Japanese Knotweed

(asked on 21st May 2018) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the Government is making on its strategy to tackle the spread of Japanese knotweed.


Answered by
George Eustice Portrait
George Eustice
This question was answered on 24th May 2018

The government recognises the threats posed by invasive non-native species including Japanese knotweed and has a comprehensive Great Britain Non-native Species Strategy designed to tackle these threats, the first of its kind in Europe.

Defra continues to fund a biocontrol programme through the release of a psyllid insect to tackle Japanese knotweed. If successful, the psyllid will reduce the invasive capacity of Japanese knotweed as well as the effort and cost of managing it.

Local Action Groups, with support from government, are actively involved in reducing and eradicating Japanese knotweed. A new EU co-funded project, totalling €1.1 million, will develop a regional approach to tackling invasive non-native species, supporting Local Action Groups in a co-ordinated approach.

Natural England and the Environment Agency also undertake action nationally to remove Japanese knotweed where it is affecting protected sites, water quality or adds to the risk of flooding.

Japanese knotweed is listed on Schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which makes it an offence to allow the plant to escape or cause it to grow in the wild. Whilst landowners are under no statutory obligation to remove Japanese knotweed from their property, where they are acting unreasonably and allowing Japanese knotweed to cause a nuisance to the local community, local authorities and the police can now issue a Community Protection Notice against them to ensure that appropriate action is taken.

The government has developed guidance on how to prevent the spread of Japanese knotweed, which can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/prevent-japanese-knotweed-from-spreading

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