Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1242366

	registered interest
	date	12/10/2020
	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	Fly-tipping
	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 illegal dumping of waste.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	102197
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/10/2020 answer text <p>The illegal dumping of waste, including fly-tipping, is an unacceptable blight on local communities and the environment. The government is committed to cracking down on the waste and carelessness that destroys our natural environment and kills marine life. We are also committed to increasing the penalties for fly-tipping.</p><p> </p><p>Over the last five years we have strengthened and expanded the powers available to tackle the illegal dumping of waste. Local authorities have the power to issue fixed penalty notices of up to £400 to those caught fly-tipping or to householders who pass their waste to a fly-tipper. Vehicles of those suspected of committing a waste crime, including illegal dumping, can be searched and seized.</p><p> </p><p>Those accused of illegal dumping can be prosecuted and, on conviction, can face a fine, up to 12 months imprisonment, or both in a Magistrates Court; or a fine, up to 5 years imprisonment, or both, in a Crown Court. Local authorities carried out a total of 2,397 prosecutions for fly-tipping offences in England in 2018/19, an increase of 7% on 2017/18. The value of total fines increased by 29% to £1,090,000 compared to 2017/18.</p><p> </p><p>We have invested £60 million in the Environment Agency’s waste crime enforcement work since 2014. This year’s Budget committed the government to investing £7.2 million in the development of electronic waste tracking, as well as £0.5 million in 2020/21 to support innovative approaches to tackling fly-tipping.</p><p> </p><p>In the Resources and Waste Strategy we committed to reforming the regulation of waste carriers, tightening up the regulation of the waste exemptions regime and improving intelligence sharing and joint working between enforcement agencies. The Joint Unit for Waste Crime, led by the Environment Agency and including the National Crime Agency, HMRC, the Police and others, was established earlier this year and has already had a number of operational successes.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Bill includes a number of measures to help tackle waste crime. It will enable Government to mandate the use of electronic waste tracking; simplify the process for enforcement authorities to enter premises under a warrant; introduce a new power to search for and seize evidence of waste crime; and reduce the cost and bureaucracy when the police seize vehicles involved in waste crime on behalf of the Environment Agency.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 20/10/2020 16:50:18 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1148958

	registered interest
	date	14/10/2019
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	General Practitioners: Postnatal Care
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to encourage NHS England to add the maternal six week postnatal check to the GP contract so that all new mothers get a full appointment to discuss their mental and physical health.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	107
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/10/2019 answer text <p>The potential for a six-week post-natal maternal health check for all mothers is the subject of further work by NHS England and NHS Improvement.</p><p>Decisions on changes to the GP contract for 2020/2021 will be made following negotiations between NHS England and the British Medical Association which are due to conclude at the end of 2019.</p><p>Support from health visitors and other professionals at the universal 6-8 week review is an important time for assessing the health and wellbeing of new parents, particularly in look for signs of postnatal depression.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 22/10/2019 16:49:50 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1404886

	registered interest
	date	20/01/2022
	answering body	Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
	answering dept id	211
	answering dept short name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
	answering dept sort name	Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
	hansard heading	UK Shared Prosperity Fund
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what his timetable is for opening applications to the UK Shared Prosperity Fund; and when his Department plans to publish full details of the application process.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	108637
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2022 answer text <p>UK-wide funding for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) will ramp up to at least match receipts from EU structural funds, which on average reached around £1.5 billion per year. Spending Review 2021 fulfils this commitment, with the announcement of over £2.6 billion for the UKSPF over the next three years, with funding reaching £1.5 billion in 2024-25.</p><p>The UKSPF will focus on restoring a sense of community, local pride and belonging across the country. The UKSPF will act as a primary lever in levelling up people and places in all parts of the UK to empower places to identify, and build on, their own strengths and needs at a local level.</p><p>The Government will publish further details on the fund in due course.</p> answering member constituency Harborough answering member printed Neil O'Brien question first answered 26/01/2022 17:40:27 answering member 4679 label Biography information for Neil O'Brien
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1247280

