed to ensure the UK meets all its commitments in the UK NBSAP. The report shows that the UK has solid foundations in place and meaningful progress is being made across almost all targets.
In the UK, responsibility for nature and conservation is devolved to the four countries (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales). As statutory nature advisor to the four countries, JNCC prepared and coordinated contributions to the report on their behalf, as well as the UK Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
Views of non-governmental stakeholders including NGOs, farmers and fisheries groups, and youth were gathered through a stakeholder call for evidence. Eight stakeholder organisations provided evidence on challenges and opportunities.
The UK is fortunate in having a large amount of information about its biodiversity, collected across a broad spread of species and habitats both by professionals and by expert volunteers. Nearly 100 organisations contribute biodiversity data to the UK Biodiversity Indicators published on JNCC’s website. The 2024–2025 indicators were updated specifically for the purpose of reporting progress against the goals and targets of the GBF and were used in the 7th National Report.
The 7NR describes substantial achievements including significant financial investment and global leadership on Access and Benefit Sharing. There has also been notable advances in marine protection, sustainable fishing, and biodiversity finance.
However, biodiversity continues to decline. But many biodiversity interventions – such as restoring habitats, rebuilding species populations or improving ecosystem condition – take years or decades before measurable change becomes visible. As a result, current assessments may not yet capture the full impact of policies and investments already underway.
Achieving all 23 national targets will be challenging but provides opportunities for innovative solutions. The UK has already developed solutions to some of these challenges, such as addressing financial and resource constraints and filling technical and data gaps.
All four countries of the UK have recently updated or developed comprehensive biodiversity strategies or environmental improvement plans. A new UK Overseas Territories Biodiversity Strategy was launched in 2025, developed jointly by the UK Government and Governments and Administrations of the UK Overseas Territories. These strategies and plans form the basis of many of the actions included in the report and will underpin future action.
To find out more, and to access the UK's 7th National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), visit the UK's Clearing House Mechanism website.
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