Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of recent reports suggesting animal welfare breaches at dairy farms supplying Arla Foods.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government remains firmly committed to maintaining high animal welfare standards across the livestock sector. Farm animals are protected by robust animal health and welfare legislation, and we keep the effectiveness of animal welfare inspection, monitoring and enforcement arrangements under review.
Any potential breaches of animal health and welfare legislation are taken seriously. Defra's Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) investigates allegations of non-compliance, undertakes on-farm inspections, monitors compliance with welfare legislation and where necessary, will co-ordinate with enforcement bodies such as local authorities.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 review the effectiveness of animal welfare inspection, monitoring and enforcement arrangements within the dairy sector.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government remains firmly committed to maintaining high animal welfare standards across the livestock sector. Farm animals are protected by robust animal health and welfare legislation, and we keep the effectiveness of animal welfare inspection, monitoring and enforcement arrangements under review.
Any potential breaches of animal health and welfare legislation are taken seriously. Defra's Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) investigates allegations of non-compliance, undertakes on-farm inspections, monitors compliance with welfare legislation and where necessary, will co-ordinate with enforcement bodies such as local authorities.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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's position in future fisheries negotiations, including on catch limits, will be consistent with the best available scientific advice on sustainable fishing levels.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I am committed to an evidence-based approach to fisheries management. The UK will continue to use the best available scientific advice to inform our negotiating positions. These positions will also account for our obligations under the Fisheries Act 2020.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the forthcoming Horticulture Strategy will include measures to increase domestic production and consumption of pulses.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to our horticulture and arable sectors and their role in providing home‑grown produce helping to feed the nation. The Horticulture Sector Plan is an independent sector led plan aiming to identify how the sector can increase productivity, profitability and strengthen the contribution of domestic production to our national food security. The plan is relying on sector expertise to set out a clear vision for growth and a practical pathway to deliver it. Fresh peas and green beans grown as horticultural crops are in scope. While pulses cultivated as arable crops are outside scope, they are a vital part of domestic agricultural production. Lessons learned from current sector plans will help inform future rollout to other sectors.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the (a) staff turnover rate, (b) vacancy rate and (c) average time taken to fill vacancies was for frontline operational and regulatory delivery roles in the Forestry Commission in each of the last three years.
Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Forestry Commission’s staff turnover rate for frontline operational and regulatory delivery roles was 16.08% in 2023-24, 13.77% in 2024-25 and 13.79% in 2025-26. Vacancy rate information for these roles is not held. Information on the average time taken to fill vacancies for these roles is only available for 2025-26 and was 87.5 days (12.5 weeks).
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 or the Forestry Commission will submit a pay flexibility business case in relation to Forestry Commission staff under the Civil Service Pay Remit Guidance 2026-27 before the 31 October 2026 deadline.
Answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Forestry Commission has no plans to submit a pay flexibility business case under the Civil Service Pay Remit Guidance 2026-27 before the 31 October 2026 deadline.
Subject to trade union negotiations, the Forestry Commission intends to implement the standard 3.5% pay award from 1 October 2026.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the forthcoming poultry growth strategy will support a transition away from intensive animal agriculture towards prioritising animal welfare, environmental and public health.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Poultry Sector Growth Plan is being developed by industry, with Government acting as a convenor and supporting the process. It is intended to identify how the sector can improve productivity, profitability and resilience while operating within the UK's environmental, planning, animal welfare and regulatory framework. Any proposals emerging from the plan would continue to be subject to existing planning, environmental and regulatory requirements.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 take steps to prohibit or discourage the use of plastic confetti and replace with biodegradable alternatives.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has a number of restrictions on unnecessary single use plastic products, including single-use vapes and wet wipes containing plastic. We will continue to review the latest evidence on problematic products and/or materials to take a systematic approach to reduce the use of unnecessary single-use plastic products and encourage reuse solutions in line with circular economy principles.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 take steps to mitigate disturbance of blue carbon stores on the seabed by requiring marine developers to align with the Greenhouse Gas Assessment process.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There are no current plans to require the inclusion of seabed carbon disturbance in marine developers' Greenhouse Gas Assessment processes. A recent Cefas study highlights that further research is needed to understand the release of carbon from seabed stores resulting from human activities. Defra is funding research through the Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership to improve understanding of UK seabed sediment carbon storage and sequestration, impacts of human activities, and management interventions.
England's marine plans contain policies supporting the conservation, restoration and enhancement of habitats providing carbon sequestration ecosystem services. Two of England's three Highly Protected Marine Areas, Allonby Bay and North East of Farnes Deep, contain blue carbon habitats, including seabed carbon.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the carbon emitted from disturbance of carbon stores on the seabed.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Cefas published a technical briefing in February 2026 on how human activities and climate change affect seabed carbon. The briefing explains that the result of disturbing seabed carbon depends on its reactivity, which varies according to its source, mineral associations and microbial activity. Around 10-35% of English seabed carbon stocks are considered reactive, with higher proportions in coastal and offshore areas. Stable seabed carbon will likely remain stored following disturbance, while reactive carbon may break down and release dissolved inorganic carbon into the water column. Further research is needed to understand how much of this carbon reaches the atmosphere.