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1701725

	registered interest
	date	17/04/2024
	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	Pets: Smuggling
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish guidance for pet owners on the risks associated with buying pets that have been smuggled into the UK.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	22358
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/04/2024 answer text <p>Defra’s national communications campaign (Petfished) aims to raise awareness of issues associated with low-welfare and illegal supply of pets. This includes providing clear signposting on where responsible breeders and rehoming centres can be found and encouraging prospective buyers to research the seller thoroughly before they visit and decide to purchase. The campaign provides a list of red flags for buyers to look out for when searching for a pet online.</p><p> </p><p>Those choosing to import pets from abroad should do so responsibly by ensuring they purchase from a reputable seller or breeder and that it is transported by an authorised transporter with the necessary authorisations.</p><p> </p><p>Anyone who has suspicions or evidence of illegal activity relating to the importation of animals can report this to the Animal and Plant Health Agency Intelligence Unit or their local Trading Standards office.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 24/04/2024 13:31:32 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1701576

	registered interest
	date	16/04/2024
	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	Sewage: Pollution
	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 he is taking to ensure water companies are held accountable for sewage discharge.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	22112
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2024 answer text <p>The Government is clear that the amount of sewage discharged into our waters is unacceptable. We will not let companies get away with illegal activity and we have taken a series of actions to ensure that where breaches, are found companies will be held to account.</p><p> </p><p>Government directed water companies to increase their storm overflow monitoring in 2013 and achieved 100% coverage before the end of 2023.</p><p> </p><p>Meeting this target is a significant achievement in creating positive environmental change and holding water companies to account. The wealth of data collected from these monitors will ensure that we know the full extent to the problem – increasing transparency, revealing the worst-offending overflows, and enabling regulators to continue to hold polluters to account.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency can now impose unlimited penalties on water companies for a wider range of offenses following Government’s changes to broaden of the scope of the existing civil sanctions regime and remove the previous cap on penalties.</p><p> </p><p>The Government also has recently announced a consultation to ban water bosses’ bonuses when criminal breaches have occurred, quadrupled company inspections- by the end of March 2025, fast-tracked £180m investment to cut spills, and launched a whistleblowing portal for water company workers to report breaches.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 23/04/2024 17:41:34 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1701578

	registered interest
	date	16/04/2024
	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	Cats and Dogs: Smuggling
	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 assessment he has made of the adequacy of resources allocated to enforcement agencies responsible for checking pets entering the UK to effectively counter puppy and kitten smuggling.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	22114
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2024 answer text <p>Defra regularly engages with enforcement agencies regarding tackling illegal pet smuggling and appropriate resourcing.</p><p> </p><p>Local authorities and the Animal and Plant Health Agency are responsible for enforcing pet travel and commercial import requirements.</p><p> </p><p>Authorised carriers and pet checkers have the delegated responsibility for conducting pet checks on non-commercial movements. They can refuse travel for non-compliant animals or share intelligence with the Animal and Plant Health Agency who can intercept at the port or border if non-compliance is suspected.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 23/04/2024 17:25:13 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1701579

	registered interest
	date	16/04/2024
	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	Cats and Dogs: Imports
	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 discussions he has had with relevant stakeholders on the potential ban on importing dogs and cats under the age of six months; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that ban on levels of illegal pet trade.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	22115
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2024 answer text <p>Defra regularly engages with relevant stakeholders, on tackling the illegal pet trade, including prohibiting the import of puppies and kittens under the age of six months.</p><p> </p><p>The Government supports the Private Members’ Bill, Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill, introduced by Selaine Saxby MP on restricting the importation and non-commercial movement of pets. The Bill will contain powers that will enable future regulations for commercial and non-commercial movements of pets into the United Kingdom including prohibiting the import of puppies under six months old. By its very nature, it is difficult to assess the full extent of the illegal pet trade. The measures in the Bill will close loopholes ​exploited by ​unscrupulous traders, help reduce the low welfare movement of pets into Great Britain and crack down on the illegal smuggling of dogs and puppies.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 23/04/2024 17:20:51 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1700349

	registered interest
	date	12/04/2024
	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	Livestock: Exports
	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 number of live (a) cattle, (b) sheep, (c) pigs, (d) goats and (e) poultry were exported for (i) fattening and (ii) slaughter in 2023.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	21236
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/04/2024 answer text <p>There have been no livestock exports for slaughter or fattening from Great Britain to continental Europe since 2020.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 22/04/2024 14:11:11 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1699137

