Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 potential benefits to the food and farming sectors of implementing the recommendations from the Grant Thornton Report on Labour Availability on visas for horticultural and agricultural workers.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is grateful to everyone who contributed to the report on ‘Establishing the labour availability issues of the UK Food and Drink Sector’. We are reviewing the recommendations as part of our on-going work to address the immediate issues in the food supply chain and our longer-term strategy for the food and farming workforce.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 Answers of 6 July 2021 to Question 23303 and 2 July 2021 to Question 21310, on what date Ministers met with Amazon to discuss measures to stop Amazon destroying usable stock; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy raised the media reports of stock destruction during a call with Amazon on 24 June during which Amazon outlined their seven-point plan for dealing with unsold goods to ensure they are not sent to landfill.
Our position on this important issue was set out in our previous responses. We have nothing further to add at this stage.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the temporary relaxation for night time supermarket deliveries in built up areas is planned to end.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The temporary relaxation of planning enforcement related to the delivery of food and other essential goods to retailers is due to end at the introduction of Step 4 of the roadmap, now confirmed as Monday 19 July. However, this temporary relaxation of planning enforcement has been an important measure to ensure availability of food supplies during the period of Covid restrictions.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 announcement of 7 May 2021, New plans unveiled to boost recycling, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing guidance for all local authorities on the acceptance of recycling paper gift wrap that bears the recyclable logo.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As part of Government’s Resources and Waste Strategy, published in 2019, we are introducing new measures through the Environment Bill to increase the quantity and quality of recycling. These measures will require local authorities to collect the following dry recyclable waste streams from all households in England: plastic, glass, metal, paper and card. The Bill includes powers to specify which materials local authorities should be required to collect in each of the recyclable waste streams (including paper and card). We intend to specify these materials in secondary legislation and may provide further detail in statutory guidance.
Wrapping paper is generally accepted for kerbside collection, however, it can often become unrecyclable due to contamination with sticky tape. Wrapping paper which contain foil or glitter are not recyclable. Recycle Now which is a part of the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), has produced guidance on the recycling of wrapping paper here:
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 England Peat Action Plan, published on 18 May 2021, when he plans to announce the launch of the Government's consultation on ending of the use of peat in horticultural compost.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In the recently published England Peat Action Plan, we have committed to undertake a full consultation in 2021 on banning the sale of peat and peat containing products in the amateur sector by the end of this Parliament.
We are committed to working with the industry to understand the implications of our proposals, identify blockages and to working with the private sector to develop and enact solutions, thus making the transition to peat alternatives as seamless as possible.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his policy is on the increase and expansion of intensive broiler factories.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
A vibrant poultry sector is a crucial part of our ongoing work to make sure the UK continues to have access to the food we all need. Farms of all sizes have a role to play in promoting a sustainable agricultural sector. All operational livestock farms, no matter the size or system of production, must comply with our comprehensive laws on animal health and welfare, planning, veterinary medicines and environmental legislation.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he has taken in response to Natural England's report, Green bridges: safer travel for wildlife, published July 2015; and if he will make it his policy to identify appropriate sites for green bridges in England.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Natural England report reviewed 53 case studies and found evidence that, in the majority of cases, green bridges were used by wildlife, although further studies were needed. Guidance on the design of green bridges, based on this review, was published in December 2015 by the Landscape Institute.
Green bridges are increasingly being used as part of transport infrastructure projects to help connect habitats. For example, a green bridge was built as part of the A556 Knutsford to Bowdon improvement scheme, and the A303 Stonehenge and Lower Thames Crossing schemes both include plans for several green bridges.
HS2 has been designed with a view to avoiding or reducing impacts on habitats and species, and to create a green corridor for wildlife along its length. Between London and the West Midlands, 16 green bridges are currently planned, as well as underpasses to provide safe crossing points for bats and other wildlife.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 adequacy of funding allocated to the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government takes wildlife crime seriously. Since 2016 Defra and the Home Office have committed £300k (roughly £165k each) a year to funding the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) until 2020/21. Decisions on the future funding of the NWCU are being taken as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review.
The UK is currently undergoing assessment under the UN-led International Consortium for Combatting Wildlife and Forest Crime Analytic Toolkit. This assessment will comprise a comprehensive analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of our preventive and criminal justice responses, which are crucial to curtailing wildlife and forest crime nationally and internationally. The toolkit will also review UK wildlife crime policing structures, including the NWCU and Border Force. We expect the report to be finalised in six months.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 extent of damage to Local Wildlife Sites by prospective developers, prior to applications for planning permission being submitted.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
My department has not undertaken such an assessment. National planning policy expects local plans to identify and map Local Wildlife Sites and to include policies that not only secure their protection from harm or loss but also help to enhance them and their connection to wider ecological networks.
Defra requires local authorities to report annually on the proportion of Local Wildlife Sites where positive conservation management has been or is being implemented. In 2018/19, 47% of Local Wildlife Sites across England were in positive conservation management.
The Environment Bill contains important new measures for reversing nature’s decline. These include strengthening the existing biodiversity duty, to require all public authorities to take action to conserve and enhance biodiversity. Local Authorities will also be required to produce 5-yearly Biodiversity Reports setting out the action they have taken and its impact as part of this duty.
Additionally, the Environment Bill introduces a new biodiversity net gain requirement for development. This includes measures that allow planning authorities to recognise any habitat degradation since January 2020 and to take the earlier habitat state as the baseline for the purposes of biodiversity net gain.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 it his policy to ban the export of pesticides not allowed in the UK or the EU to (a) India and (b) other countries; and whether he has made an assessment of the (i) health and (ii) environmental impacts of those pesticides.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Pesticides may be used in the UK if the active substance has been approved and the product has been authorised. Assessments for approval and authorisation cover potential risks to health and to the environment.
The export from the UK of pesticides is regulated under the Great Britain Prior Informed Consent (PIC) regulatory regime for the export and import of certain hazardous chemicals. Companies intending to export any of these chemicals from the UK must notify the importing country via the exporter’s Designated National Authority. For Great Britain, the Designated National Authority is the Health and Safety Executive.
The exchange of information that PIC provides allows the importing countries to make informed decisions on the import of those chemicals for their specific circumstances and on how to handle and use them safely.