Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she will publish the response to the MMO's Stage 3 marine protected areas consultation.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) consulted last year on fisheries byelaws to restrict bottom trawling in a further 41 MPAs. These proposals covered 30,000 square kilometres or 13% of English waters. The MMO is carefully considering the very large number of responses received to the consultation, and decisions will be made in due course.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to list the meetings she and her ministers have had with the NFFO since 9 June 2025.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra ministers meet with a range of stakeholders on a regular basis, including the NFFO to discuss matters relevant to commercial fisheries. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
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 publish baseline data for the extent of degraded ecosystems in terrestrial, inland waters and the marine environments in the UK in line with Target 2 of the Global Biodiversity Framework.
Answered by Mary Creagh
The Government publishes a wide range of data relevant to ecosystem condition and restoration across terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments. In the marine environment, assessments of progress towards Good Environmental Status are publicly available through the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science's Marine Online Assessment Tool.
Defra’s Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment Programme will deliver a baseline assessment of the environment at a national and regional scale, including datasets across England's terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. It will conclude in 2028 having completed its five-year strategic sample.
The Government will continue to build the evidence base and monitoring approaches needed to support a robust assessment of ecosystem restoration across the UK.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress she has made in delivering Target 2 of the Global Biodiversity framework.
Answered by Mary Creagh
The UK’s 7th National Report, published in February 2026, reaffirms the UK’s commitment to achieving all 23 targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework at home, and shows that the UK has solid foundations in place and meaningful progress being made across almost all targets.
A range of actions have been undertaken across the UK to restore degraded ecosystems. For instance, England has set legally binding targets under the Environment Act 2021, including on habitat creation or restoration, marine protected area (MPA) condition, and tree planting, supported by significant investments in nature and legislative and regulatory measures. There have been major investments made in nature recovery, for example, woodland creation in England is accelerating with 5,765 ha of new woodland planted in 2024/2025, reflecting a 27% increase on the previous year.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of the inclusion of Recommendation 46 of the Independent Water Commission in full in the Water White Paper.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our White Paper commits to taking forward Recommendation 46 of the IWC. We will make it easier for a company’s owners to change their ownership model, by ensuring the new regulator has a transparent process to assess whether an ownership change should go ahead.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she agrees with Recommendation 46 of the Independent Water Commission.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our White Paper commits to taking forward Recommendation 46 of the IWC. We will make it easier for a company’s owners to change their ownership model, by ensuring the new regulator has a transparent process to assess whether an ownership change should go ahead.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to UIN 5852, what advice her department has received from the ONS regarding the implications for ONS classification if Thames Water was taken into Special Administration.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
HM Treasury has not asked for, nor received, any advice from the ONS regarding the implications for ONS classification if Thames Water was taken into Special Administration.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions her Department has had with the NAO on the use of the Special Administration Regime in the water sector.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
HM Treasury has not held discussions with the National Audit Office (NAO) on the use of the Special Administration Regime in the water sector.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
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 the NAO on the use of the Special Administration Regime in the water sector.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK Government and the National Audit Office regularly engage in discussions on economic issues as part of ongoing stakeholder relations.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to designate bathing water status to the 2,487 recreationally-used freshwater sites identified by the Environment Agency which currently do not have such status.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government designates bathing waters following a public application and consultation process. This means the process is driven by individuals and groups with direct ties to sites highly popular with bathers, who best understand how they are used and valued by the local community. More information on the application and designation process is available on Gov.UK.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bathing-waters-apply-to-designate-or-de-designate