Philip Dunne today criticised the Government for missing an opportunity to protect 57 Sites of Special Scientific in the Ludlow constituency.Philip Dunne, MP for Ludlow, today criticised the Government for missing an opportunity to protect 57 Sites of Special Scientific in the Ludlow constituency, which will not be now protected under Government plans to implement new EU legislation. New rules, required under the Environmental Liability Directive, provide a minimum standard of protection by holding companies liable for polluting the environment.

But each Member State can supplement the ELD to protect species and habitats in their country. The Government is currently running a consultation, until 16th February, on the level of environmental protection it intends to introduce. The EU's deadline for introducing the obligatory ELD framework is April 2007.

The ELD covers environmental harm that may arise from certain hazardous activities including the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), waste disposal and the discharge of pollutants to water. The Government's plans for England exclude most wildlife species recognised as requiring protection, 375 in total, and over 3,000 SSSIs.

In England, 391 constituencies have at least one SSSI that will not be covered under the Government's proposals. 112 of these sites are in Shropshire while the Ludlow constituency ranks sixth highest nationally with 57.

The intention of the ELD is to introduce the 'polluter pays' principle. By making businesses financially and legally accountable for any environmental damage they cause, they will be more cautious about what they do. It should prevent environmental harm and, if that does not work, the costs of putting things right should be borne by those causing the damage.

The proposed legislation has two loopholes which could enable companies to avoid financial liability for damaging the environment. The 'permit defence' would allow companies to avoid liability if they had been granted a licence for what turned out to be damaging activity, and the 'state of the art defence' excuses pollution if scientific knowledge at the time did not predict the potential harm. This may lead to inadequate research into side-effects.

Mr Dunne said: "The Government has missed a great opportunity to strengthen environmental protection and help preserve Shropshire's most valuable local nature and wildlife sites. At a time when Gordon Brown is trying to gain credibility by claiming green credentials, these loopholes will allow polluters to continue to pollute. It will be the taxpayer who will have to pick up the bill."