Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Douglas-Miller on 3 January (HL1212), what was the nature of the “learning” undertaken by and shared within the Environment Agency following its response to the pollution incident at Cunsey Beck, Windermere.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There was informative and useful advice in the Scottish Environment Protection Agency report. The specific improvements that the Environment Agency in Cumbria and Lancashire have looked to put in place when dealing with significant pollution incidents are:
The above is in addition to an increased focus on the Environment Agency’s response to incidents affecting water quality. In March 2023, the Environment Agency launched a Regulatory Plan which sets out key actions for Windermere, placing regulation at the heart of its work to improve the water environment. These actions include monitoring trends and pollution hotspots, targeting efforts on reducing pollution sources and reviewing findings on a regular basis.
The Environment Agency is also leading the Love Windermere partnership, a long-term initiative which brings together organisations committed to developing a science-based plan for the environmental protection of this iconic lake.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in the light of media reports regarding United Utilities and its interactions with the Environment Agency, they have confidence in the integrity of the current process for registering water pollution events.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is clear that the volume of sewage being discharged into our waters in unacceptable. That is why our Plan for Water sets out more investment, stronger regulation, and tougher enforcement to tackle pollution and clean up our water.
Alongside this, our Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan (copy attached) sets clear and specific targets for water companies, regulators and the Government, to work towards the long-term ambition of eliminating ecological harm from storm overflows.
We have increased the number of storm overflows monitored across the network: in 2010 only 7% were monitored, and now 100% are being monitored.
Additionally, we have legislated to introduce unlimited penalties on water companies who breach their environmental permits and expand the range of offences to which penalties can be applied, giving the Environment Agency the tools, they need to hold water companies to account.
Since autumn 2017, the Environment Agency has concluded two successful criminal prosecutions of United Utilities and accepted 10 Enforcement Undertakings, requiring the company to pay over £2 million to environmental charities.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conduct of the Environment Agency in relation to their investigation of recent pollution events in the Windermere area; and whether they have plans to revise guidance around the carrying out of such investigations.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are working with the regulators to ensure they have the tools and resources they need to hold water companies to account. We have provided an extra £2.2 million per year to the EA specifically for water company enforcement activity. We have legislated to introduce unlimited penalties on water companies who breach their environmental permits and expand the range of offences to which penalties can be applied, giving the Environment Agency the tools they need to hold water companies to account.
In June 2023, the Environment Agency (EA) outlined that it would be transforming the way it regulates the sector, embedding a new approach that targets resource and interventions to uncover non-compliance and drive better performance from the water industry.
Due to the seriousness of the incident at Cunsey Beck, Windermere and the fact that a definitive source had not been identified, the EA asked the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to review their response to the incident.
The EA recognise things should have been done better, that is why improvements have been made to water quality monitoring in the area, including installing sensors that monitor river quality in real time. Learning has been shared within the EA to inform future responses.
Actions that the EA are taking as the water industry regulator are set out in the annual water company performance report, published 12 July 2023.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they collect data on the number of (1) garden centres, and (2) other stockists of horticultural products that have removed peat-containing products from sale; and if so, whether they will publish that data.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Defra supports the compilation of an industry annual report which tracks the use of peat in growing media. The 2022 report showed that compared with 2020 peat use had fallen by almost 60% and that in retail by almost 70%. We acknowledge the significant progress made in the reducing the quantity of peat used in horticulture. The Government remains committed to legislating to phase out the use of peat as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have plans (1) to bring forward their proposed ban on the sale of all peat-containing products, or (2) revise the list of items exempted from the ban until 2030.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In August 2022 we announced that we would ban the sale of peat for use in amateur gardening; we remain committed to this and plan to legislate as soon as parliamentary time allows. It remains our policy that we intend to legislate to restrict, and ultimately ban, the sale of peat and peat containing products. Our proposals, announced in March this year, include technical exemptions up to 2030. We are continuing to hold discussions with the horticulture sector on possible technical exemptions for the continued use of peat in the professional sector up to 2030, and for conservation purposes thereafter.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the numbers of (1) trading standards, (2) environmental health, and (3) food safety personnel in local authorities, and what plans they have to ensure sufficient numbers.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data for local authority food inspectors on 31 March 2023 for England, Wales and Northern Ireland can be found in the attached document. Local authorities report their resources by food hygiene and food standards as there are two separate returns.
