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1337959

	registered interest
	date	17/06/2021
	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	Game: Animal Welfare
	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 ban cages for breeding (a) partridges, (b) pheasants and (c) other game birds.
	tabling member constituency	Coventry South
	tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
	uin	17861
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2021 answer text <p>We are committed to maintaining our position as world leaders in farm animal welfare and want to improve and build upon that record, working in partnership with farmers to support healthier, higher welfare animals. As referenced in the recently published Action Plan for Animal Welfare we are actively exploring options for strengthening the UK system moving forward and are examining the evidence around the use of cages in farming, including their use for breeding and rearing of gamebirds.</p><p> </p><p>The welfare of gamebirds is protected by the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which makes it an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to any animal. The Statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes offers additional protection and provides keepers with guidance on how to meet the welfare needs of their gamebirds as required by the 2006 Act. It recommends that barren cages for breeding pheasants and small barren cages for breeding partridges should not be used and that any system should be appropriately enriched.</p><p> </p><p>The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carry out targeted inspections on gamebird farms. Appropriate action is taken against anyone who breaks the law.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 25/06/2021 13:30:40 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
	tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1316880

	registered interest
	date	20/05/2021
	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: Animal Welfare
	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 the steps the Government is taking to implement the ban on ear cropping dogs in the UK.
	tabling member constituency	Coventry South
	tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
	uin	4718
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/05/2021 answer text <p>Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is currently an offence in England and Wales to carry out a non-exempted mutilation e.g. where it is not carried out for medical purposes, including the cropping of a dog’s ears. The procedure is considered unnecessary and compromises the animal’s welfare. Once the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 comes into force on the 29 June 2021, anyone convicted of such an offence faces being sent to prison for up to five years, or receiving an unlimited fine, or both.</p><p> </p><p>This strengthened penalty sends a clear message that animal cruelty will not be tolerated and will enable our courts to take a firmer approach to cases of illegally cropping a dog’s ears and other forms of cruelty such as dog fighting, abuse of puppies and kittens, or gross neglect of farm animals.</p><p> </p><p>On 12 May 2021 the Government published its Action Plan for Animal Welfare. This is a wide-reaching and ambitious plan to set out our current and future work on animal welfare. The Government has a manifesto commitment to crack down on puppy smuggling and one of our key reforms in the plan is to end the abhorrent, cruel practice of puppy smuggling and low-welfare pet imports. We are planning to bring in powers that will allow us to prohibit the importation and non-commercial movement of dogs into Great Britain that have been subject to low welfare practices, such as ear cropping, in line with our domestic legislation on these practices.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 28/05/2021 13:23:05 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
	tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1334148

	registered interest
	date	14/06/2021
	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	Highly Protected Marine 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 assessment the Government has made of the potential effect of fully or highly protected Marine Protected Areas on the ecological health of inshore waters and the livelihoods of local fishing communities.
	tabling member constituency	Bath
	tabling member printed	Wera Hobhouse
	uin	15348
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/06/2021 answer text <p>On 8 June 2021, the Government published its response to the Benyon Review into Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs). The Government accepted the central recommendation that we should take forward pilot sites and we will designate these next year. The purpose of HPMAs is biodiversity recovery and by setting aside areas of sea with high levels of protection, HPMAs will allow nature to recover to a more natural state, allowing the ecosystem to thrive in the absence of damaging activities. The Benyon Review Panel reviewed clear evidence and heard strong support for the ecological benefits that HPMAs can deliver. The Government will identify pilot HPMAs with ecological value, including areas with potential to recover. Defra will then use social and economic principles to minimise the impacts on sea users, including fishing communities. Defra will evaluate socio-economic concerns, including fisheries displacement, before designating HPMAs.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 22/06/2021 16:57:45 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4602 label Biography information for Wera Hobhouse

1336554

	registered interest
	date	15/06/2021
	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	Carbon Emissions: 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 assessment he has made of the potential merits of including data about blue carbon ecosystems in the (a) greenhouse gas inventory and (b) Nationally Determined Contribution calculations.
	tabling member constituency	Ynys Môn
	tabling member printed	Virginia Crosbie
	uin	16267
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/06/2021 answer text <p>The UK greenhouse gas (GHG) Inventory will be used to report progress against the UK’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). UK NDC performance will be assessed in 2032 based on the UK 1990-2030 GHG Inventory submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.</p><p>The UK does not currently have the required data to report on anthropogenic activities impacting saltmarsh and seagrass (blue carbon habitats), as set out in the 2013 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Wetlands Supplement, and they are therefore not currently included in the UK GHG Inventory. We continue to build the evidence base on blue carbon habitats to help inform future, robust GHG reporting and accounting.</p><p>The Government recognises the role that blue carbon habitats, such as saltmarsh and seagrass, can play to prevent biodiversity loss and support adaptation and resilience to climate change, alongside carbon sequestration benefits. The importance of marine habitats was acknowledged in the UK NDC’s information to facilitate clarity, transparency and understanding, as well as in the UK’s Adaptation Communication.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 21/06/2021 12:52:19 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4859 label Biography information for Virginia Crosbie

1336555

	registered interest
	date	15/06/2021
	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	Carbon Emissions: 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 plans he has to take steps to include actions that benefit the restoration and protection of blue carbon habitats in his Departments (a) Environmental Land Management Scheme and (b) other schemes.
	tabling member constituency	Ynys Môn
	tabling member printed	Virginia Crosbie
	uin	16268
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/06/2021 answer text <p>The UK recognises the important role that blue carbon habitats – such as saltmarsh and seagrass - can play to prevent biodiversity loss and support adaptation and resilience to climate change, alongside carbon sequestration benefits. The protection and restoration of these habitats therefore provides a nature-based solution.</p><p> </p><p>The UK is a global leader in ocean protection with 38% of UK waters in Marine Protected Areas, covering the majority of saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. Our focus is now on ensuring these are effectively protected.</p><p> </p><p>The Government recently published its response to the Benyon Review into Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs), accepting the central recommendation that we should identify a number of locations to pilot this approach. HPMAs will be identified on the basis of their ecological value, including areas with potential to recover, and blue carbon habitats. Social and economic principles will then be used to help us understand and minimise the impacts on sea users.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, a number of coastal and estuarine habit restoration initiatives are underway. The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative is working to restore our estuarine and coastal habitats, including blue carbon habitats, to benefit people and nature. Natural England is also leading the EU-funded LIFE Recreation ReMEDIES (Reducing and Mitigating Erosion and Disturbance Impacts affecting the Seabed) project, which aims to restore seagrass and maerl habitat in five Special Areas of Conservation.</p><p> </p><p>We are also introducing three schemes that reward the delivery of environmental benefits, including for coastal habitat: the Sustainable Farming Incentive, the Local Nature Recovery scheme and the Landscape Recovery scheme. We are working with stakeholders and end users to determine the specific land management actions that will be paid for under our new schemes. The Agricultural Transition Plan set out examples of the types of actions that we envisage paying for under the schemes, including creating, managing, and restoring coastal habitats such as wetlands and salt marsh.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 21/06/2021 15:39:37 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4859 label Biography information for Virginia Crosbie

1331827

	registered interest
	date	10/06/2021
	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	Sheep: 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 assessment he has made of the potential merits for the future long-term sustainability of the British sheep industry of amending the sanitary conditions relating to the importation of live sheep and ram semen from Australia and New Zealand to enable imports from animals bearing the scrapie genotype group 2, specifically scrapie genotypes ARR/ARQ, ARR/ARH or ARR/AHQ.
	tabling member constituency	Ynys Môn
	tabling member printed	Virginia Crosbie
	uin	14086
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2021 answer text <p>There have been no changes in our import conditions for scrapie, Annex IX chapter H of regulation (EC) No. 999.2001 details the requirements for import of ovine and caprine semen, oocytes and embryos, which was adopted into UK law. These germinal products of non-ARR/ARR prion protein genotypes may be imported provided they meet the other scrapie requirements set out in the legislation and corresponding import health certificate.</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Fovine-and-caprine-germinal-products-health-certificates&amp;data=04%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C0a022fc7065749f1c49d08d92fe3c8a5%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C1%7C0%7C637593477642391047%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=VmY8667GSoaklQHo1r4YkOxCaG9r4mg1oMoN%2BbRA8iY%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Ovine and caprine germinal products: health certificates - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p>The UK maintains its own sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) imports regime to protect public, animal and plant life and health and the environment. We have repatriated the functions of audit and inspections to ensure that trading partners, including those we secure trade deals with, continue to meet our import conditions. This provides a standing, robust system that works alongside border controls to maintain our high standards going forward.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 15/06/2021 16:42:51 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
	tabling member	4859 label Biography information for Virginia Crosbie

1329280

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2021
	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	Animal Products: 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 ban the imports of trophy hunting memorabilia; and what his planned timescale is for such a ban.
	tabling member constituency	Ynys Môn
	tabling member printed	Virginia Crosbie
	uin	10709
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/06/2021 answer text <p>This Government takes the conservation of endangered species very seriously, which is why we will be banning the import of hunting trophies from endangered species. Our approach will be comprehensive, robust and effective and will deliver the change we promised to help protect thousands of species worldwide. We will be setting out plans soon.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 09/06/2021 15:31:27 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
	tabling member	4859 label Biography information for Virginia Crosbie

