Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to purchase locally-sourced food.
Answered by David Rutley
The Government is keen to see an increase in the amount of locally grown seasonal produce consumed in the UK. The Plan for Public Procurement, published under the 2010-2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition Government, includes a balanced scorecard to help define the criteria of bids for food and catering contracts.
The scorecard rewards tenders which commit to serve locally sourced food and those that highlight the benefits of seasonal increases in the availability of certain types of produce. Use of the balanced scorecard is mandatory for central Government departments and executive agencies, and Defra is working to increase its uptake in the wider public sector.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
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 plans to maintain funding for Private Storage Aid schemes after the UK has left the EU.
Answered by David Rutley
European regulations concerning private storage aid are being retained under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, should the Secretary of State choose to operate a scheme in England after we leave. This is a devolved matter and similar powers to operate private storage aid will exist for Northern Irish, Scottish and Welsh Ministers.
The Agriculture Bill contains powers which would allow the Secretary of State to amend the retained EU legislation on private storage aid, with the aim of eventually phasing the schemes out in England. It also gives the Secretary of State the ability to amend the schemes’ general operation, so they can be run in a way appropriate for the domestic market while the Government consults on phasing the scheme out. While for the most part there is a weak economic case for market intervention, there may be very specific circumstances in which granting private storage aid will make overall economic sense. For this reason, powers to use private storage in response to exceptional market conditions are being retained in the Bill.
The Agriculture Bill extends similar powers to Welsh Ministers and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland. The Scottish Government is able to rely on the retained EU legislation regarding public intervention and private storage aid.
We are working with all the devolved administrations on common UK frameworks where coordination would be necessary or desirable and, with the agreement of the devolved administrations, we expect market intervention schemes of this nature to be part of such a framework.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
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 is taking to encourage food manufacturers to reduce the use of plastic.
Answered by Baroness Coffey
The Resources and Waste Strategy sets out the Government’s ambition to maximise the value we get from resources and to minimise waste. We are committed to being the first generation to leave the environment in a better state than we found it, and to eliminating avoidable plastic waste over the lifetime of the 25 Year Environment Plan.
The Government is currently consulting on reforming existing packaging waste regulations to financially incentivise packaging producers, including those who package food products, to take greater responsibility for the environmental impacts of their products. Our plans for Extended Producer Responsibility include requiring producers to pay the full cost of recycling and disposing of their packaging waste and making producers pay more if their products are not easily recyclable. Current packaging waste regulations operate on a UK-wide basis. The benefits of continuing with a UK-wide approach are recognised and our consultation on reforming the regulations is being undertaken jointly by the UK, Scottish and Welsh Governments. As the Northern Ireland Assembly is not sitting, the UK Government has agreed to consult on behalf of Northern Ireland.
Industry is already taking action. Last year, the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation published their Plastics Pact with support from the Government and more than 80 businesses, including major food manufacturers such as Birds Eye, Quorn, and McCain Foods GB. The Pact brings these organisations together to aim to meet four key ambitions by 2025, including making 100% of plastic packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable. The Government welcomes voluntary initiatives aimed at tackling plastic pollution and will continue to seek opportunities to support such work through policy solutions.
Plastic packaging can have a role to play in reducing product damage, increasing shelf life and reducing food waste. However, there are opportunities where offering food loose may help to reduce plastic waste while not impacting on shelf life. The Government is working with retailers and WRAP to encourage their efforts to reduce waste and to explore the introduction of plastic free supermarket initiatives in which fresh food is sold loose, giving consumers more choice. WRAP has published a technical report on the evidence for providing fresh produce loose. This report will inform future published guidance.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
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 to support farmers after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
We have pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament.
In England we are planning an ambitious new system based on “public money for public goods”. A seven year transition period will make sure there is a gradual transition from the current system to the new.
It will be for a future Northern Ireland Executive to determine its own policy. However, in the absence of an Assembly, DAERA’s approach to the Bill is to maintain the status quo and preserve flexibility for a future Executive to modify legacy CAP schemes.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with dairy farmers in Northern Ireland on the (a) cost of production and (b) the sale price of milk.
Answered by George Eustice
The Secretary of State and I have frequent discussions with representatives of the UK farming sector on a wide range of matters which have included recent discussions involving the Ulster Farmers Union on agricultural policy.
Defra actively monitors the UK farm-gate price of milk, and information collected in our Farm Business Survey for England allows an assessment of the cost of milk production. The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs collects similar data on farm incomes in Northern Ireland. This information is available at the following links:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-milk-prices-and-composition-of-milk
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/farm-business-survey
https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/publications/farm-incomes-northern-ireland-2004-2014
We want to support farmers to get a fair price for their products. Our Agriculture Bill will provide ministers, and the devolved administrations where appropriate, with a suite of powers to improve supply chain fairness supporting farmers to get a fair price for their produce.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to support farmers after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
We have pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament.
In England we are planning an ambitious new system based on “public money for public goods”. A seven year transition period will make sure there is gradual and smooth implementation of the new system.
It will be for a future Northern Ireland Executive to determine its own policy. However, in the absence of an Assembly, DAERA’s approach to the Bill is to maintain the status quo and preserve flexibility for a future Executive to modify legacy Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) schemes.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect children from the effect of toxic air on their health.
Answered by Baroness Coffey
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Stockton North, Alex Cunningham, on 27 November 2018, PQ UIN192868.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with fishermen in Northern Ireland on the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
There have been extensive, positive and productive discussions between Defra and representatives of the fishing industry in Northern Ireland, most recently following the launch of Defra’s White Paper, Sustainable fisheries for future generations, and following the introduction of the Fisheries Bill.