English nature's 'jewels in crown' threatened by cuts, says watchdog

Natural England chair bemoans budget cuts that have left conservation body 'massively depleted'

The reserves and protected places that are the "jewels in the crown" of English nature cannot be managed properly because of budget cuts, Tony Juniper, the chair of Natural England, has said.

The budget for the government's conservation watchdog has been slashed in half over five years, leaving it "massively depleted", according to Juniper, the influential former Friends of the Earth campaigner whom the environment secretary, Michael Gove, appointed earlier this year.