BUSINESSES should be required to disclose their environmental impact to drive investment in nature restoration, the government has been urged.

The Green Alliance think tank is calling on ministers to set a timeline for mandatory nature reporting by companies, arguing that forcing them to share their impact would hold businesses accountable for their role in environmental destruction.

In a new report released today, the organisation said such measures could also help establish a new economic indicator that moves beyond gross domestic product (GDP) — which only focuses on value to the economy.

It cited New Zealand and Canada, which have revised their indicators of economic success to reflect the value of natural assets as well.

A landmark 2021 Treasury-commissioned review warned that nature degradation could suppress global GDP by as much as 6 per cent in the 2030s.

Britain, which is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, has set a goal to channel £1 billion into nature annually by 2030.

But Green Alliance said the current economic system allows firms to exploit nature with no incentive for them to preserve it for the future.

This threatens the government’s economic growth mission, the report said, citing the review’s argument that the economy depends on a healthy natural environment.

Green Alliance head of research and report author Heather Plumpton said: “Businesses rely on nature to make profits but don’t necessarily value it properly, as incentives to look after it aren’t embedded in the system.

“We’ve set out immediate and longer-term steps ministers should take to recognise nature’s proper value, so we can begin to turn the tide on nature loss here in the UK.”

The Department for Business and Trade was approached for comment.