Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who will be responsible for collecting payments in relation to the enforcement of clean air zones.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK-wide Pollinator Monitoring Research Partnership was established with funding from Defra and the Scottish and Welsh Governments.
The total cost over the three-year project period from 2016 to 2019 was £282,720.
In-kind contributions from UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UK CEH) and other academic and voluntary organisations were also committed to the project, to a value of £201,804 (for example for staff time, data sharing, software). The monitoring work itself was co-ordinated by UK CEH.
A follow-up project is now underway, building on the outcomes from this first one. Further details are available on the GOV.UK website at:
http://sciencesearch.defra.gov.uk/
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will allocate additional funding to support the introduction of clean air zones.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to bringing roadside nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations within legal limits in the shortest possible time. That is why the Chancellor recently announced an additional £304 million to enable local authorities to take action to reduce nitrogen dioxide levels, including implementing clean air zones. This brings the total amount of funding committed to tackling NO2 to £880 million.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Greater Manchester’s Clean Air Plan proposals, what plans the Government has for financial support for (a) local businesses and (b) sole traders to upgrade to cleaner vehicles.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to improving air quality in the UK and has provided £572 million to support the development and implementation of required measures by local authorities. This includes a Clean Air Fund that is aimed at mitigating the impact of local plans on individuals and businesses including sole traders.
We are mindful of the challenges of delivering a clean air plan across Greater Manchester and the need to support individuals and businesses that may be affected by the resulting charging Clean Air Zone (CAZ). We have provided at this stage a first tranche of £36 million towards implementing the CAZ and intend to provide further funding, both for implementation and for mitigating the impacts of the CAZ, from the Clean Air Fund, once we have a clearer picture of the scale of need based on our assessment of additional evidence being provided by Greater Manchester.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps her Department has taken to improve air quality standards.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our Clean Air Strategy (CAS) sets out an ambitious programme of action to reduce air pollutant emissions from a wide range of sources. The World Health Organization has recognised the CAS as an example for the rest of the world to follow. We have also put in place a £3.5 billion plan to tackle roadside nitrogen dioxide concentrations. Our Environment Bill makes a clear commitment to set a legally binding target to reduce fine particulate matter.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Seasonal Workers Pilot in the agricultural sector, how much time will be provided to the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority to develop a system for worker oversight and protection in the UK and overseas from the point at which Pilot Operators are chosen to the point at which the pilot starts to provide workers to growers and employers in the UK.
Answered by George Eustice
Defra officials are working closely with the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) on the Government’s seasonal workers pilot. The oversight and protection of workers was a central element of the selection process for Pilot Operators. The selected Pilot Operators were first publically announced in the Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules, which was laid on 11 December and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statement-of-changes-to-the-immigration-rules-hc-1779-11-december-2018.
Officials will continue working closely with the GLAA over the two year operation of the Pilot. A key objective of the pilot is to ensure that migrant workers are adequately protected against modern slavery and other labour abuses. The operators of the scheme will be licensed by the GLAA. They will ensure that all workers are placed with farms who adhere to all relevant legislation, including paying the National Minimum Wage. Farmers will also be vetted to ensure that living and working conditions are of a suitable quality.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to his Department's paper entitled, Seasonal workers pilot: request for information, published in September 2018.
Answered by George Eustice
The paper entitled Seasonal workers pilot: request for information (RFI), published in September 2018, laid out the details of the Pilot explained Defra’s expectations of any potential Pilot Operators, and requested information from any organisation seeking to operate the Pilot to enable Defra to assess their suitability. The responses to the RFI were evaluated as part of the Pilot’s competitive selection process and two Pilot Operators were selected. The statement of changes to the Immigration rules laid out on 11 December 2018 names of the selected Pilot Operators.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with representatives from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority on the seasonal workers pilot.
Answered by George Eustice
Defra officials are working closely with the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) on the Government’s seasonal workers pilot. The oversight and protection of workers was a central element of the selection process for Pilot Operators. The selected Pilot Operators were first publically announced in the Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules, which was laid on 11 December and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statement-of-changes-to-the-immigration-rules-hc-1779-11-december-2018.
Officials will continue working closely with the GLAA over the two year operation of the Pilot. A key objective of the pilot is to ensure that migrant workers are adequately protected against modern slavery and other labour abuses. The operators of the scheme will be licensed by the GLAA. They will ensure that all workers are placed with farms who adhere to all relevant legislation, including paying the National Minimum Wage. Farmers will also be vetted to ensure that living and working conditions are of a suitable quality.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an estimate of the level of labour shortages in the farming sector.
Answered by George Eustice
Defra continue to monitor the latest data and work closely with industry to understand trends in labour demand and supply.
The Office for National Statistics estimates that around 29,000 people make up the permanent agricultural workforce, with Defra estimating a further 67,000 seasonal workers. Industry sets this figure at 80,000 - the majority of which are EU migrant workers.
Defra’s best estimate of seasonal labour shortages, using both Defra’s June agricultural survey and the National Farming Union’s survey of labour providers, is that in June 2016 there was a shortfall of 3,231 seasonal workers, and in June 2017; a shortfall of 7,676.
A new pilot scheme in 2019 will enable non-EEA migrant workers to come to the UK to undertake seasonal employment in the horticultural sector.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his policy on recognising animals as sentient beings encroaches on the rights of religious minorities to slaughter animals in accordance with Muslim and Jewish faith traditions.
Answered by George Eustice
The Government’s policies on animal welfare have always been driven by the fact the animals are sentient beings. The draft Animal Welfare (Sentencing and Recognition of Sentience) Bill published on 12 December 2017 for consultation gives absolute clarity to that commitment. The draft bill does not affect the right of Jewish and Muslim communities to eat meat from animals slaughtered in accordance with religious rites. There are strict rules that govern the slaughter of animals in England and additional rules which apply to animals slaughtered in accordance with religious rites.