Local authorities are responsible for enforcing compliance with food safety and standards legislation for most food businesses. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has statutory duties to monitor and report on their performance in doing so. It does this by collecting data from local authorities. The most recent data from October 2023 survey found:
- Full Time Equivalent (FTE) allocated by local authorities to deliver food hygiene work is 1,616 with 1,464 occupied; and
- The allocated FTE for food standards is 432 with 384 occupied.
The FSA recently commissioned research to understand the challenges and opportunities to recruit and retain Local Authority Officers to deliver Official Food and Feed Controls. A copy of Local Authority Capacity and Capability: Executive Summary is attached.
The overall findings of the research are complex, and the FSA has started to address the areas they have direct influence over, for example by reviewing the qualifications and competence requirements for local authority food officers.
The FSA has started to collaborate with other government departments and relevant professional bodies to discuss the findings and work together to shape and influence potential solutions.
At the FSA board meeting on 13 December 2023, the board considered a paper on local authority performance where one of the recommendations is to write to Local Authority Chief Executives and section.151 Finance Officers to set out their concerns about resourcing and delivery, and to remind them of the statutory nature of official food controls when considering and setting the budget allocation for the next financial year. A copy of the paper is attached.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the numbers of (1) vets, (2) food inspectors, and (3) other personnel who contribute to maintaining food safety, and what plans they have to ensure sufficient numbers.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data for local authority food inspectors on 31 March 2023 for England, Wales and Northern Ireland can be found in the attached document. Local authorities report their resources by food hygiene and food standards as there are two separate returns.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) employs vets in abattoirs, through a Service Delivery Provider (SDP), who deliver Official Controls in England and Wales. They also directly employ vets to approve, audit and assurance Food Business Operators. There are approximately 270 Official Veterinarians (OVs) in abattoirs every day.
The FSA is implementing a suite of measures to maintain sufficient numbers of both OVs and Official Auxiliaries (OAs) in a difficult recruitment environment. This includes, but is not limited to, careful consultation and consideration through our SDP Retender Programme, planning for contingency measures, working across government to address the systemic veterinary challenges impacting on the ability to recruit OVs and running both trainee and qualified OA recruitment exercises.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of organised crime relating to food and drink, and what plans they have to facilitate information sharing among relevant public authorities and industry stakeholders.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has a dedicated National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) to prevent, detect and investigate food crime. The NFCU plays a key role in the prevention of food crime by monitoring current and future threats. The unit can also lead and support partners in conducting investigations to enable the prosecution of food criminals. The FSA’s understanding of the nature and levels of food crime within the food and drink sector is set out within their Food Crime Strategic Assessment. The publication of an updated Food Crime Strategic Assessment, compiled in partnership with Food Standards Scotland, is planned for spring 2024.
The FSA has a strong partnership with industry to detect food fraud risks and vulnerabilities. One such partnership is with the Food Industry Intelligence Network who the FSA liaises closely with on sampling data and potential authenticity issue signals. The FSA works closely with local authorities, who enforce food hygiene and safety standards across much of the food sector. The FSA has regular communication through their networks where intelligence is shared on issues that would fall under their remit for enforcement. The FSA also has well established links with other enforcement agencies and the police to share and discuss relevant intelligence around serious criminality in the food sector and to explore crossovers with other offending so that an effective and collaborative response can be applied to such issues.
Earlier this year, the FSA established a working group with industry, focusing on food fraud. The working group agreed improvements to the format, content, timeliness, and distribution of intelligence-based alerts, issued by the NFCU to industry networks to allow them to better protect themselves against the threat. All members agreed to promote or otherwise support a new freephone confidential food fraud hotline operated by the FSA. The working group also agreed to the provision of more information to the FSA from voluntary Third-Party Assurance schemes. Sharing arrangements around information exchange with Third-Party Assurance schemes are being explored.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to start recording official data on e-bike usage as part of the National Travel Survey.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The National Travel Survey records data on all personal domestic travel by its respondents by any mode of transport. The figures presented in our statistical publications are kept under constant review, through assessment of the reported prevalence for different modes and journey types.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that the Drinking Water Inspectorate found that more than 11,000 samples had tested positive for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in 2022.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Although detected in a tiny number of raw water samples, there is no evidence of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) concentrations above the 0.1 µg/l guideline value in drinking water supplies. The Government is aware of the 3.8% of water samples that tested positive for PFAS in 2022. The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) has assessed these results and provided further direction to companies to develop appropriate and focused strategies to protect drinking water supplies going forward. Work is continuing across Government, which the DWI is involved in, to help us assess levels of PFAS occurring in the environment, their sources and potential risks to safeguard current high drinking water quality and ensure our regulations remain fit for purpose.