Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Government has carried out any assessment of the effect of emissions from older diesel locomotives on public health.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
While the rail sector as a whole is a relatively minor contributor to overall levels of outdoor air pollution, emissions from older diesel trains can contribute to local air quality issues. In February 2018, the Government challenged the rail industry to phase out diesel only trains by 2040.
New diesel rolling stock, including those commissioned for the Greater Anglia, Trans-Pennine, Northern and West Midlands franchises, are required to meet the latest emissions standards. This will replace the oldest trains, built in the 1980s, on the network. Overall this will significantly reduce pollution from the sector.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of proposals for Entry Level Exception Sites in the draft National Planning Policy Framework on Rural Exception Sites.
Answered by Dominic Raab
The Government has consulted on a proposed entry level exception site policy as part of the draft National Planning Policy Framework. This consultation closed on 10 May and responses are currently being assessed. The new National Planning Policy Framework and the Government’s response will be published in July.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to publish the benefit-in-kind bands for after 2021.
Answered by Mel Stride - Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The government normally announces changes to the details of the banding for calculating the value of the benefit-in-kind for company cars three years in advance of implementation.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons the benefit-in-kind surcharge for diesel has been increased from three per cent to four per cent; and what assessment he has made of the effect of this increase on leases which were agreed on the basis of a three per cent supplement.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Road transport is responsible for 80% of nitrogen dioxide emissions in roadside tests. Even the latest diesel models produce, on average, six times more nitrogen oxide (NOx) in real-world tests compared to lab tests.
The diesel supplement for company car tax aims to encourage manufacturers to bring forward next-generation clean diesels sooner. Cars which meet the Real Driving Emissions Step 2 standard are not liable to pay the supplement.
Each year, 350,000 company car drivers replace their vehicle. This means that, within a few years, most affected drivers will have the opportunity to choose cleaner models.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of disease on trees.
Answered by George Eustice
Tree health risks are systematically assessed through the publically available UK Plant Risk Register (approximately one third of the nearly 1000 pests and diseases on the register are forestry pests and diseases), risks are reviewed monthly and prioritised for actions such as surveillance. Forestry Commission carry out aerial and ground based surveillance on priority risks to tree health, including Phytophthora ramorum, oak processionary moth, ash dieback and the results are published on the Forestry Commission website.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on the effectiveness of affordability checks in place by rent-to-own lenders.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Treasury ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. This includes regular meetings with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to discuss relevant regulatory issues.
The FCA requires all consumer credit firms to conduct appropriate affordability checks, and in July 2017 it consulted on new rules and guidance on creditworthiness assessments, to clarify that firms must consider whether a customer can afford to repay without causing financial distress. A final policy statement is due later this year.
The FCA is also conducting a review of the high-cost credit market, including rent-to-own. The FCA will publish an update later this month
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many fly tipping prosecutions there were in (a) 2016 and (b) 2017; and how much was raised in fines from such prosecutions in each of those years.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
In 2015-16 there were 2,135 prosecutions by local authorities for fly-tipping offences with a total of £677,000 raised in fines. In 2016-17 the figures were 1,571 prosecutions and £723,000 in fines. 98% of prosecutions result in a conviction. Additionally in 2015-16 there were 36,000 fixed penalty notices issued for fly-tipping offences which increased to 56,000 in 2016-17.
The statistics are published annually by Defra and are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of Hezbollah's ability to manufacture weapons.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We are aware of reports that Hizballah is manufacturing weapons in Lebanon, which would constitute a direct contravention of UN Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701. We condemn the threat that such activity poses to regional stability.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the White Paper on agriculture will contain specific provisions for protecting and supporting British horitculture.
Answered by George Eustice
The Environment Secretary has set out his intention to publish a consultation paper on the future of domestic agriculture policy later this spring.
The paper will set out our proposals for the future of agriculture and the opportunities for all sectors, including horticulture. We look forward to receiving consultation responses from across industry in due course.
Asked by: Neil Parish (Conservative - Tiverton and Honiton)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
What steps he is taking to tackle rising energy prices.
Answered by Claire Perry
We are bringing forward the Price Cap Bill, an intelligent intervention to protect consumers.
Ofgem is already capping tariffs for 1 million households this year, and consulting on protection for another 2 million next winter. This is in addition to the 4 million households protected under the pre-pay cap.
That is not all, smart meter rollout, focusing of ECO money on fuel poor households and working with Citizens Advice and the Energy Saving Trust to get people switched to better deals.
All this will help keep bills down for households.