Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much her Department spent on interpreters and related translation services in 2025.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In financial year 2025/26, Defra spent £12,546 on interpreters and related translation services.Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of civil servants in her Department were on permanent home working contracts in 2025.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As of December 2025, there were 814 civil servants on home working contracts, equating to 13% of the total number of civil servants in Defra.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department (1) uses and (2) is taking steps to install rooftop solar panels on its premises.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is engaging with the Government Property Agency (GPA) through its Net Zero Programme to track progress in this area and understands GPA intends to undertake feasibility studies and energy audits at a number of sites during this financial year to assess opportunities for rooftop solar panel installation.
Funding support for public bodies to install solar panels has been available through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme with a total of over £3 billion made available up 2028. Great British Energy (GBE) also supports public sector decarbonisation and the GBE Solar programme is investing £255 million to fund around 250 schools, around 260 NHS sites, and around 15 military sites to install solar panels across the country.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much her Department spent on activities relating to Pride Month 2026.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In Defra there was no expenditure relating to Pride Month in 2026.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in 2025 how many full-time equivalent civil servants in her Department focused on farming policy.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In 2025 Core Defra had 234 FTE working on farming policy directly. Farming benefits from wider Defra policies and activities where other staff in the Department would contribute.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether department monitors how much food waste its offices generate each month.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The department monitors food waste from offices it manages on a monthly basis.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department holds records on how many (1) people or (2) organisations have been issued warnings about breaching hosepipe bans in the past ten years.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) does not collect or hold information on individuals or organisations that may have breached these restrictions. Responsibility for monitoring compliance and taking any enforcement action rests with the relevant water company.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to support wildlife conservation sites in Lincolnshire.
Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra published its updated protected sites Environment Act target delivery plan on the 16 July to support the improvement of protected sites here.
The Government supports wildlife conservation sites in Lincolnshire through Natural England and its partners. Natural England protects and improves Sites of Special Scientific Interest across Lincolnshire, including developing a Protected Sites Strategy for The Wash. Countryside Stewardship agreements support farmer-led habitat management, while Landscape Recovery Projects including Lincolnshire Wash, Lincoln & Witham, and Boothby Wildlands create connected habitats. Natural England also supports development of the Greater Lincolnshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy to guide future conservation investment.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, other than special advisers if her Department has appointed anyone from outside the civil service since July 2024.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Since July 2024, the Department has made appointments from outside the Civil Service through public appointments and direct ministerial appointments. Information on these appointments is publicly available on GOV.UK here and here.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many agency staff were employed by her Department in each of the last five years.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The department employed 51 agency staff in the financial year 2025/26, 23 agency staff in 2024/25, 64 agency staff in 2023/24, 35 agency staff in 2022/23, and 52 agency staff in 2021/22. All headcount figures are as of 31 March of the relevant financial year.