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1718903

registered interest
date	16/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Marine Environment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help support coastal habitats.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	26729
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/05/2024 answer text <p>Coastal habitats play a crucial role in absorbing carbon dioxide, providing flood defence, supporting fisheries, enhancing water quality, and contributing to biodiversity and well-being.</p><p> </p><p>The Environmental Improvement Plan sets out our focus on enhancing nature in marine and coastal environments, including the steps we are taking to restore and protect marine habitats and marine wildlife.</p><p> </p><p>These include delivering the UK Marine Strategy, which sets our ambition for Good Environmental Status (GES) across our seas. To help achieve GES we have created a series of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to protect and restore our marine biodiversity. We are focused on strengthening the protection of this extensive network of 178 sites covering 40% of English waters, which represents the range of species and habitats found in our seas.</p><p> </p><p>To complement the MPA network, the first three Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) in English waters came into force on 5 July 2023. HPMAs will provide the highest levels of protection in our seas, allowing nature to fully recover to a more natural state and helping the wider ecosystem, including coastal habitats, to thrive.</p><p> </p><p>We actively invest in coastal habitat restoration, allocating significant funding to protect and enhance these vital ecosystems. For example, last year Defra announced a £640,000 funding commitment which is supporting vital restoration and creation of blue carbon habitats in the UK. The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative aims to reverse centuries of coastal habitat decline by restoring seagrass meadows, saltmarsh and native oyster reefs to bring benefits to people and nature.</p><p> </p><p>In February we awarded £25 million funding to 40 schemes around England for improving flood resilience through a new natural flood management programme.</p><p> </p><p>The Government’s £80 million Green Recovery Challenge Fund has supported a range of nature recovery projects across England, some which have included saltmarsh and seagrass restoration. Defra is also funding coastal and marine restoration projects under its flagship £37 million Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment R&amp;D programme.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 23/05/2024 14:46:33 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1718904

registered interest
date	16/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Shellfish
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help support cockle fishing communities (a) around the Southport Cockle Bed and (b) in other areas.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	26730
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/05/2024 answer text <p>The Southport Cockle Bed is managed by the North Western Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (IFCA). Recognising limited wider fishing opportunities for industry in the North West, the IFCA opened the Penfold cockle fishery this year until 30 April.</p><p> </p><p>Support has been provided to businesses involved in the cockle sector, including introducing improvements to boats, improving health and safety, and increasing the value of cockles through the installation of infrastructure for individual quick freezing through the Defra funded Fisheries and Seafood Scheme.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 22/05/2024 12:54:18 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1718905

registered interest
date	16/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Shellfish
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the sustainability of the cockle fisheries sector.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	26731
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/05/2024 answer text <p>A public consultation on a draft Cockle Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) will be launched shortly. FMPs are evidence-based plans that take an eco-system based approach to fisheries management and provide sustainable fisheries for current and future generations. Cockles have been prioritised for an FMP in recognition of their vulnerability to over-exploitation, the economic value of the fishery (currently estimated at an annual value of £10.3 million), and the environmental benefits that cockle stocks bring to habitat health and wider biodiversity. The draft FMP will propose goals and actions for cockle fisheries in English waters to improve the stock and provide social and economic benefits to fishing communities.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 22/05/2024 12:53:08 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1718906

registered interest
date	16/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Flood Control: Coastal Areas and Rural Areas
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to protect (a) rural and (b) coastal communities at risk of flooding; and what steps he plans to take.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	26732
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/05/2024 answer text <p>The Government <strong>is investing £5.6 billion between 2021 and 2027</strong> to better protect communities across England from flooding and coastal erosion. This includes <strong>a record £5.2 billion capital investment programme</strong> as well as a <strong>£200 million Flood and Coastal Innovation Programme</strong>, which will benefit rural and coastal communities.</p><p> </p><p>Approximately 40% of schemes, and 45% of investment, from the £5.2 billion programme will better protect properties in rural communities, supported by interventions such as the <strong>£100 million Frequently Flooded Allowance</strong> and the <strong>£25 million Natural Flood Management Fund</strong>. In April 2023, the Government announced the first 53 communities in England to benefit from the £100 million Frequently Flooded Allowance. These communities have been allocated a total of £48 million, better protecting more than 2,300 households and businesses across the country. A second round of schemes benefitting from the Frequently Flooded Allowance will be announced in due course.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the Government recently announced <strong>£75 million of funding to Internal Drainage Boards</strong> to help better protect agricultural land and rural communities from flooding.</p><p> </p><p>As part of Flood and Coastal Innovation Programme, Ministers have allocated <strong>£36 million over six years to develop a ‘Coastal Transition Accelerator Programme’</strong> to trial opportunities and innovative practical actions in a small number of coastal areas at significant risk of coastal erosion, to transition and adapt to a changing climate.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, Defra has committed to review policy on shoreline management plans by 2026 to ensure they remain fit for the future, and are transparent, continuously reviewed and enable coastal protection authorities to make robust decisions when managing flood and coastal erosion risk for their areas.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 22/05/2024 12:49:10 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1716941

registered interest
date	09/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Coastal Areas: Environment Protection
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to preserve psammosere environments in (a) Southport constituency and (b) across the UK.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	25554
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2024 answer text <p>The sand dune habitats of the Sefton Coast benefit from a range of legal protections - as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Ramsar site and National Nature Reserves (NNRs).</p><p> </p><p>Natural England (NE) works proactively with landowners, land managers, developers, and the public to ensure these important habitats are protected. The Sefton Coast Partnership has a key role in bringing stakeholders together to ensure dune habitats are conserved. The Sefton Coast was a location in the Dynamic Dunescapes project which actively restored dune habitats by removing scrub, helping dune re-mobilisation, and utilising livestock grazing to manage vegetation.</p><p> </p><p>In England, we have set four legally binding targets for biodiversity, to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030; to reverse species decline by 2042; to reduce the risk of species extinction; and to restore or create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat, which will include psammoseres. These targets, alongside other targets on water and air quality for example, will drive action to create and restore habitats, reduce pressures on nature, and recover species.</p><p> </p><p>A recently published paper, <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublications.naturalengland.org.uk%2Fpublication%2F6427187599900672&amp;data=05%7C02%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C93d4237744de4cf470b908dc741c70a8%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638512912700403721%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=G4mmXZX5UW0cJttpvHWSLF8%2BExRIlZoou%2BiQ5wYtKY4%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Environment Act Habitat Target – Definitions and Descriptions</a>, developed jointly by Defra and Natural England, provides detail for those involved in on-the-ground activities to restore or create wildlife-rich habitats. It includes the list of wildlife-rich habitats, of which several are coastal, for example, littoral sand and muddy sand, coastal vegetated shingle and coastal sand dunes.</p><p> </p><p>Natural flood management is a key part of our solution to tackling flood and coastal erosion risks. We will double the number of government funded projects which include nature-based solutions to reduce flood and coastal erosion risk. Actions such as dune restoration not only help to reduce flood risk, but also provide other environmental benefits to wider areas. In February we awarded £25 million of funding to 40 schemes around England for improving flood resilience through a new natural flood management programme.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative is working to restore our estuarine and coastal habitats, including saltmarsh, to benefit people and nature. The initiative involves Defra arms-length bodies, and a partnership network of environmental non-governmental organisations. It has a mission to restore 15% of the current extent of our key estuarine and coastal habitats (such as saltmarsh, seagrass, native oyster reefs) by 2043.</p><p> </p><p>Natural England is also undertaking climate change risk and vulnerability assessments across the SSSI network and developing site adaptive plans to identify climate vulnerable habitats, including sand dunes, and guide management to improve their resilience.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 17/05/2024 12:00:19 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1716069

registered interest
date	07/05/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Floods
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial support is available to farmers impacted by flooding who are not eligible for support under the Farming Recovery Fund.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	25023
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/05/2024 answer text <p>October 2023 to March 2024 was the second wettest six-month period on record in England; recorded rainfall was nearly 60% above the average of the last decade. The impacts on farm businesses are already evident in some sectors and are likely to extend through the year. In recognition of these events, Ministers are in discussions with our stakeholders about what further support is needed.</p><p> </p><p>On 9 April we opened the Farming Recovery Fund, which provides grants of between £500 and £25,000 to eligible farmers affected by the exceptional flooding. The fund provides farmers with support to recover from uninsurable damage caused by the flooding. We have listened and responded to feedback and have already removed the requirement for land affected to be within 150 metres of the main river, which will increase the number of farmers who are eligible.</p><p> </p><p>We are actively reviewing the eligible areas for the Fund in England, including the eligibility within the original nine local authority areas we announced.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 15/05/2024 12:08:05 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1658155

