Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 his Department has made of food security in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by George Eustice
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the effect of air pollution on public health.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
The Secretary of State has regular meetings with his counterpart at the Department for Health and Social Care and they discuss air pollution and public health most weeks.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 EU representatives on labelling requirements for UK food companies in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Negotiations with the EU are currently restricted to the withdrawal deal. The status of UK food products in the EU market will depend on the outcome of those negotiations.
Following a consultation exercise with the food industry, discussions with the European Commission, and agreement with Defra, the final design for the new health and ID marks has been agreed. This will ensure the UK continues to have the ability to export products of animal origin to the EU. We are also aiming to be recognised by the EU as having equivalence to organic standards and establish reciprocal arrangements though at present there is no agreement on this.
Leaving the EU with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. As a responsible Government would, we are accelerating no deal preparations to ensure the country is prepared for every eventuality. Businesses and citizens should ensure they are similarly prepared.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 the Secretary of State for International Trade on setting environmental and animal welfare standards for future trade deals.
Answered by George Eustice
Ministers and officials from Defra meet regularly with their counterparts in the Department for International Trade to discuss a wide range of trade issues.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Minister for Food Supplies plans to visit Scotland.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Following my appointment as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at Defra, ministerial responsibility for the food chain transferred from Minister Eustice to me. I look forward to visiting Scotland in due course.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 for food shortages in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
A responsible government should prepare for all potential outcomes, including the unlikely scenario in which no mutually satisfactory agreement can be reached and that is what we are doing.
Defra is working closely with all relevant Government departments on food sector issues relating to leaving the EU, including BEIS, DfT, HMRC, Department for Exiting the EU, Department for International Trade, the FSA and others. Defra is also working closely with industry to support preparations for leaving the EU.
Food is one of the UK’s 13 critical infrastructure sectors and Defra produces an annual sector security and resilience plan as lead Government Department. These plans identify potential risks and set out a programme of measures to improve resilience where necessary.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 merits of extending existing fur import bans to cover all species affected by the fur trade.
Answered by George Eustice
The Government shares the British public’s high regard for animal welfare and, after we leave the EU, the Government plans to retain the current regulations banning the import of cat and dog fur and products, and seal skins and products from commercial hunts.
Any further restrictions on importing fur and fur products after we leave the EU should be based on the protection of animal welfare. The Government is considering the case for further steps.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 work to re-home stray and abandoned dogs.
Answered by George Eustice
The introduction of compulsory microchipping of all dogs in 2016 has greatly reduced the number of stray dogs needing rehoming, because the stray dog and their owner can now be quickly reunited. According to the Dogs Trust’s annual Stray Dogs Survey Report, the number of stray dogs has dropped from 126,000 in 2011 to just over 66,000 in 2017. In addition my Department has been working with the Pet Advertising Advisory Group (a group of animal welfare, pet industry and veterinary organisations) to promote more responsible advertising of pet animals, and to reduce impulse buying that so often leads to dogs being abandoned or handed in to re-homing charities. We are also updating the laws on the breeding and selling of dogs which will require all licensees to provide relevant information about pet ownership for prospective buyers, so that informed choices can be made before a purchase is made.