Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the frequency of public land being used for illegal fox hunting under the guise of trail hunting; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure the effective enforcement of the prohibition on fox-hunting on public land.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act.
Those found guilty under the Act are subject to the full force of the law. As enforcement of the Hunting Act is an operational matter for the police, Defra has not assessed the frequency of offences against the Hunting Act committed on public land.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has plans to adopt the Whole Grain Initiative’s definition of whole grain foods for food package labelling.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Defra committed to reviewing the Bread and Flour Regulations 1998, as they apply in England, following the end of the transition period. The planned review is being scoped now but it will focus on ensuring alignment with retained laws in other overlapping areas, as well as considering requests from industry for additional measures and exemptions. The review will also need to consider any DHSC decisions around folic acid. As part of the review, we will hold a public consultation on policy options. Many of the issues raised by stakeholders to date are technically complex and we expect this review will need sufficient time to consider responses and agree the best way forward.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to Answer of 21 July 2020 to Question 75425, what steps she has taken to progress work with the industry to ensure that the supply of chemicals and materials that are essential for water and wastewater treatment processes is not adversely affected following the end of the transition period.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Prior to the end of the transition period, the department worked with water companies, the regulators and the wider sector to prepare for a range of potential outcomes. Water companies undertook extensive preparations to ensure continuity of supply and these have ensured that thus far, there has not been an impact on water supply. Water companies are continuing to monitor their supply chains and have increased their on-site stocks of chemicals. The sector has well-rehearsed contingency plans to respond to incidents that might arise.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans the Government has to ensure that the supply of (a) chemicals and (b) materials for the treatment of (i) drinking water and (ii) sewage will not be (A) interrupted and (B) adversely affected in the event that a UK/EU relationship has not been reached by the end of the transition period.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As part of the Government’s preparations for leaving the EU, Defra worked closely with water companies and with the industry trade association to deliver comprehensive sectoral contingency plans with arrangements that would protect supply chains in the event that a UK/EU relationship was not reached prior to the UK leaving the EU. This work has significantly bolstered the resilience of the sector and its supply chains. Defra will continue to work with the industry to ensure that the supply of chemicals and materials that are essential for water and wastewater treatment processes is not adversely affected following the end of the transition period.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 4 May 2020 to Question 40742, on Dogs: Animal Breeding, whether a puppy bred by a person that is licensed to sell a puppy in England can be sold in the UK if it was bred by that person outside the UK.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
A person who is licensed in England as a seller of pet animals may sell a puppy in England as long as they can satisfy the local authority that they bred the puppy concerned. The ban on commercial third party sales in England is about ensuring the person selling the puppy has actually bred the pet animal. The law on the breeding and selling of dogs is a devolved matter and therefore differs in the rest of the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 21 April 2020 to Question 34397, whether puppies bred outside the UK can be sold by a person who is licensed to sell a puppy in England.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The ban on the commercial third party sales of puppies and kittens came into force on 6 April 2020 through the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals)(England)(Amendment) Regulations 2019. From this date, licensed pet sellers in England are only able to sell puppies that they have bred. Licensed pet sellers in England will not be able to sell puppies that they have not bred, regardless of what country they were bred in.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has has to support the expansion of the FareShare network during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
We are working closely with FareShare and other food aid organisations to identify the impacts COVID-19 is having on front-line charities that provide food, and to ensure that those who are financially vulnerable have access to food and essential supplies.
We have worked with FareShare to quantify the current and forecast supply and demand of food to food aid charities, including the hundreds of charities who have asked for FareShare’s support since COVID-19. We welcome the efforts of the food industry to support food aid organisations, including the FareShare network, through pledges of donations of food and funds.
We are working through the Food and Essential Supplies to the Vulnerable Ministerial Task Force to identify where Government can best support front-line food charities, in the context of the gap between supply and demand, and the support already shown by the food industry.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the proposed ban on third party sales of puppies will prohibit breeders that breed dogs outside England from selling those dogs in England.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
It will be for the local authority responsible for licensing a business to be satisfied that a licence holder has bred the animals they are selling. Defra has updated the statutory guidance on pet selling, and this also covers how to be assured that someone offering a puppy for sale has bred it themselves. The law does not explicitly prohibit sales by someone who is licensed to sell a puppy in England having bred that puppy outside of England. However Defra’s recently launched Petfished campaign provides further guidance for the public on how to source puppies responsibly and this includes signposting to reputable suppliers (like Kennel Club Assured Breeders or licensed breeders) and advising that prospective buyers should always ask to see the puppy interacting with its mother and siblings where it was bred prior to making any purchasing decisions.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October 2019 to Question 1779 on Agriculture: Seasonal Workers, whether her Department plans to publish data from the seasonal workers pilot scheme prior to the conclusion of the evaluation of the outcomes of that pilot scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
The numbers of visa applications made, approved and refused under Seasonal Workers Pilot scheme are published in the quarterly Immigration statistics. This information is available on the Gov.uk website at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2019/list-of-tables
The Home Department and Defra have established a regime to monitor and evaluate the Pilot against its objectives and expected benefits. We will publish the outcomes of the evaluation process of the Pilot once that evaluation is complete.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many inspections the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority has undertaken on farms employing workers under the seasonal workers pilot scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
The Home Office are best placed to answer any queries about the requirements and obligations on the scheme operators to safeguard Pilot workers including the number of inspections performed by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority.