Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of ringfencing funding for local authorities from planning fees for (a) monitoring and (b) enforcing on-site biodiversity net gain.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has provided over £35 million of new burdens funding to Local Planning Authorities (LPAs), county councils and combined authorities thus far to help them implement mandatory biodiversity net gain (BNG). The uses to which the funding can be put are broad and there is no definitive list as requirements will differ across authorities. Some of this funding may be used for monitoring and enforcement responsibilities, including for ‘on-site’ BNG requirements. Decisions on any further funding are subject to the outcome of the spending review.
All significant on-site BNG must be legally secured by a planning condition, planning obligation or conservation covenant for 30 years. If a developer does not meet BNG requirements they may be in breach of the planning condition or legal agreement, and the LPA has a range of planning enforcement powers and may take enforcement action. Where significant on-site gains are secured by a conservation covenant, the responsible body is responsible for enforcing the agreement.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 ensure on-site biodiversity net gains offsets are (a) formally registered and (b) adequately monitored.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has provided over £35 million of new burdens funding to Local Planning Authorities (LPAs), county councils and combined authorities thus far to help them implement mandatory biodiversity net gain (BNG). The uses to which the funding can be put are broad and there is no definitive list as requirements will differ across authorities. Some of this funding may be used for monitoring and enforcement responsibilities, including for ‘on-site’ BNG requirements. Decisions on any further funding are subject to the outcome of the spending review.
All significant on-site BNG must be legally secured by a planning condition, planning obligation or conservation covenant for 30 years. If a developer does not meet BNG requirements they may be in breach of the planning condition or legal agreement, and the LPA has a range of planning enforcement powers and may take enforcement action. Where significant on-site gains are secured by a conservation covenant, the responsible body is responsible for enforcing the agreement.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 plans to take to tackle (a) wildlife crime, (b) hare coursing and (c) badger baiting.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Wildlife crime is unacceptable. Defra is providing £424,000 for the National Wildlife Crime (NWCU) in 2025-2026. The NWCU helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and assisting law enforcers with investigations.
This government recognises the importance of tackling rural crimes such as hare coursing. A package of measures introduced in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 broadened the circumstances in which police can investigate and bring charges for hare coursing-related activity. This legislation, as well as improved police tactics, intelligence and information sharing and the use of community protection notices and criminal behaviour orders appears to be having an impact on reducing hare coursing offences.
Badger persecution is one of the seven UK wildlife crime priorities. A police-led Badger Persecution Priority Delivery Group works to tackle horrific criminal offences like badger baiting. Anyone found guilty of these activities should be subject to the full force of the law. The Protection of Badgers Act 1992 and the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 provide protection against certain methods of killing, injuring, or taking of badgers, or interference with their setts.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for his policies of the Animal Welfare Committee’s December 2024 report recommendation to ban any further deliberate breeding of domestic cats with any non-domestic felid species.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The Government welcomes the Animal Welfare Committee’s Opinion on the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices. We are carefully considering the Committee’s recommendations.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 is taking steps to help ensure that sugar beet growers receive an adequate price for their product.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The Government recognises the importance of sugar beet farmers who are vital to UK sugar production. Also, that sugar beet itself, used in crop rotations, is beneficial to soil and crop health and allows arable farms a season of “rest” from cereal production.
We are committed to promoting fairness across the food supply chain. That includes seeing a price agreed for sugar beet that benefits both growers and processors, in the context of the global market. There is a well-established process in place to agree the sugar beet price; designed to be independent between both parties. An Inter Professional Agreement is agreed each year between both parties and sets out the process for negotiating and agreeing price, terms and conditions for the upcoming crop year, as well as any dispute resolution process.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 in place to ensure that urgent biosecurity information reaches farmers quickly.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Biosecurity is a priority for this government. Urgent biosecurity information, such as alerts about animal and plant health disease incidents, any geographic restrictions in place as a result, and signposting to information on what farmers should do to maintain good biosecurity measures – are shared frequently across the sector.
During the current bluetongue virus outbreak, text messages and email alerts are regularly sent to those registered via livestock keeper databases so that they are aware of their responsibilities. We have made bird registration mandatory for those with poultry or other captive birds, so that we can inform them of the biosecurity risks, for example from Avian Influenza.
We maintain continued communications through our industry partners, on gov.uk, social media and, where possible, through the national and trade press, to increase awareness and action to help protect the UK from biosecurity risks.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
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 the adequacy of the capability of the Animal and Plant Health Agency IT equipment.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The APHA and Defra leadership teams have benefited from internal audits undertaken each year which look at issues including spend, governance, resilience, cyber security, and asset management. Additional insight into the need for investment in the APHA's IT capability has also come from 3 recent Government Internal Audit Agency audits on; Disaster Recovery, Cyber Security and a more targeted APHA Shadow IT Audit.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Animal and Plant Health Agency has carried out scenario planning for potential (a) outbreaks of foot and mouth disease and (b) other significant biosecurity breaches.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Foot and mouth disease (FMD) scenario modelling has been completed, and initial outputs received. A report is being drafted with the deadline being end of March. APHA is undertaking assessments in relation to other diseases including ASF.
FMD scenario modelling has been carried out multiple times, for such reasons as Contingency Exercises (Exercise Rowan) and to support development of livestock traceability systems. The majority of APHA exercises are based around a plausible scenario, developed from expert opinion, and/or demonstrated incursion, and/or simulation model. Scenarios are designed to reflect plausible, whilst testing, conditions.
APHA have carried out assessments of the risk of incursion of FMD from the continent and publish these via GOV.UK.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the last time was that Animal and Plant Health Agency IT systems were upgraded.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has a wide range of applications and IT systems all of which require maintenance, update, and refresh
As these activities are regular and carried out independently per system, each year work is continually undertaken to assess and then either remediate, modernise or replace IT systems
The level of development undertaken depends on several factors including government investment during a Spending Review period, evidence from formal IT Health Checks and an assessment of the level of risk held within the IT estate
Defra has different programmes underway which invest in the APHA's IT estate, including the Legacy Application Programme and the APHA's Delivering Sustainable Futures programme. The Delivering Sustainable Futures programme seeks to enhance the APHA's IT estate by developing modern, stable, lower cost and more interoperable IT architecture.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of (a) veterinarians, (b) veterinary technicians and (c) other veterinary experts to manage potential future outbreaks of foot and mouth disease.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Defra and APHA appreciates the incredibly valuable work completed by veterinarians, technicians, and support staff, recognising their essential roles in achieving our ambitious goals of upholding high standards of animal welfare, supporting trade, and safeguarding public health and food security. The Government acknowledges the high demand for veterinary services and is working collaboratively across departments and with the profession to explore additional measures that will ensure sufficient staffing levels to support and sustain the sector effectively during times of disease outbreaks.