Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 support the financial sustainability of small-scale abattoirs.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra recognises the important role small-scale abattoirs play in supporting local livestock producers and maintaining a resilient and competitive food supply chain.
Defra works closely with the smaller abattoir industry including through the Small Abattoirs Working Group and the Small Abattoirs Task and Finish Group. These groups bring together government and industry representatives on a regular basis to address issues such as regulation, operational efficiency and access to skilled labour. In doing so, they provide a forum for identifying the challenges and opportunities that the sector faces, and for collaborating on practical solutions to support the sustainability, viability and resilience of small and medium sized abattoirs.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 protect swans from harm caused by catapults in Newbury constituency.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government takes crimes against wildlife seriously, including those involving the use of catapults to cause harm to swans, in Newbury or anywhere else in the country.
Although catapults are not listed as prohibited weapons in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, within this legislation there are a range of offences around deliberate attempts to kill, injure or inflict harm on wild birds. The Government therefore believes sufficient legislation is already in place to protect them from targeted use of catapults.
Defra is also a principal funder of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations.
However, Defra recognises the misuse of catapults is causing great concern to some local communities and are working with the Home Office to find solutions to this problem with the aim of increasing protection to our wildlife from crimes involving these weapons.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology on improving rural broadband coverage for farming communities.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra officials are in regular contact with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and continue to work closely with the department on connectivity issues facing rural and farming communities. Project Gigabit is the Government’s programme to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to homes and businesses that are not included in suppliers' commercial plans. This includes farms and other rural businesses.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 improve access to specialist mental health support for farmers in rural areas.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is supporting farmers’ access to specialist mental health services through funding the Farmer Welfare Grant, which is designed to offer tailored support as well as prevent further cases of poor mental health by helping to build resilience within farming communities.
The Department of Health and Social Care are investing to give mental health the same priority as physical health. This includes hiring 8,500 new mental health support workers to reduce delays and provide faster treatment closer to home, including in rural communities.
One recipient, the Farming Community Network, is using the funding to expand their FarmWell platform. This online resource provides free business and personal resilience advice on topics including mental health, isolation, depression and suicide.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Farming Resilience Fund in supporting farmer wellbeing.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
An evaluation of the Farming Resilience Fund has been completed and is due for publication before the end of this year. The survey includes a question on impact of the scheme on farmers' wellbeing.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the economic contribution of small-scale, family-run farms to local economies in England.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra does not collect data which classifies whether farms are family-run and does not hold any data on the economic contribution of small-scale, family run farms to local economies in England.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what flood (a) protection, (b) mitigation and (c) response measures are in place in Newbury constituency.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In Newbury constituency there are a variety of flood defences that benefit communities. These have been delivered by organisations including the Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee, West Berkshire Council and the Environment Agency (EA). A full list of flood Alleviation schemes that have been delivered in this constituency is below:
The EA has a variety of support available in Newbury constituency to support communities to be aware of their flood risk. This includes online risk maps (Check the long term flood risk for an area in England - GOV.UK), free flood warnings for the River Kennet, Lambourn and groundwater (in some areas). The relevant Risk Management Authority also provides advice and guidance regarding personal and community flood plans and engages with communities via the Lambourn Valley and Newbury Flood & Drainage Forums.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 ensure the public receive (a) timely and (b) relevant information on flood risks.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency (EA) aims to issue flood alerts and warnings 30 minutes to 12 hours before flooding. The EA regularly reviews and improves its warning service, including better forecast models, adjusted thresholds for triggering alerts and warnings, and faster digital processing. This autumn, the EA will update the ‘Get flood warnings’ service to make it easier to use, more flexible, and more reliable, with clearer and more consistent messaging. The EA is also exploring artificial intelligence to deliver quicker, more accurate warnings and improve how flood risks are communicated to help people prepare.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 adequacy of the accessibility of the Environment Agency’s new flood warning service for older people.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Get flood warnings service was designed with input from many users including older adults and those with access needs to ensure good accessibility for all. Their feedback led to improvements like clearer navigation, screen reader compatibility and combining flood alerts and warnings onto one page. Older people can still use the 24-hour Floodline helpline, which offers general support and an accessible route for people who prefer not to go online. Floodline staff can help users sign up and manage their accounts, and people can nominate a friend or family member to receive warnings on their behalf. The service meets the GOV.UK Service Standard, meaning it is designed to be inclusive and accessible to all.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department will make an announcement on the future funding arrangements for Stewardship schemes that were designed to replace the loss of direct payments.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We have allocated a record £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament. All our Environmental Land Management schemes (Sustainable Farming Incentive, Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier, and Landscape Recovery) will continue, and we will continue to evolve and improve them in an orderly way to make them work for farmers and nature.