Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
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 potential merits of increasing the Environment Agency's funding allocation for de-silting work.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Between 2015 and 2020 we committed around £1 billion on the maintenance of flood defence assets. This is a real terms increase in spending compared to the £812 million spent in the previous five years.
De-silting (also referred to as dredging) and clearing channels, are important parts of the Environment Agency’s (EA) river maintenance regime. The EA will undertake these activities where there is evidence that they will reduce flood risk to local properties cost effectively without increasing flooding downstream.
Typically, over each of the past 3 years the EA have spent between £5 million and £11 million on dredging across England. This equates to approximately 100-200km of river channel each year. The EA regularly reviews its river channel maintenance programme to identify where an increase in river channel maintenance, including dredging, will provide a net positive economic benefit by reducing flood risk.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Lancashire of 14 August 2020 on the Strategic Flood Risk Assessment for West Lancashire.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I apologise for the delay in responding. I replied to the hon. Member on 3 November 2020.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond the letters of 11 August 2020, 28 August 2020 and 7 September 2020 from the hon. Member for West Lancashire on flooding on Crabtree Lane in Burscough and responsibility for flood management.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member. Defra is currently dealing with high volumes of correspondence due to COVID-19. It has also been necessary to consult the Environment Agency to provide as accurate and helpful a response as possible, which has taken time. I understand the hon. Member has also separately written to the Environment Agency on some of the points raised in these letters and the Environment Agency has responded.
The replies will be with the hon. Member as soon as possible.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Lancashire of 11 August 2020 on flood pumps and the effects of flooding in West Lancashire.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member. Defra is currently dealing with high volumes of correspondence due to COVID-19. It has also been necessary to consult the Environment Agency to provide as accurate and helpful a response as possible, which has taken time. I understand the hon. Member has also separately written to the Environment Agency on some of the points raised in these letters and the Environment Agency has responded.
A reply to the hon. Member has been prepared and will be issued very shortly.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many dogs were seized by the Animal Health and Plant Agency for having been illegally imported via (a) Eurotunnel, (b) Dover Port and (c) Harwich port in August 2020.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The number of dogs seized and detained in quarantine at Eurotunnel, Dover Port and Harwich in August 2020 are as follows:
Eurotunnel – 35
Dover Port – 10
Harwich – 0
The number of animals detained in quarantine for Eurotunnel also includes dogs that were seized at Coquelles and moved into the United Kingdom for quarantine purposes.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on dog welfare.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Since the outbreak of the pandemic, Defra’s animal welfare team has been in regular contact with the sector to understand the impacts and what is needed from government. I am grateful for the work done by animal welfare charities to promote advice for pet owners and look after animals during this difficult time.
The Association of Dogs & Cats Homes undertook surveys in April and May 2020 of their members and wider rescue and rehoming organisations to establish the extent of the impact of Covid-19 on the sector. Many rescue organisations have reported a reduction in the number of dogs being abandoned during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, and there has been an increase in demand for dogs and other pets. We are continuing to monitor the effect on pet ownership of lifestyle changes stemming from the Covid-19 outbreak.
The Government recognises that the animal rescue and rehoming sector has been impacted by a significant reduction in income through charity shop closures, cancelled fundraisers and much reduced donations. It has been encouraging to see the sector working collaboratively to safeguard the welfare of animals in their care (including dogs) in the face of real financial hardship and uncertainty.
We have worked closely with the Canine and Feline Sector Group to agree and update guidance to animal rescue and rehoming organisations and pet businesses to enable them to undertake core operations as far as possible, while maintaining compliance with the social distancing rules and need for hygiene precautions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. We also provided pet owners, including those with dogs, with information about how to look after their animals during Covid-19: www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-advice-for-people-with-animals.
The Government remains committed to continued engagement with welfare charities and the wider companion animal sector to understand the longer-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, monitor the animal welfare implications of this and offer appropriate advice.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the correspondence from the hon. Member for West Lancashire of 21 April 2020 on panic buying which was transferred to his Department from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 6 June 2020.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 22 July 2020.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
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 make an assessment of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on trends in the level of (a) puppy farming, (b) puppy smuggling and (c) third-party sales of puppies and kittens.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Defra is in regular contact with the companion animal welfare sector to discuss matters including dog breeding and sales activity. There has been a high level of demand for pets as more people have been staying at home during the Covid-19 outbreak. We recognise that there are risks of people buying puppies which have unknowingly been bred in poor welfare conditions whether at home or abroad. To help combat this situation, Defra launched a national Government communications campaign in March 2020, 'Petfished', to coincide with the introduction of the ban on the commercial third-party sale of puppies and kittens in England which came into force on 6 April 2020.
The campaign raises awareness of the consequences of buying from a low-welfare seller and challenges the assumption that it is easy to spot bad practice. 'Petfished' also educates the public on best practice for finding a new pet and signposts individuals to resources available to help them make the right decision. We will be shortly launching the second phase of 'Petfished' this month, with the continued support of major animal welfare charities, veterinary associations and celebrities.
In addition, we are fully committed to cracking down on the vile and illegal trade in pets and operate one of the most rigorous pet border checking regimes in the world. Leaving the EU provides us with the opportunity to further crack down on puppy smuggling in line with our manifesto commitment.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals on the compulsory microchipping of cats.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Blackpool South on 25 June 2020, PQ UIN 61621.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
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 undertake, with representatives from the devolved Administrations, a thorough and wide-ranging assessment of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on animal welfare throughout the UK.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Government in early April, along with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, commissioned the Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) to assess the risks to animal welfare as a result of Covid-19 controls. The AWC has submitted the first part of its report which was published on 4 June 2020 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/awc-opinion-on-the-animal-welfare-issues-related-to-covid-19.
The AWC is currently considering the potential medium to long-term impact on animal welfare as a consequence of Covid-19 restrictions. We expect to receive that report, and for it to be published, in early autumn.