Miscellaneous Forest risk commodities
At the UN Climate Change Conference in 2021 (COP26), over 140 countries including the UK – representing 90% of the world’s forests – signed the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use. Signatories committed to work collectively to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030, while delivering sustainable development and promoting inclusive rural transformation.
	The government launched the forest and climate leaders’ partnership at COP27, and also funds the partnership for forests, which has channelled more than £1 billion of private investment into forests and sustainable land use and brought more than 4 million hectares of critical landscapes under sustainable land use.
	A coherent international approach on disclosure and management of nature-related risks and impact is necessary to support effective action against deforestation-linked financing. The government is therefore committed to exploring how best the final Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework should be incorporated into the UK policy and legislative architecture.
	Work is also underway to address due diligence to combat illegal deforestation using the Environment Act 2021. The most relevant UK businesses that use forest-risk commodities or products derived from them will be required to ensure those products are produced in compliance with relevant local laws. The government will work with UK financial institutions, starting with a series of roundtables in 2023, to further tackle deforestation-linked finance. The policy considerations for tackling the financing of forest risk commodities are complex and further work is required to ensure that the regulatory framework can adequately address this issue.