1329565

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2021
	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	Financial Services and Food Supply: Carbon Emissions
	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 assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a statutory deforestation target for UK supply food and commodity supply chains; and what steps he is taking to bind the finance industry into net-zero and Paris Agreement targets.
	tabling member constituency	Ynys Môn
	tabling member printed	Virginia Crosbie
	uin	10716
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/06/2021 answer text <p><strong></strong></p><p>There is no requirement in the Environment Bill for a deforestation target. This does not preclude the Government from setting one if it is judged to be the best way to deliver long-term environmental outcomes. The Bill framework allows for long-term targets to be set on any aspect of the natural environment, or people’s enjoyment of it. The Government is committed to setting targets through a robust, evidence-led process that seeks independent expert advice, provides a role for stakeholders and the public, as well as scrutiny from Parliament.</p><p> </p><p>We have commissioned the Joint Nature Conservation Committee to develop a global environmental footprint indicator to help us understand the UK’s global footprint. The first phase of this work was published in May 2021, with further development following in the summer. The outcomes of this work will help inform our future thinking on the most appropriate approach to drive change in this area.</p><p> </p><p>On finance, delivering our net zero objective will require deep decarbonisation of all sectors. We know that financial services will be a critical enabler in mobilizing green investment at the pace and scale required – and that is why green finance is a key priority for this Government.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, the UK will become the first G20 country to make Taskforce on Climate- related Financial Disclosures-aligned disclosures fully mandatory across the economy, with most requirements introduced in the next three years. The Government is also actively supporting the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures.</p><p> </p><p>Finally, the UK will implement a green taxonomy, a common framework for determining which activities can be defined as environmentally sustainable, which will improve understanding of the environmental impact of firms’ activities and investments.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/06/2021 16:52:02 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4859 label Biography information for Virginia Crosbie

1331221

	registered interest
	date	09/06/2021
	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 Protected Areas: Fishing Vessels
	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 assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of banning bottom trawlers and supertrawlers from Marine Protected Areas.
	tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
	tabling member printed	Tim Farron
	uin	13003
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/06/2021 answer text <p>It is essential that all damaging activities are prevented in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Not all fishing activities will require management, only those likely to damage the designated features of a MPA, such as trawling on the seabed. 'Supertrawlers' generally target fish within the water column and so are unlikely to damage the seabed habitats for which most MPAs are designated.</p><p> </p><p>The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) and Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities assess each MPA site and develop appropriate management measures. 98 MPAs in inshore waters now have management measures in place to protect sensitive features from bottom towed fishing gears. For MPAs in our offshore waters, the MMO has embarked on an ambitious three-year programme to fully manage any harmful fishing activity.</p><p> </p><p>On 8 June 2021, the Government published its response to the Benyon Review into Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs). The Government accepted the central recommendation that we should take forward some pilot sites and we will designate these next year. HPMAs prohibit extractive, destructive, and depositional uses, allowing only non-damaging levels of other activities to the extent permitted by international law. As such, bottom trawlers and super trawlers would not be permitted to fish in HPMAs.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 18/06/2021 12:34:07 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron

1328198

	registered interest
	date	26/05/2021
	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	Farmers: Retirement
	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 estimate the Government has made of the number of farmers expected to retire under the Government's proposed exit scheme.
	tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
	tabling member printed	Tim Farron
	uin	7773
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/06/2021 answer text <p>Our proposed lump sum exit scheme will provide support for farmers in England who wish to exit the industry. By doing so, this will free up land for new entrants and those farmers who wish to expand.</p><p>In 2018, we undertook a survey of around 1,000 farmers as part of our planning for the Agriculture Act. 6% of those surveyed said they wanted to leave farming but felt they were not able to do so at that time. Financial reasons were given as the main barrier.</p><p>There will be a range of factors which will affect individual farmers' decisions about whether they wish to take the lump sum and exit farming. The consultation will be used to gather further evidence about likely uptake.</p><p>Our consultation can be found here: <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fconsult.defra.gov.uk%2Fagricultural-policy%2Flump-sum-and-delinked-payments-england%2F&amp;data=04%7C01%7Cemma.pryor%40defra.gov.uk%7C9e06e13f9d49411ea3bf08d921e55a43%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C1%7C0%7C637578091212593417%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=V2gT0jBUi5zh%2B8Jnjsu4YaGhcX0x4VbpURvwTvK1ISo%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://consult.defra.gov.uk/agricultural-policy/lump-sum-and-delinked-payments-england/</a>. This consultation is open until 11 August 2021.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 08/06/2021 11:55:49 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
	tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron