Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the cost to the public purse was of the (a) annual lease, (b) daily operating costs, (c) fitting out, (d) security staff, (e) operations staff, (f) equipment, (g) services and amenities and (h) maintenance at Dover SPS Border Control Post in the last 12 months.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The Department considers that this information is commercially sensitive and should be withheld.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
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 maximum number of physical checks that can be undertaken at the Sevington Products of Animal Origin Border Control Point in a 24-hour period.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Estimates of the operational capacity of Sevington have been based on a throughput model that seeks to model the flow of goods into the site based on the volumes, seasonal trends, timetabling of ferries and operational assumptions around the number of bays in use, and the duration of inspections including marshalling time and cleaning.
The model does not calculate a maximum daily check but instead identifies potential pinch-points in the throughput of the goods. The model is only considered as a guide given the uncertainties in forecasting the behaviour of a new service.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the maximum number of physical checks is that can be undertaken in a 24-hour period at Dover SPS Border Control Post.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The Bastion Point Border Control Facility was originally built to be capable of conducting all necessary SPS check on animal products arriving at the Port of Dover across the Short Straits. Since that point, the new Border Target Operating Model has been published which has reduced the volumes of goods that require an inspection on arrival.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many port health staff (a) will be required at Sevington inland border facility and (b) are employed by Ashford Border Control.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The responsibility for ensuring the appropriate staffing is in place to conduct the necessary sanitary and phytosanitary checks will lie with Ashford Borough Council as the enforcing authority. They are developing their staffing plans for the site.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the budget is to (a) retro-fix the site of, (b) bring to operational (i) standards and (ii) capacity and (c) complete works at Sevington Internal Border Facility.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The Department considers that this information is commercially sensitive and should be withheld.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the average daily number of documentary checks that will be undertaken at Sevington Border Control Point in the next 12 months; and how many and what proportion of these will (a) be physical checks on (i) imported food and (ii) feed commodities and (b) arrive from the (A) Port of Dover and (B) Channel Tunnel.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The formal designation of Sevington can only take place once it has been confirmed that all the requirements of the relevant legislation have been met. Work is ongoing to put everything in place to meet these requirements, and for the designation to take place ahead of the commencement of physical SPS inspections at the end of April.
Import volumes at point of entry or PHA level are not in the public domain and cannot be shared.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Farming Recovery Fund will be extended to all those affected by storms this winter.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has triggered the Flood Recovery Framework in Gloucestershire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Warwickshire, West Northamptonshire, Wiltshire and Worcestershire, to provide funding for affected households and businesses as a result of severe flooding caused by Storm Henk. Farmers in these areas are likely to be eligible for a number of these funds, including the Business Recovery Grant (for up to £2,500 per SME business), the Property Flood Resilience grant (up to £5,000 per flooded property) and Business Rate relief.
We are currently assessing the full impact of the flooding caused by Storm Henk on farmland to enable us to confirm eligible areas for the Farming Recovery Fund. Eligible areas will be within the same areas announced for the wider Flood Recovery Framework. We are monitoring the situation closely and further guidance on support for farmers affected by the flooding will be published on gov.uk.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress has been made on the Marine Spatial Prioritisation programme.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
Defra is working with key Government departments, organisations such as the Marine Management Organisation, Crown Estate and North Sea Transition Authority, and the marine sectors to improve our understanding of the different demands on the English seas.
Specifically, in 2023 the programme has engaged across multiple sectors, including fishing, cabling, environment and energy, to identify opportunities for greater co-location. We will continue this engagement in 2024.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on implementing Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The review and decision for making sustainable drainage systems mandatory in new developments was published on 10 January 2023. The Government has accepted the review’s recommendation to implement through Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.
The Government is now looking at how best to implement, considering scope, threshold, and process, while also being mindful of the cumulative impact of new regulatory burdens on the development sector.
We will be consulting on the proposals shortly and remain committed to implementing sustainable drainage systems.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice)
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 close English waters to industrial sand eel fishing before the start of the 2024 fishing season.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea has recently published its response to a technical request on ecosystem considerations in the provision of single stock advice for forage fish species. Defra is presently assessing that response, alongside other evidence, and responses to our public consultation on sandeel management. I will announce my decision in the new year.