Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) gypsophila, (b) solidago, (c) orchids, (d) dianthus and (e) chrysanthemum consignments were imported from the EU between 2010 and 2020.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
During the period described this data was not collected as the goods detailed were not under restriction from the EU.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to reduce (a) single-use and (b) other plastic waste.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In December 2018, the UK Government published its Resources and Waste Strategy. This sets out how we will achieve a circular economy for plastic and achieve our ambition to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042.
Our goal is to maximise resource efficiency and minimise waste to keep plastic in circulation for longer by following the principles of the waste hierarchy: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. One way will do this is by making producers more responsible for the plastic they make with our incoming Collection and Packaging Reforms.
Single-use plastics are a particularly problematic type of plastic that makes up much of our waste. We have introduced bans, including most recently in October 2023, on the supply of many unnecessary single-use plastic items. To tackle the use of virgin plastics, the Government brought in the Plastic Packaging Tax in April 2022.
Internationally, the UK is a founding member of the High Ambition Coalition, a group of over 60 countries calling for an ambitious and effective UN Treaty to end plastic pollution. At the current round of negotiations in Canada, we are continuing to support a treaty that will address the full lifecycle of plastic to tackle the problem of plastic pollution globally, including through designing out waste and supporting a circular economy for plastic.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to commence schedule 3 of the Floods and Water Act 2010.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government remains firmly committed to delivering standardised sustainable drainage systems in new developments as stated in our Plan for Water (April 2023). A consultation will take place shortly and final implementation decisions will be made on scope, threshold and process.
Asked by: Mary Kelly Foy (Labour - City of Durham)
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 effectiveness of hedgerow protections.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There has been no formal assessment made of the effectiveness of hedgerow protections. The majority of hedgerows on agricultural land were previously managed in accordance with rules contained in cross compliance that were conditioned to payments made through the Basic Payment Scheme and some agri-environment schemes. As we moved away from the Basic Payment Scheme at the end of last year, cross compliance and the hedgerow management rules also ended. The Government consulted last year on the best approach following the end of cross compliance and on the 16 April laid new regulations that, if approved, will put management practices for hedgerows on agricultural land into law.
Certain hedgerows are also protected from removal under the Hedgerows Regulations 1997 if they meet specific criteria. These regulations are enforced by Local Planning Authorities, who can utilise their understanding of the local context and landscape character.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
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 potential merits of ending the automatic right of new housing developments to connect to the sewage system.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Water Industry Act 1991 permits owners of premises or of private sewers to connect to the public sewer and to discharge into it foul and surface water. A sewerage company may, however, refuse this connection if it appears that the construction or condition of the connecting drain or sewer does not reasonably satisfy the standards it reasonably requires or if the connection would be prejudicial to its own sewerage system. Where there are questions or disputes about reasonableness, the regulator - Ofwat - would make the final determination.
Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish a revised version of his Department's Planning Policy Guidance to reflect recent changes to the National Planning Policy Framework.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Since 19 December 2023, we have updated Planning Practice Guidance multiple times to include new guidance on Biodiversity Net Gain, and updated existing guidance on the Community Infrastructure Levy, Housing Supply and Delivery, the Green Belt, Natural Environment and Viability. Further guidance updates will be published as necessary in due course.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to preserve sites of local cultural heritage.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
His Majesty’s Government is committed to protecting the historic environment for the benefit of present and future generations. DCMS is responsible for the statutory heritage protection system and welcomes applications — through Historic England — for heritage assets to be considered for designation.
Significant public funding is distributed to heritage assets across the country, via both Government and our key partners such as Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Historic England provides funding for heritage through various grant schemes, including £11.3 million annually for Heritage at Risk. Historic England has also awarded public funding to 67 historic High Streets across England through the £95 million High Street Heritage Action Zone Programme, with the majority of this funding being used to repair and improve heritage assets.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund also provides funding for heritage projects with a community angle across the country, awarding more than £8.4 billion in Lottery funds to more than 46,000 heritage projects across the UK. The Fund has made awards in every parliamentary constituency in the UK.
Through the £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund, HM Government is directly investing in many projects which benefit heritage across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The £150 million Community Ownership Fund is also open to groups across the UK to take ownership of heritage assets which are at risk of being lost to the community. Many of these projects are benefiting heritage assets in areas across the country.
DCMS also provides up to £42 million for the Listed Place of Worship Grant Scheme, which provides grants to reimburse the VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship, to support our historic spiritual architecture for the benefit of present and future generations.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool, West Derby)
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 potential merits of bringing forward (a) legislative proposals to amend the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and (b) other legislative proposals to reclassify catapults as illegal weapons when used to harm wildlife.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government takes crimes against wildlife seriously, including those involving the use of catapults. The Government has no current plans though to amend the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which protects all wild birds and some wild animals in England and Wales.
While the Act does not include catapults in the list of weapons that a person must not use to kill an animal, it is still illegal under this Act to deliberately attempt to kill, injure, or harm protected species. There are a range of offences around deliberate attempts to kill, injure or inflict harm on wildlife under provisions not just in this Act, but also in the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996 and in the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on reducing barriers to bringing used agricultural machinery from Great Britain to Northern Ireland for resale.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As part of the Windsor Framework we announced the new Northern Ireland Plant Health Label Scheme, which has streamlined the process for moving used agricultural and forestry machinery from GB to NI. We have been engaging with industry on the operation of the scheme, and will be taking forward further work in the light of a consultation which concluded earlier this month.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
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 it his policy to allow water customers to have a meter removed from their property.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has committed to a 20% reduction in water demand by 2038 and halving leakage by 2050. Metering is central to identifying and reducing leakage and enabling better value for money for the consumer. The Government set out that water companies in areas of ‘water stress’ can compulsorily meter, following evidence it provides value for money and has customer support in their resource planning. Where this is the case, a customer may not be able to switch back to unmeasured charges. Other water companies do offer the opportunity for customers to switch back to an unmeasured charge following meter installation. All water companies offer social tariffs as part of affordability packages for consumers who may be struggling to pay their water bills.