Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what rules govern council taxes and business rates on (1) blocks of flats for university students, (2) houses in multiple occupation let to university students, and (3) other dwellings let to university students.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
Any property occupied for domestic purposes will be valued for council tax. Decisions on valuations are a matter for the Valuation Office Agency (VOA).
Halls of residence which comprise solely of living accommodation or other services used only by residents will be valued for council tax, rather than business rates. Houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) are also subject to council tax, as are dwellings let to university students.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 28 June 2017 (HL Deb, col 429), when the Migration Advisory Committee will report on the long-term needs of those parts of the agriculture sector that rely on seasonal agricultural workers.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
On 27 July 2017, the Government commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to gather evidence on patterns of EU migration and the role of migration in the wider economy. It has been asked to report by September 2018 and I understand that the MAC hope to publish an interim report in the near future.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether a smart meter fitted in domestic premises will be replaced free of charge if a householder switches energy supplier to one whose systems are not compatible with its use.
Answered by Lord Henley
When consumers with first generation smart (SMETS1) meters switch energy supplier, if the new supplier is not able to operate the meter in 'smart' mode, the meter will continue to record energy consumption accurately and can be used in 'traditional' mode.
The Data and Communications Company is developing a solution to move SMETS1 meters onto the national communications infrastructure to enable consumers to retain their smart services upon switching. This can be done remotely.
Second generation smart (SMETS2) meters will be fully compatible between energy providers, therefore allowing all consumers to retain smart services when they switch energy suppliers.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many small and medium-sized abattoirs were in operation in the UK in each year from 2001 to 2017.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
For each year between 2001 and 2017 the number of small and medium sized abattoirs fell. The data provided only covers Great Britain which account for the majority of abattoirs.
Abattoir numbers by size in Great Britain
Small | Medium | Large | Total | Total Small and medium | ||
2001 | 264 | 199 | 32 | 495 | 463 | |
2002 | 249 | 189 | 33 | 471 | 438 | |
2003 | 253 | 178 | 35 | 466 | 431 | |
2004 | 241 | 176 | 35 | 452 | 417 | |
2005 | 231 | 166 | 34 | 431 | 397 | |
2006 | 217 | 154 | 39 | 410 | 371 | |
2007 | 209 | 146 | 37 | 392 | 355 | |
2008 | 199 | 139 | 41 | 379 | 338 | |
2009 | 208 | 126 | 37 | 371 | 334 | |
2010 | 199 | 126 | 35 | 360 | 325 | |
2011 | 192 | 123 | 40 | 355 | 315 | |
2012 | 192 | 126 | 36 | 354 | 318 | |
2013 | 188 | 120 | 36 | 344 | 308 | |
2014 | 176 | 117 | 39 | 332 | 293 | |
2015 | 174 | 115 | 38 | 327 | 289 | |
2016 | 182 | 110 | 39 | 331 | 292 | |
2017 | 174 | 102 | 44 | 320 | 276 |
Source: Food Standards Agency
The data was sourced from the Food Standards Agency. The number of abattoirs in Scotland and Northern Ireland are held by Food Standards Scotland and the Food Standards Agency Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland do not hold data prior to 2008 so the figures provided are just for Great Britain.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in respect of the five per cent of farmers and landowners who are still awaiting their payments for 2017 under the Basic Payments Scheme, how many own farm land of (1) under 250 acres, (2) 250 to 500 acres, (3) 500 to 1000 acres, and (4) over 1000 acres.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Rural Payments Agency received over 86,000 applications for the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) 2017. The window for making payments runs from December to June each scheme year. As of 13 March 2018, there were 3,678 claims still being processed for payment, as shown in the table below.
Number of 2017 BPS claims awaiting payment | Eligible acreage claimed* |
1,955 | Under 250 acres |
632 | 250 to 500 acres |
523 | 500 to 1,000 acres |
568 | Over 1,000 acres |
For those who remain unpaid at the end of March, bridging payments for 75% of the calculated value will be made to support farmers until their claim is processed for payment.
*Ownership of land is not a requirement for claiming under the BPS. Land farmed under a tenancy, lease or shared basis can be included in a claim. The figures given are based on size of claim, which may include land not owned by the claimant.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the loss of small and medium-sized local abattoirs.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The government appreciates the role that small and medium sized abattoirs play in meeting the needs of producers in more remote areas and we are aware that in the15 years between 2002 and 2017 the numbers of small and medium abattoirs in England and Wales fell from 438 to 242. This is a result of consolidation in the retail sector and a drive for greater efficiency and higher meat hygiene standards in abattoirs.
The combination of these factors has led to the dominance of larger slaughterhouses, which account for the majority of livestock slaughter. An adequate network of slaughterhouses nationwide is important in supporting livestock production in Britain. However this is a commercial consideration outside of the government’s control.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether local authorities in receipt of Marginal Viability Fund monies will be able to insist that the contractors who have planning permission for projects in receipt of those funds will have to build the affordable homes first.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Marginal Viability Fund, part of the Housing Infrastructure Fund, will help deliver the infrastructure which is essential to enable the housing to come forward. Affordable housing can be agreed through planning obligations between Local Authorities and developers, via Section 106 agreements. The order in which the homes are built will be up to the developer and local authority to determine on a site by site basis.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much of the proposed increase in permit variation fees for the pig and poultry industries is due to (1) staff costs, and (2) IT costs; and whether the entire charge will accrue to the Environment Agency.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The proposal under the Strategic Review of Charges is to recover fully the cost of permit variation of which 71% relates to Environment Agency (EA) staff costs (this excludes the cost of Defra staff within Defra Corporate Services which provide and charge the EA for the service). Around 9% of the proposed charge relates to IT provision and support, most of which is provided by Defra Corporate Services.
The total charge will accrue to the EA.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any ban or strict controls on the export of live animals after Brexit will be matched by the same controls on import of live animals.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government’s manifesto commitment is that as we leave the EU, we can take early steps to control the export of live farm animals for slaughter. We are considering all the options in line with the commitment made in the manifesto.
Asked by: Baroness Byford (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many tonnes of fish caught by other member states of the EU in the period 2013 to 2015 were acquired by the UK.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Over the period 2013-2015, the UK imported 700,000 tonnes of fish products worth £2.5 billion from the other EU Member States. Import statistics include fish caught by EU Member States, fish caught in waters outside of the EU but imported into other Member States prior to entering the UK, and fish caught by UK vessels that are landed into and sold in another Member State before import into the UK.
Further information on UK imports of fish products can be found in the Marine Management Organisation’s annual UK Sea Fisheries Statistics publications.