registered interest
date	05/09/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agricultural Products: Prices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that farmers are paid fairly for produce.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	197906
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/09/2023 answer text <p>We want all farmers to get a fair price for their produce and the Government is committed to tackling the unfairness that exists in the agri-food supply chain. Powers contained in the Agriculture Act 2020 enable us to introduce statutory codes of contractual practice, which would apply to businesses when purchasing agricultural products directly from farmers. The development of regulations to cover the UK dairy sector is well advanced and it remains our intention to introduce the legislation later this year. We are also developing regulations for the UK pig sector, following a consultation last year. At the recent Number 10 Farm to Fork Summit, we also confirmed that reviews of the egg and horticulture supply chains will begin from this autumn.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 12/09/2023 15:36:13 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1658156

registered interest
date	05/09/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Milk
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure access to raw milk.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	197907
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/09/2023 answer text <p>The Government wants consumers to have access to a wide variety of different food and drink products to suit individual tastes. In England it is legal to sell raw drinking milk directly to the consumer by a limited number of Food Standards Agency approved premises, provided the milk complies with all relevant legislation, including hygiene and safety legislation. Approved premises include, among others, registered milk production farms and farmers selling their product at registered farmers’ markets. More information is available on the Food Standards Agency website at the following link:</p><p><em> </em></p><p><a href="https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/raw-drinking-milk" target="_blank">Raw drinking milk | Food Standards Agency</a></p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 12/09/2023 15:33:35 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1644783

registered interest
date	14/06/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Forests: Commodities
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to bring forward secondary legislation on due diligence provisions for forest-risk commodities.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	189700
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2023 answer text <p>We ran a consultation from 3 December 2021 to 11 March 2022 to seek views on the details of regulations that will implement the Environment Act provisions, to ensure that these are designed effectively. The Government published a summary of responses to this consultation on 1 June 2022 and is committed to implementing due diligence provisions at the earliest opportunity through secondary legislation.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 19/06/2023 11:28:48 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1626237

registered interest
date	09/05/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Coastal Areas: Southport
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the protection and preservation of (a) the Ribble and Alt Estuaries, (b) Southport’s sand dune habitats and (c) other aspects of Southport’s coastlines.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	184186
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2023 answer text <p>This part of the coast is protected by the following designations; Sefton Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Ribble Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Sefton Coast Special Area of Conservation, Ribble and Alt Estuaries Special Protection Area (SPA) and Ribble and Alt Estuaries Ramsar. Natural England (NE) provides statutory nature conservation advice to Local Authorities, landowners and others on activities affecting these designated sites to ensure they are protected</p><p> </p><p>NE’s aim for this area is to reconnect coastal designated sites to the low-lying coastal plain and the River Alt by a series of naturally regenerating wetlands and grasslands. Key to achieving this is NE’s work with farmers and landowners to encourage uptake of our Environmental Land Management Schemes and NE’s Catchment Sensitive Farming Advisers support farmers and growers to produce food in a way that protects water, air and soil.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency (EA) has created new saltmarsh habitat on the Ribble Estuary at Hesketh Out Marsh and is strategically looking at other coastal realignment opportunities for both flood risk management and biodiversity net gain benefits.</p><p> </p><p>In 2022/23 the EA funded work with Mersey Rivers Trust investigating the nature and extent of pesticide and herbicide content within the lower reaches of the River Alt. Through Catchment Abstraction Management Strategies (CAMS) the EA also ensures the water resources of the catchments along the Ribble, Alt &amp; Southport coast are sustainable.</p><p> </p><p>Southport is a priority bathing water and the EA will be taking regular water quality samples throughout the coming bathing water season, 15 May to the end of September. Funding from Defra in 2021/22 provided resource for the EA to carry out farm inspections at an additional 30 farms in the South Fylde/Ribble Estuary area. These inspections were focused on developing improvement plans to reduce diffuse pollution impacting the receiving watercourses in the area and thereby the bathing waters at Southport.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 16/05/2023 11:58:34 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore