Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance her Department provides to local authorities on maintaining continuity of household recycling services in the event of (a) contractor disputes and (b) contract termination.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has published guidance for local authorities on prioritising services in periods of disruption in waste operations which can be found here.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the potential cost savings to the public purse of introducing a mandatory minimum requirement that 30% of tyres procured for government fleet vehicles be retreaded.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is working on a review of the Government Buying Standards which set out how Government procurement can take account of environmental and social impacts whilst ensuring value for money. This review considers the lifecycle impacts of fleet vehicles, including measures to reduce waste and raw material consumption associated with vehicles parts such as tyres.
As part of this work, Defra has made no specific estimate of the potential cost savings arising from a mandatory minimum target on government tyres being retreaded.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to reduce waste and raw material consumption in government fleet maintenance including through the use of retreading.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is working on a review of the Government Buying Standards which set out how Government procurement can take account of environmental and social impacts whilst ensuring value for money. This review considers the lifecycle impacts of fleet vehicles, including measures to reduce waste and raw material consumption associated with vehicles parts such as tyres.
As part of this work, Defra has made no specific estimate of the potential cost savings arising from a mandatory minimum target on government tyres being retreaded.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will ban the live sale of decapod crustaceans to the public to be consumed as food to ensure compliance with the Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There are no plans to ban the live sale of decapod crustaceans to the public to be consumed as food.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to adapt existing farming subsidy schemes to incentivise the (a) housing of (i) pigs and (ii) poultry in woodland and (b) the planting of woodland in permanent pasture to support (A) animal welfare, (B) climate and (C) biodiversity objectives.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our in-field agroforestry offers under the Environmental Land Management schemes include support for establishing and maintaining silvopastoral systems, where trees are planted in pasture to realise their multiple benefits such as enhanced animal welfare and supporting biodiversity. Under Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier, land managers can plant and maintain in-field agroforestry systems up to an average of 400 trees her hectare, as well as create, manage and restore Wood Pasture and Parkland systems. Land managers can be supported to design agroforestry in a way that meets their objectives through the Agroforestry Plan capital item.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much her Department has spent on the ecological restoration and improvement of a) privately owned woodland, b) ancient woodland and c) plantations on ancient woodland sites in each of the last three years.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There are a number of different Government funded actions that contribute to ecological restoration and improvement of woodland in England, so it is not possible to give a precise answer to this question.
The Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) option WD2 – woodland improvement, administered by the Rural Payments Agency and supported by the Forestry Commission, covers activities in England aimed at improving woodland condition and biodiversity. This includes interventions such as thinning, selective felling, pest control, and habitat enhancement; and can include restoration of ancient woodland for the relevant landowners.
This is one option available to support ecological restoration and improvement of woodlands and the spend for this option over the past three years is as follows (note we do not have the data required to differentiate between privately owned woodland and other ownership).
2022: £11,591,832
2023: £13,014,527
2024: £19,314,485
A supplemental action is also available under CSHT to restore and maintain plantations on ancient woodlands sites (WS2). This supplements WD2 and is verified before agreement to be on a plantation on ancient woodland site. This was first available in 2023 and the spend for this over 2023-24 is:
2023: £79,266
2024: £555,703
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions her Department has had with officials in (a) the Netherlands and (b) Slovenia on their plans to ban enriched cages for layer hens.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We have regular engagement with counterparts in other countries on farmed animal welfare issues, including on cages and other close confinement systems.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance her Department provides to local authorities on the maintenance of newly planted trees during the first 12 months after planting.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Forest Research has produced an Urban Tree manual that provides advice on selecting and procuring the right tree for the right place in urban areas. It also highlights long-term issues of the threats to existing trees from pests, disease and climate change, and describes the benefits to the environment and for well-being that urban trees can provide. This is available at Urban Tree Manual - Forest Research. The UK Government has also funded the Caring for Newly Planted Trees guidance, published by the Tree Council.
Other guidance is also provided by the Forestry Commission, for example through the England Woodland Creation Offer maintenance support and more general guidance on protecting newly planted trees, including Tree Establishment and Management on the Climate Change Hub and guidance on maintaining new trees after restocking.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her planned timetable is for the reintroduction of the pet passport.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As announced at the UK-EU Leaders' Summit on 19 May 2025, the UK and EU have agreed to work towards a common Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Area, which will mean taking pets on holiday into the EU will be easier and cheaper. Instead of getting an Animal Health Certificate each time they travel, pet owners will be able to get a multiuse pet passport valid for travel to the EU.
We are expecting to start negotiations later this autumn, once the EU has confirmed their mandate.
In the meantime, and until an agreement is reached, owners will still need an Animal Health Certificate for their dog, cat or ferret(s) if they’re travelling from Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) to an EU country.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many applications for felling licences were refused by Forestry Commission England in the last five years due to the potential impact of felling on ancient woodland remnants within plantations on ancient woodland sites.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Forestry Commission has not refused any felling licence applications in the past 5 years. However, in 2019 one application was refused as the felling would lead to a loss of woodland containing veteran and future veteran oaks. The felling of these would be against the ‘interests of good forestry… and the amenities of the district’ which meant that it was not compliant with the UK Forestry Standard.