Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
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 20 June 2025 to Question 60425 on Sustainable Farming Incentive, what his planned timetable is for announcing further details of the reformed Sustainable Farming Incentive.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is working closely with farmers and industry stakeholders to design a future Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer that will better target SFI in an orderly way towards our priorities for food, farming and nature. Further information about the reformed SFI will be provided shortly.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
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 for the future use of properties utilised as Northern Ireland Points of Entry.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Northern Ireland Points of Entry are critical for food security and biosecurity. These facilities will continue to be used to fulfil this critical function. The future use of these facilities once the UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement is in place will depend on the final shape of that agreement, however the Government is clear that its priority is to reduce barriers to trade and red tape.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his plans are for future import of (a) animals and (b) animal meat products from Germany, in the context of the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in that country.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The import restrictions brought in as a result of the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in Germany were lifted on 14 May 2025. However, other import restrictions are in place linked to other disease outbreaks in the EU. These restrictions mean that live animal imports are not possible, for example, from bluetongue affected countries including Germany. Furthermore, restrictions on personal imports of many meat and dairy products are in place from the whole of the EU. A full list of restrictions on imports from the EU is available here and is kept constantly up to date to assist traders and the public: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/imports-and-exports-of-animals-and-animal-products-topical-issues.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what data his Department holds on the change in the quantity of sheep meat imports from Ireland between 2022 and 2024.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Data held by the UK Government shows the net mass (kg) of sheep meat moving from Ireland to Great Britain dropped from 9.4kt in 2022 to 6.9kt in 2024. This data is published at: Overseas trade data table.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to announce a replacement to the Sustainable Farming Incentive programme by 22 July 2025.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Defra is working closely with farmers and industry stakeholders to design a future Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer that fairly and responsibly directs funding. Further details about the reformed SFI offer will be announced in summer 2025.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
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 help reduce instances of wildfires during the summer.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra encourages landowners and land managers to undertake wildfire risk assessments and consider mitigating actions as part of good quality wildfire management plans. Defra regularly engages with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and other Government departments in addition to bodies such as the National Fire Chiefs Council and the England and Wales Wildfire Forum, to monitor and review sector-led improvements and mitigations.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
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 support the further roll out of Multi Banks.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning to a circular economy – one that stimulates growth, reduces waste, and alleviates pressure on household bills. By keeping our materials in use for longer, we can strengthen supply chain resilience, attract investment in modern manufacturing and processing infrastructure, and create skilled jobs across the country. A circular economy also means less waste going to landfill or on our streets, and more value returned to businesses and consumers alike.
Defra recognises the opportunities and benefits Multi Banks could play in redistributing surplus goods to those that need them. As we develop our Circular Economy Strategy for England, we will consider the evidence from right across the economy and evaluate what interventions may be needed.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of red squirrels in each year between 2022 and 2025.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has not made an estimate of red squirrel populations between 2022 and 2025. No systematic national survey for the species currently exists, therefore it is not possible to provide annual population estimates. In England the red squirrel population is estimated to be 38,900 (Mathews et al, 2018).
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many species of plant that previously could not be traded between Great Britain and Northern Ireland have been made available following discussions with the EU on horticultural issues in the last six months.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The prohibition has been lifted on 20 key species of plants since EU Exit. The full list for the last 6 months is: four different kinds of cherry (Prunus avium, Prunus canescens, Prunus cerasus, and Prunus pseudocerasus), silver birch (Betula pendula), downy birch (Betula pubescens), and blackthorn (Prunus spinosa).
We continue to work closely with the horticultural sector, including through a Horticulture Working Group which meets regularly, in order to maximise opportunities for trade in plants and plant products within the United Kingdom. We are in active dialogue with the EU Commission on a number of other species which industry has prioritised.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to replace the Sustainable Farming Incentive in this financial year.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
We will provide further details about the reformed SFI in summer 2025.