	registered interest
	date	26/03/2024
	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	Air Pollution: Schools
	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 she is taking to improve air quality around schools.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	20745
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2024 answer text <p>Government provides support to local authorities to deliver School Streets and funds a range of school interventions including the Walk to School Outreach Programme, which give children and their families safe active travel choices and reduce congestion around schools.</p><p> </p><p>To tackle air pollution around schools, local councils have powers to issue Fixed Penalty Notices for vehicle idling.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 16/04/2024 14:20:47 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1698161

	registered interest
	date	22/03/2024
	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	Thames Water: Standards
	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 he is taking to help ensure the (a) continuity and (b) quality of water services for people served by Thames Water.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	20098
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/04/2024 answer text <p>Whilst the Government recognises Thames Water needs to take significant steps to improve its performance, Thames Water nonetheless provides some of the highest quality drinking water in the world along with other water companies in England.</p><p> </p><p>Regulators ensure that companies have yearly performance commitment targets for continuity and quality of supply and hold companies to account when these targets are not reached. Government Ministers will shortly be meeting with Thames Water to reassert the importance of meeting all targets set by the regulators and ensure no customer is affected by failure to do so.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 02/04/2024 14:17:23 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1698162

	registered interest
	date	22/03/2024
	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	Water Supply
	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 he is taking with regulators to (a) safeguard the interests of consumers and (b) help ensure the financial stability of the water sector.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	20099
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/04/2024 answer text <p>The five yearly Price Review process is currently underway for the period 2025-30, in which Ofwat sets an overall cap on the total amount that each water company may recover from their customers. As part of this process, Ofwat balances the interests of consumers with the ability of companies to finance the delivery of their services.</p><p> </p><p>Regarding safeguarding consumer interests, Government is mindful consumers are concerned about their bills. For this reason, Defra expects all water companies to make customers aware of available support, including WaterSure, social tariffs, payment breaks, and debt management assistance. We are continuing to work with industry to explore options to improve existing social tariff arrangements and welcome the planned household charging trials in 2024-25.</p><p> </p><p>Regarding financial stability, Ofwat assesses and monitors the financial resilience of each company on an individual and ongoing basis and challenges companies where they identify this is needed. As part of this work, Ofwat produces an annual ‘Monitoring Financial Resilience Report’ to provide a publicly available assessment of the financial resilience of each water company. Through this publication, Ofwat aims to promote a focus on efficient investment that secures long-term resilience and delivers long-term value for money for customers and the environment.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 02/04/2024 14:14:40 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1697885

	registered interest
	date	21/03/2024
	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	Wheat: Agriculture
	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 he is taking to (a) support and (b) promote sustainable and regenerative wheat farming practices.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	19928
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/04/2024 answer text <p>We understand the increasing importance of farmers having access to crop varieties that are resistant to climate change and variable weather conditions, to maintain crop quality and yields.</p><p> </p><p>The recent Precision Breeding Act is a major step in unlocking growth and innovation in technologies like gene editing and supports Defra’s efforts to reinforce food security in the face of climate change. Through the Act we want to encourage researchers and commercial breeders to be at the forefront of capturing the potential benefits of precision breeding for British farmers and consumers. For instance, research into wheat that is resilient to climate change is currently underway at the John Innes Centre. Gene editing techniques have been used to identify a key gene in wheat that can be used to introduce traits such as heat resilience whilst maintaining high yield.  This could help to increase food production from a crop that 2.5 billion people are dependent on globally.</p><p> </p><p>Our Genetic Improvement Networks also provide a platform for knowledge exchange for breeders, producers, end users and the research base, and a means for the delivery of scientific knowledge, resources and results to add value to UK crops.</p><p> </p><p>The £270 million Farming Innovation Programme supports industry-led research and development in agriculture and horticulture. All projects support productivity and environmental outcomes that will benefit farmers and growers in England. In our latest ‘climate smart’ farming themed competition, we awarded over £11 million to projects investigating novel approaches to growing and managing crops. Previous competitions have also supported crop-related research.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 02/04/2024 16:05:28 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1697908

	registered interest
	date	21/03/2024
	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	Dogs: Imports
	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 he is taking to tackle the commercial movement of pregnant dogs into Great Britain; and whether he plans to take legislative steps to curb this practice.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	19937
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/03/2024 answer text <p>The Government supports the Private Members’ Bill, Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill, introduced by Selaine Saxby MP on restricting the importation and non-commercial movement of pets. The Bill will contain powers that will enable future regulations for commercial and non-commercial movements of pets into the United Kingdom including prohibiting the import of heavily pregnant dogs over 42 days gestation.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 26/03/2024 16:25:58 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi