Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to UN Sustainable Development Goal 2.1 to by 2030 end hunger and ensure access by all people to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round, what steps his Department is taking with local government to meet that target.
Answered by George Eustice
Global food security is dependent on a number of factors including increasing production sustainably, reducing waste and ensuring open markets around the world to facilitate trade.
The UK currently has a high degree of food security as shown by the 2010 UK Food Security Assessment. This is a comprehensive piece of work, covering all aspects of food security, including international trade and global resource sustainability. We have just commenced a review of the Assessment which will draw on a wide range of evidence sources.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the oral Answer of 2 November 2016, Official Report, column 879, what steps his Department has taken to use 2011 census classifications, including on Gypsies and Travellers, to audit racial disparities in public service outcomes.
Answered by George Eustice
I refer the Honourable Member for Stretford and Urmston to the answer given by the Right Honourable member for Ashford in response to PQ3079.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with water suppliers on tariffs for customers who do not elect to pay for services online.
Answered by Baroness Coffey
The Department has not had any discussions with water companies about their charges or tariffs in the context of payment methods.
As regulated private businesses, water companies must follow Ofwat’s charging rules and their licence conditions in setting tariffs for customers. Ofwat’s charging rules set out that companies must include a reasonable choice of payment methods.
Water companies do not generally differentiate between customers that access their account online or pay their water bill by direct debit, and those that choose paper billing and annual payment. However, there are some that offer a discount, reflective of the cost saving, to customers that pay by direct debit. This is an incentive to encourage greater sign up as there are benefits for both the customer and the company.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many of her Department's policies have been assessed against the family test; what steps she has taken to publish the outcome of such assessments that have been carried out; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by George Eustice
The Family Test was announced by the Prime Minister in August 2014 and introduced in October 2014. DWP published guidance for Departments and officials on how the test should be applied when formulating policy and my Department follows that guidance:
The Family Test is an integral part of the policy making process and is applied in a proportionate way in the development of all new policy in line with the Family Test guidance. While the guidance states that departments should consider publishing assessments carried out under the Test, there is no requirement to do so.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to implement the family test.
Answered by George Eustice
The Family Test was announced by the Prime Minister in August 2014 and introduced in October 2014. DWP published guidance for Departments and officials on how the test should be applied when formulating policy and my Department follows that guidance:
The Family Test is an integral part of the policy making process and is applied in a proportionate way in the development of all new policy in line with the Family Test guidance. While the guidance states that departments should consider publishing assessments carried out under the Test, there is no requirement to do so.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what levels of air pollution were recorded in Greater Manchester in each of the last three years for which data is available.
Answered by Rory Stewart
Defra uses both monitoring and modelling to assess air quality in the UK. Information about recent and historic levels of pollution, pollution forecasts, health advice and background modelled data is available on the UK-AIR website.
Defra has five monitoring stations in the Greater Manchester Urban Agglomeration. Information about the sites and the pollutants measured is available as follows:
· Bury Whitefield Roadside:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/networks/site-info?uka_id=UKA00598
· Manchester Piccadilly:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/networks/site-info?uka_id=UKA00248
· Manchester South:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/networks/site-info?uka_id=UKA00313
· Salford Eccles:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/networks/site-info?uka_id=UKA00339
· Shaw Crompton Way:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/networks/site-info?uka_id=UKA00579
Defra produces annual “Air Pollution in the UK” reports, which summarise the Department’s annual air quality assessment. These reports include results from all UK monitoring sites and can be found here:
http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/library/annualreport/index
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to ban the use of the captive bolt gun for the destruction of dogs; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by George Eustice
Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 it is an offence to cause any unnecessary suffering to an animal. Best practice to euthanize a dog is by intravenous injection of an overdose of barbiturates by a vet. However, where this option is not possible or available, other humane alternatives may need to be used. Accordingly there are no proposals to ban or restrict the use of the captive bolt gun.