Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 10 March 2023 to Question 158986 on Animal Welfare: Fish Farming, if she will provide an update on the progress made by her Department on studying the recommendations of the Animal Welfare Committee; and if she will publish the (a) recommendations and (b) Government response.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We will publish AWC’s updated Opinion on the Welfare of Farmed Fish at the Time of Killing. The Government does not respond to AWC advice but their advice and recommendations are used extensively in policy development.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 2 December 2022 to Question 95918 on Hygiene: Waste Disposal, if the peer review of the work has been finalised.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Peer review of the Life Cycle Assessment of disposable and reusable nappies in the UK has been completed and arrangements for publication of the research are being finalised.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the effect of inflation in the cost of pet food for domestic animals on trends in the level of animal welfare.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra has not made an assessment of the impact of the effect of inflation in the cost of pet food for domestic animals. Defra is in close contact with animal welfare organisations about cost of living issues affecting animal welfare.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 10 September 2021 to Question 38365, to provide (a) the reason for the further delay in publication; and (b) a revised publication timescale of the final report of the environmental assessment of disposable and reusable absorbent hygiene products; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Work on the environmental assessment of disposable and reusable nappies is nearly complete and peer review of the work is being finalised. No date has been set for publication.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 with Cabinet colleagues of the contribution of the Scotch whisky industry to the UK tourism sector and hospitality sector.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst no specific assessment has been made by the UK Government, according to the Scotch Whisky Association, the Scotch Whisky industry continues to provide a significant contribution to the Scottish economy with sustained export values of around £4.5 billion and £5.5 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the UK economy.
The 140 Scotch Whisky distilleries which operate across Scotland attracted around 2.2 million visitors in 2019, making this industry the third most popular tourist attraction. These figures demonstrate the employment opportunities that this industry provides for the UK tourist and hospitality sector.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 impact of the scotch whisky industry on levels of employment in Scotland.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst no specific assessment has been made by the UK Government, according to the Scotch Whisky Association more than 11,000 people are directly employed in the Scotch Whisky industry in Scotland, and over 42,000 jobs across the UK are supported by the Scotch Whisky industry.
7,000 of these jobs are in rural areas of Scotland providing vital employment and investment opportunities to communities across the Highlands and Islands.
The Scotch Whisky industry continues to provide a significant contribution to the Scottish economy, with sustained export values of around £4.5 billion, and £5.5 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the UK economy, according to industry analysis. The 140 Scotch Whisky distilleries which operate across Scotland attracted around 2.2 million visitors in 2019 making this industry the third most popular tourist attraction.
In addition, 57% of distillers reported an increase in their number of staff in the past twelve months, with all respondents expecting to need to add to their workforces in the coming year. These figures outlined by the Scotch Whisky Association demonstrate the wide range of employment opportunities this industry provides to those in Scotland.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 with Cabinet colleagues of the contribution of the Scotch Whisky industry to trends in the level of UK employment.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst no specific assessment has been made by the UK Government, according to the Scotch Whisky Association more than 11,000 people are directly employed in the Scotch Whisky industry in Scotland, and over 42,000 jobs across the UK are supported by the Scotch Whisky industry.
7,000 of these jobs are in rural areas of Scotland providing vital employment and investment opportunities to communities across the Highlands and Islands.
The Scotch Whisky industry continues to provide a significant contribution to the Scottish economy, with sustained export values of around £4.5 billion, and £5.5 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the UK economy, according to industry analysis. The 140 Scotch Whisky distilleries which operate across Scotland attracted around 2.2 million visitors in 2019 making this industry the third most popular tourist attraction.
In addition, 57% of distillers reported an increase in their number of staff in the past twelve months, with all respondents expecting to need to add to their workforces in the coming year. These figures outlined by the Scotch Whisky Association demonstrate the wide range of employment opportunities this industry provides to those in Scotland.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of rising shipping costs on the Scotch whisky industry.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst no specific assessment has been made on the impact of rising shipping costs on the Scotch Whisky industry, according to the Scotch Whisky Association nearly 40% of businesses reported shipping costs doubling in the last 12 months.
Industries have reported that shipping costs have risen to a high level in international freight markets during 2021 and 2022. This is as a result of unprecedented levels of demand driven by changed consumer behaviour during the pandemic, and global operational factors that impacted capacity. This has been a worldwide impact and all types of goods using container shipping will have been affected. The operational issues have significantly improved, and market analysis by industry suggests that current demand is softening and that pricing levels have also started to decline in line with this.
The UK Government is in regular dialogue with the industry and aims to provide the framework for a forwarding-thinking, competitive alcoholic drinks sector which can grow, export and innovate in line with the Government’s ambitions.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
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 impact of rising energy costs on the Scotch whisky industry.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst no specific assessment has been made on the impact of rising energy costs on the Scotch Whisky industry, the UK Government is in regular dialogue with the industry, and aims to provide the framework for a forwarding-thinking, competitive alcoholic drinks sector which can grow, export and innovate in line with Government ambitions.
The Government is excited to see the investment in green energy sources being made in some distilleries and looks forward to seeing many further such schemes in the coming years as we continue the drive to greater efficiency.
The Government plans to announce a new six-month scheme - the Energy Price Guarantee for Businesses - to protect all businesses and other non-domestic energy users from soaring energy costs. It will offer comparable support to that being provided for consumers and we expect the scheme to be available in the autumn with further details on the practicalities to be announced soon. After this initial six-month scheme the Government will provide focused support for vulnerable sectors, targeted to make sure those most in need get support.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of rising energy costs on the Scotch Whisky industry.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Whilst no specific assessment has been made on the impact of rising energy costs on the Scotch Whisky industry, the UK Government is in regular dialogue with the industry, and aims to provide the framework for a forwarding-thinking, competitive alcoholic drinks sector which can grow, export and innovate in line with Government ambitions.