Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to prevent walkers on public footpaths being killed by cattle.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Promoting safety in the countryside and ensuring the public feel safe and confident while using the rights of way network is very important.
The Health and Safety Executive provides advice on keeping cattle in areas where there are public rights of way and in open access areas, which can be accessed here: https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/ais17ew.pdf. It provides a list of actions which farmers can take to avoid or mitigate risk; for example, keeping stock elsewhere, avoiding fields with public access, putting up temporary fencing and clear signposting.
Cattle, particularly if with calves, can occasionally become aggressive towards dogs. The current Countryside Code pages on GOV.UK give advice for the public on dogs and farm animals, as well as advice for land managers regarding identifying threats to visitor safety. These pages can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-countryside-code/countryside-code-full-online-version. Natural England is refreshing the code for a planned relaunch next year which will provide an opportunity to reinforce messaging around cattle and public access.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment, if any, they have made of the condition of public footpaths in England and Wales; and in particular whether (1) signposts, waymarks, bridges and stiles are effectively maintained on public rights of way, and (2) crops are being planted on fields without marking the route of public rights of way.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Local authorities are responsible for the management and maintenance of public rights of way. They are required to keep a Rights of Way Improvement Plan (ROWIP) to plan improvements to the rights of way network in their area, which are usually available on the authority’s website. This must include an assessment of the local rights of way including the condition of the network.
Deferring the 2026 cut-off date for registration of historic rights of way is a possibility, which would create more time for the reforms to rights of way legislation to be implemented effectively. We must weigh this against the desire for certainty around where rights of way exist, which implementing the cut-off date will bring. Officials intend to meet the rights of way reform Stakeholder Working Group soon and will discuss this issue with them and others before we come to a decision.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
The Leader of the House what percentage of (1) topical questions for written answer, and (2) normal questions for written answer, have not been answered within the expected timeframes for responding to such questions since the COVID-19 lockdown was imposed.
Answered by Baroness Evans of Bowes Park
Since the lockdown was imposed on 23 March 82 topical questions for written answer were tabled. 49% of these were not answered within the expected timeframe. There were 2434 standard questions for written answer tabled, 25% of which were not answered within the standard time frame. These figures are correct as of 11 June.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with supermarkets about the provision of online slots for home delivery of foodstuffs and vital supplies to older vulnerable groups.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government has well-established ways of working with the food industry during disruption to supply situations. Our retailers already have highly resilient supply chains and they are working around the clock to ensure people have the food and products they need. Industry is adapting quickly to these changes in demands, and we welcome the actions they are taking to support demand for online deliveries for older and vulnerable groups, including hiring more staff and prioritising delivery slots for those that need them most.
To help industry respond to this unprecedented demand we have introduced new measures to support online deliveries. We have issued guidance to local authorities to allow extended delivery hours to supermarkets so that shelves can be filled up more quickly, and we have implemented extensions to drivers’ hours. We are also temporarily relaxing certain elements of competition law to ensure retailers are able to collaborate effectively in the national interest, for example by sharing distribution depots and delivery vans.
The Government has begun to deliver food parcels to those identified by the NHS as being extremely clinically vulnerable.
We are working quickly to support people who do not fall into the category of being clinically vulnerable, but still need help getting essential food supplies. This could include those who are elderly, disabled or who have health conditions that make it difficult for them to get the food they need.
We will be launching a communications campaign to signpost vulnerable people to a range of support options. We are working closely with Local Authorities to direct vulnerable people to support available at the local level, as well as working in parallel with supermarkets to prioritise vulnerable individuals. Wherever possible, people should continue to rely on friends, families and wider community support.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 4 June 2019 (HL15826) and following the inception of the Raptor Persecution Priority Group, how that group will measure its success; and how many prosecutions have been mounted for the unlawful killing of hen harriers.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The Raptor Persecution Priority Delivery Group is a police, rather than Government, led group. The group’s objectives are supported by a tactical delivery plan which sets out targeted measurable actions to reduce raptor persecution in England and Wales.
Ministry of Justice data shows that between 2013 and 2018 there were 98 prosecutions for offences against birds under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. It is not possible to break this data down by species.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to commission an independent review into the economic, environmental and wildlife impacts of driven grouse shooting.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government will consider the findings of the recently released Werritty Review which addresses these issues in Scotland. We will continue to work to ensure a sustainable, mutually beneficial relationship between shooting and conservation.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of England's rivers meet the EU's minimum ecological standards; and what proportion are judged sufficiently pollution-free to be safe for swimmers.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 16 January (HL12536), what steps they will take in response to the report Patterns of satellite tagged hen harrier disappearances suggest widespread illegal killing on British grouse moors, published in Nature Communications on 19 May, which found that hen harriers are ten times as likely to disappear over grouse moors than elsewhere and that this is the primary cause of their decline; and whether this finding will be reflected in an update to the 2016 Hen Harrier Action Plan.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Defra and Natural England will continue working in partnership with a wide range of stakeholders, including moorland communities, conservation organisations, police and landowners to implement the Hen Harrier Action Plan, which is kept under regular review.
Defra is also working with the Raptor Persecution Priority Delivery Group on a new action plan to tackle raptor persecution, led by a senior police officer and drawing together representatives from a range of stakeholders.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the safety systems and processes in UK zoos to protect staff, customers and animals.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government is committed to ensuring that zoos are safe places to work and visit, and that there are high standards of welfare for all animals.
The Zoo Licensing Act 1981 sets out comprehensive licensing and inspection requirements for zoos. Responsibility for administering these requirements rests with local authorities. Defra supports this by providing the Secretary of State’s Standards of Modern Zoo Practice, which sets out minimum standards that zoos are expected to meet, covering welfare and safety.
The standards are kept under review by Defra’s Zoos Expert Committee, a group of independent experts that advises Defra on zoo issues. Zoos must also comply with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 which ensures the safety of staff.
Asked by: Lord Birt (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to counter the unlawful killing of hen harriers.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government is very concerned about hen harrier populations, which is why we took the lead on the Hen Harrier Action Plan. This sets out what will be done to increase hen harrier populations in England and includes measures to stop illegal persecution. A copy of the plan is available on GOV.UK.
All wild birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, with strong penalties for committing offences against birds of prey and other wildlife. The Government takes wildlife crime very seriously and has identified raptor persecution as a national wildlife crime priority, focusing on hen harrier, golden eagle, goshawk, peregrine, red kite and white tailed eagle.