Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will ban supertrawlers from fishing in UK waters to help protect fish stocks and the marine environment.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
We are reviewing our policies for these vessels operating in UK waters including marine conservation areas. Any action needs to be evidence-based and in line with the UK/EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
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 to support people to acquire second hand fishing vessels from abroad or new vessels from UK yards to expand the UK fishing fleet.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Government is committed to supporting the fisheries and seafood sector and helping new entrants into the industry. At the Spending Review we allocated funding that will enable all parts of the UK to deliver their own financial support schemes, which will promote long-term sustainable growth and be tailored to the characteristics of their sectors. The Prime Minister has also announced a new £100M fund to support UK fishing communities. One of the aims of this programme will be the modernisation of fleets and the fish processing industry. We will set out more detail on this programme in due course.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what Government (a) grant and (b) loan assistance is available to people wishing to expand capacity of vegetable and fruit growing under suitable cover to extend the growing season and protect from weather damage.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Government has provided some limited grant support for indoor horticultural growers through the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) for the purchase of innovative lighting, heating and irrigation technology. Funding continues to be available to producer organisations who implement operational programmes in the Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme.
From autumn 2021 my department will launch the new Farming Investment Fund, providing grants to farmers, foresters and growers to enable them to invest in the equipment, technology and infrastructure that will help their businesses to prosper, while improving their productivity and enhancing the environment. My officials are working with stakeholders and others on the detailed design of the scheme.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans the Government has to expand growing vegetables and fruit in the UK to reduce food miles on imports.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Government recognises the crucial role our horticulture industry plays in feeding the country. We are fortunate in the UK to have the climate, landscape, and entrepreneurial farmers and growers to enable us to produce world-class fruit and vegetables. We will always champion our farmers and growers, supporting them to provide a sustainable supply of healthy, home grown food produced to high environmental standards.
The Rural Development Programme for England Countryside Productivity Small Grant (CPSG) scheme provides grant support which helps farmers buy the equipment they need to boost productivity and increase yields. Round 2 of CPSG, was launched in 2019 and included equipment such as direct drill, chlorophyll meters and fruit ripeness spectrometers to help support the productivity of the horticultural sector. A third round of CPSG is being planned for launch in autumn 2020.
The Agriculture Bill will provide powers to give financial support to anyone starting, or improving the productivity of, an agricultural, horticultural or forestry activity. Defra will continue working with the horticulture industry to consider the best way to support them, to allow them to grow and sell more fresh produce.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to expand the UK's fishing fleet in preparation for the cessation of the application of the EU Common Fishing Policy.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
When the UK is an independent coastal state, we will be seeking a fairer share of quota for our fishing fleets across the UK. We will also have the opportunity to design a domestic set of fisheries policies more suited to our needs than under the Common Fisheries Policy. Decisions on fleet capacity (where in some cases we currently have an excess of capacity) depend on a wide variety of factors, including the level of quota available, and, most crucially of all, the long-term sustainability of our key stocks.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
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 with the UK fishing sector to encourage consumption of fish caught by that sector throughout the UK.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
UK food is renowned for its quality, and high standards of food safety, traceability, animal welfare and sustainability. Defra will always champion UK producers and support them in producing more of our great British food, including seafood.
Defra is currently working in partnership with Seafish on the Sea For Yourself campaign, an initiative to promote seafood species caught in UK waters.
The campaign directs consumers across the UK to the Fish is the Dish website, with tips and recipes to show consumers how they can cook these species, as well as to information on online sales to direct them to websites where they can buy local fish and shellfish.
The campaign launched in March, was set up to support the fishing industry to encourage people to eat and buy UK seafood. Following our exit from the EU, we are taking steps to raise awareness of the wide number of species and opportunities that can be found in UK waters.
Defra has also announced a £1 million Domestic Seafood Supply Scheme to help seafood businesses in England sell their products locally and nationally. Managed by the Marine Management Organisation, the scheme has already allocated close to £900,000 to help increase the supply and consumption of domestically caught seafood in markets across England.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the fishing policy for the UK based on the UK leaving the EU without a deal on 31 October 2019.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The UK’s vision for future fisheries management is laid out in the white paper, ‘Sustainable fisheries for future generations’.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any new checks are proposed for imported food from the EU after 29 March 2019.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There would be no change on the day the UK leaves the EU to current controls of imports of animal products or high risk food for imports direct from the EU.
The Government is currently considering what controls should be applied to imports in the future, beyond our immediate exit from the EU.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
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 ability of the UK to substitute domestically produced (a) food and (b) fish for imports once the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
The Government is pursuing a unique and ambitious economic partnership that provides the greatest possible tariff free and frictionless trade with the EU.
There are sectors where the UK could, in the medium term, increase its production and processing of certain agricultural products to displace imports from the EU These include beef, pork, dairy, fruit and vegetables including through increased glasshouse production. The government will consider how best to support these sectors to take advantage of the opportunities of leaving the EU and becoming an independent country in control of our own agricultural policies in future.
The UK has a high degree of food security with access to a diverse range of sources of supply, including domestic production. The UK’s current production to supply ratio is 76% for indigenous-type foods and 60% for all foods. This has remained steady over the last decade and is not low in the context of the past 150 years.
Asked by: John Redwood (Conservative - Wokingham)
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 that a UK fishing policy will be in place after April 2019 in the event that the UK leaves the EU without an agreement.
Answered by George Eustice
The government is committed to introducing a Fisheries Bill during this session of parliament. We will shortly publish a White Paper on future fisheries policy and expect to introduce a Bill later this year.