Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
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 the correspondence from the hon. Member for Angus of 3 December 2020 on the potential revocation of Vydate for treatment of potato crops, reference DD526.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
I apologise for the delay in responding. Defra is currently dealing with high volumes of correspondence due to Covid-19. A reply to the hon. Member is being prepared and will be issued very shortly.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
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 18 January 2021 to Question 137309 on Animal Products: UK Trade with EU, what new markets the Government has opened for processed animal proteins; what the barriers to access to those markets were prior to the end of the transition period; and what the estimated gross value is of those new markets.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
Over the past two years, Defra has put in place new veterinary export health certificates to facilitate the export of processed animal proteins from terrestrial animals to Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nigeria and Pakistan. We do not currently know the value of these new markets but the gross value of the annual trade to all non-EU markets is approximately £40million. There are now 23 veterinary export health certificates available to support this trade to countries outside the EU.
Defra is aware that UK renderers wish to export even further afield and that many of the authorities in those destination countries require consignments to be accompanied by a veterinary export health certificate and meet stringent import conditions. Defra continues to work with UK rendering companies to maintain and expand its range of veterinary export health certificates supporting the export of processed animal protein to their priority destination countries.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has received representations and information on businesses needing clarification of whether they require an EHC for exports to Northern Ireland and the EU which contain processed animal protein including milk products, gelatine, hydrolysed proteins, eggs, dicalcium phosphate and collagen; and whether he is taking steps to support those businesses.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
Defra is in regular discussions with businesses on the Export Health Certificate (EHC) requirements for products sent to Northern Ireland and the EU which contain processed animal protein (PAP).
Mammalian PAP must have been processed in a region which is, under the international rules, in the negligible risk category for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). It must have been processed by pressure sterilisation (known as ‘Method 1’). This means mammalian PAP products from Great Britain cannot be certified for export to Northern Ireland or the EU.
This issue was raised in our discussions with the EU last year and we continue to look at options to negotiate a position on trade.
We continue to hold discussions regularly with the rendering industry. We have worked with other countries to obtain additional export health certificates for PAP, meaning we were able to open markets for these products elsewhere.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the additional cost to Scottish seafood and agricultural exporters per year of (a) customs documentation and (b) other non-tariff barriers to trade with the EU under the EU-UK trade and co-operation agreement.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
The Trade and Cooperation Agreement delivers on the Government's promise to take the UK out of the EU's customs territory and to regain control of our borders. We have always been clear that this means there will be new customs processes on goods being moved from GB into the EU and vice versa. The Agreement will help to manage the burden of non-tariff barriers for businesses by supporting efficient customs arrangements covering all trade in goods, while ensuring that we will be free to regulate our own market as we see fit. In addition, the agreement enables both sides to further reduce costs in the longer term. For example, we have agreed to explore the possibility of sharing import and export declaration data, including by setting up pilot programmes, where appropriate, with a view to reducing administrative burdens on business.
Importantly, this Agreement ensures there will be zero tariffs or quotas on trade between the UK and the EU, where goods meet the relevant rules of origin, and includes provisions to facilitate trade and address non-tariff barriers for UK exports to the EU and vice versa. It will therefore provide Scottish businesses with exceptional access to the EU's market and help them continue to trade smoothly: it is the first time the EU has ever agreed a zero tariff, zero quota deal.
We have already struck deals with more than 58 countries around the world, worth £198 billion a year - including with Canada, Japan and Singapore, with many more to come. This will benefit Scottish businesses, and create new markets for Scotland's exporters. It allows us to continue to have a close relationship with our European friends and neighbours, while we take our place in the world with an independent trade policy, acting as a global force for good.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
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 (a) hold discussions with industry (i) bodies and (ii) leaders on the proportion of seasonal agricultural workers that were from the UK workforce and (b) use the results of those discussions when presenting proposals for the future of seasonal agricultural work to the Home Secretary.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
Defra works closely with industry bodies and leaders, regularly speaking with recruiters, growers, unions and associations, and making use of all available information and evidence to understand the labour supply picture for the agri-food supply chain.
Industry reports that supply of seasonal labour has been sufficient across the main horticultural sectors so far this year. Through the ‘Pick for Britain’ campaign, Defra has collaborated with industry to raise the profile of seasonal work on farms. The Pick for Britain website has received nearly 2 million unique page views since its launch but Defra does not hold any information about specific vacancies, interviews or people in jobs as that information is held by individual companies.
The horticultural sector will continue to be able to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status. Around 3.7 million EU citizens and their families have been granted settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme and the application deadline is not until 30 June 2021. EU nationals who have settled status can continue to travel to the UK to do seasonal work in 2021.
On 19 February, the Government announced that the annual quota for this second year of the?Seasonal Workers Pilot scheme would increase from 2,500 to 10,000 places. The Pilot has provided thousands of non-EU workers to farms across the UK this year to undertake seasonal employment in the edible horticulture sector.
Defra will continue to work closely with the Home Office on seasonal agricultural workers and the needs of the sector.