Natural England - Enforcement
Enforcement
Although there is no UK-wide definition of wildlife crime it can be broadly categorised as any illegal activity which affects the conservation status of protected species or habitats.
Why do we need to enforce illegal activities?
The use of enforcement is one aspect of our regulatory powers, as detailed in our regulatory strategy 
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Where offences have been committed or are threatened, we consider that appropriate enforcement is key to protecting the environment now and for future generations.
In addition, enforcement should also secure compliance with the law and ensure that those who cause damage to the natural environment are held accountable for their actions.
What are Natural England’s enforcement responsibilities?
We are responsible for the regulatory enforcement of offences relating to:
illegal heather and grass burning;
agricultural work that affects uncultivated land or semi-natural areas;
breaches of wildlife licences and notices that we issue;
What are Natural England’s enforcement powers?
We have a number of enforcement powers available to us. These powers, along with other enforcement mechanisms such as warning letters, are given in our enforcement policy .
Details of the enforcement powers and mechanisms we use for specific offences, our powers of entry, and an outline of the decision making process for our enforcement action, will be available in our Functional Enforcement Guidance, which will be available in early 2009.
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Natural England's Enforcement Policy and Strategy
A public consultation exercise on our Enforcement Policy was undertaken between July and October 2008. We sought views on our approach to enforcement - the principles that we apply to our enforcement work and whether the policy would achieve our aims. The Policy was then published in March 2008.