Part 1: Environmental Governance Chapter 2: The Office for Environmental Protection Section 23: Principal objective of the OEP and exercise of its functions
Section 23 sets out the strategic framework for the OEP, making provision for how it will carry out its functions and establish its independence from the government and other bodies. The section requires the OEP to take an objective and impartial approach to the delivery of its functions, and requires it to set out how it will exercise its functions in a strategy that takes into account where extensive governance already exists, for example in the planning system.
	Subsection (1) establishes that, when exercising its functions, the OEP’s principal objective is to contribute to two aims. These are:
Environmental protection.
The improvement of the natural environment.
	The term "principal objective" is used to emphasise that it is a key objective for the OEP, but not the only one it has to consider when exercising its functions. The principal objective should also guide the OEP when exercising its discretionary powers.
	Subsection (2)(a) requires the OEP to act objectively and impartially, thereby ensuring it is capable of holding the government to account. Subsection (2)(b) provides that the OEP must have regard to the need to act proportionately and transparently, helping to ensure balance and accountability in the body’s exercise of its statutory functions. The term "have regard to" is used here because an absolute legal duty would not allow for the OEP to exercise its judgement in individual circumstances. For example, in the interest of transparency, the OEP would normally make information about its work publicly available; however, there may be certain situations where it is inappropriate for it to do so at an early stage, such as during the investigation of a complaint. The OEP will consider proportionality when balancing the need to improve and protect the natural environment against other considerations, such as the protection of the historic environment.
	Under subsection (3), the OEP is required to prepare a strategy setting out its approach towards exercising its functions; the process for revising and reviewing this strategy is set out in section 24. Paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (4) require the OEP to set out in its strategy how it will further its principal objective, how it will act objectively and impartially, and how it will have regard to the need to act proportionately and in a transparent manner.
	Subsection (5)(a) provides that the OEP must set out how it intends to avoid any overlap with the Committee on Climate Change in exercising its functions. This is intended to ensure that the OEP does not seek to replicate the role of the Committee on Climate Change under section 57 of the Climate Change Act 2008, or the reporting role of the Committee under section 59 of the Act. In its strategy, the OEP may also seek to explain how it will resolve any potential for duplication of effort with other relevant bodies, such as Natural England and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. This strategy could be supported by entering into memoranda of understanding with such bodies.
	Subsection (5)(a) also places a requirement on the OEP to set out in its strategy how it intends to cooperate with devolved environmental governance bodies (as defined in section 47). This would facilitate cooperation between the OEP and equivalent bodies in the devolved administrations while respecting the devolution settlements.
	Subsection (6) provides that the OEP’s strategy must contain an enforcement policy. Paragraphs (a) to (e) describe what this policy must set out.
	Paragraph (a) requires the OEP to set out in its policy how it will reach decisions about whether a failure to comply with environmental law is "serious", as required in sections 33(1)(b) and (2)(b), 35(1)(b), 36(1)(b), 38(1)(b), 39(1)(a) and 39(7).
	Paragraph (b) also requires the OEP to set out in its policy how it intends to judge whether damage to the natural environment or to human health is "serious", as required in sections 39(2) in order to make an application for judicial review.
	Paragraph (c) provides that the policy must set out how the OEP intends to exercise its enforcement functions in a way that respects the integrity of other relevant statutory regimes (including appeals processes), meaning where a decision is itself subject to the possibility of intervention by, or appeal to, another body. Statutory regimes could include decision-making functions, complaints, investigation, enforcement or appeals functions, and legal challenges. For example, some decisions made by the Environment Agency, or by a Planning Authority, may be subject to call-in by, or appeal to, the Secretary of State or the Planning Inspectorate. In normal circumstances, it is expected that the OEP would allow the usual regulatory processes to take their course, where they could affect a matter concerning a possible failure to comply with environmental law, before taking enforcement action. This provision therefore requires that the OEP’s strategy should set out how it intends to operate with a view to effective alignment, and avoidance of conflict or duplication, with such procedures.
	Paragraph (d) requires the OEP to specify in its policy how it intends to avoid any overlap between its activities in relation to its complaints function and the work of a relevant ombudsman. Subsection (9) sets out that for the purposes of these provisions, the Commission for Local Administration in England (the official body that runs the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman service) and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration (otherwise known as the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman) shall each be considered a relevant ombudsman.
	Paragraph (e) also requires that the OEP’s enforcement policy set out how it will prioritise cases. Further requirements on this point are set out in subsection (7).
	Subsection (7) sets out certain types of case which the OEP should seek to prioritise when developing and reviewing its enforcement policy. In particular, the OEP must have regard to the particular importance of prioritising cases that it considers have, or may have, national implications. This provision is intended to steer the OEP to act in cases with broader, or more widespread significance, rather than those of narrow local concern; for example, some individual local planning or environmental permitting decision may not have implications beyond the local area.
	Other types of cases which the OEP must have regard to the need to prioritise are set out under paragraphs (a) to (c):
those which concern persistent issues; that is, currently ongoing or recurring problems, or systemic failures;
those concerning decisions that the OEP considers have caused, or could cause, serious damage in terms of their environmental impacts or effects on human health; and
cases that deal with points of law of general public importance, such as addressing those that could otherwise set a potentially damaging precedent, or where there is potential for the OEP’s intervention to clarify a point of widespread uncertainty.
	Subsection (8) defines the OEP’s enforcement functions as those provided for under sections 32 to 41.
	Subsection (9) sets out what is meant by "a relevant ombudsman" for the purposes of subsection (6)(d) above, and other provisions in this Part.