	registered interest
	date	30/10/2020
	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	Odour Pollution: Complaints
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many odour complaints the Environment Agency received about each of the sites it regulates in each month since January 2019.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	109738
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/11/2020 answer text <p>The Environment Agency receives reports of odour from members of the public via the National Pollution Reporting Hotline. The numbers in the table below represent all reports received since January 2019 from members of the public across England, rather than those that have been assessed by a local Environment Agency officer and confirmed to be correctly attributed to a site that the Environment Agency regulates. The Environment Agency does not collate figures centrally for that number.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p><strong>Jan</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Feb</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Mar</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Apr</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>May</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Jun</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Jul</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Aug</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Sep</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Oct</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Nov</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Dec</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Year Totals</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2019</strong></p></td><td><p>883</p></td><td><p>1,311</p></td><td><p>755</p></td><td><p>1,122</p></td><td><p>1,223</p></td><td><p>1,265</p></td><td><p>2,267</p></td><td><p>2,219</p></td><td><p>1,571</p></td><td><p>1,034</p></td><td><p>1,093</p></td><td><p>1,867</p></td><td><p>16,610</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2020</strong></p></td><td><p>4,160</p></td><td><p>2,181</p></td><td><p>1,474</p></td><td><p>1,468</p></td><td><p>1,212</p></td><td><p>1,755</p></td><td><p>1,673</p></td><td><p>1,854</p></td><td><p>2,223</p></td><td><p>992</p></td><td><p>NA</p></td><td><p>NA</p></td><td><p>18,992</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/11/2020 16:39:17 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1247281

	registered interest
	date	30/10/2020
	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	Hydrogen Sulphide: Newcastle-under-Lyme
	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 his Department has made of trends in the level of hydrogen sulphide in the air in Newcastle-under-Lyme.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	109739
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/11/2020 answer text <p>Defra's national monitoring network does not monitor hydrogen sulphide levels.</p><p>The Environment Agency (EA) monitors specific sites within the Newcastle-under-Lyme area. In particular, on the Walley's Quarry Landfill site, the EA carried out an ambient air monitoring study between January 2019 and June 2019. The EA deployed a Mobile Monitoring Facility (MMF) to the north of Walleys landfill site between 15 January 2019 and 12 February 2019. Comparison of the hydrogen sulphide data with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) guidelines showed that concentrations were below health limits but exceeded odour limits for 6% of this monitoring period. The MMF was then relocated approximately 60 metres to the east between 28 February 2019 and 25 June 2019. Comparison of the hydrogen sulphide data with the WHO guidelines showed that concentrations were below health limits but exceeded odour limits for 1% of the monitoring period.</p><p>The EA will be continuing with its regular odour assessments and site inspections and will take appropriate action as part of its regulation of the Walley's Quarry Landfill site, should it identify any areas where the Operator is not compliant with their permit conditions.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/11/2020 17:37:06 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1247283

	registered interest
	date	30/10/2020
	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	Landfill: Newcastle-under-Lyme
	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 effect on air quality levels in Newcastle-under-Lyme of the environmental permit variation application to increase the annual waste inputs from 250,000 tonnes to 400,000 tonnes at the Walleys Quarry landfill site.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	109740
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/11/2020 answer text <p>The Environment Agency (EA) conducted an emissions to air assessment of the new application and is satisfied that air quality levels will not be impacted and there will be no additional emissions from landfill gas or risk of additional odour.</p><p>The operator's Odour Management Plan complies with EA guidance and reflects the industry best practice. The EA is satisfied it will minimise the risk of odour pollution, and that they have sufficient controls within the permit conditions to enable further measures to be implemented if required. The benefit of the variation is that the Operator could complete the landfill sooner (by 2024 not 2026) accelerating the progressive capping of the site.</p><p>The operator's gas management plan complies with the relevant landfill directive and permit conditions and the EA does not consider emissions from the installation will cause significant pollution to the environment or harm to human health. The increase in annual tonnages at the site would not change the amount of gas produced but would bring forward the peak gas production rate. The site is already permitted to operate a gas utilisation plant which has the capacity to combust the maximum volume of gas which will be produced.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/11/2020 17:37:50 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1247285

	registered interest
	date	30/10/2020
	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	Landfill: Odour 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 recent assessment he has made of the fitness for purpose of odour regulations as they relate to landfill sites.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	109741
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/11/2020 answer text <p>No recent assessments have been made of odour regulations. The government considers that current provisions under the Environmental Permitting and Statutory Nuisance regimes provide adequate protection.</p><p> </p><p>Landfill sites in England must be operated in accordance with an environmental permit, regulated by the Environment Agency. Where issues could be a statutory nuisance under Section 79(1)(d) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, local councils are responsible for investigating these complaints.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/11/2020 16:42:17 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1247286

	registered interest
	date	30/10/2020
	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	Landfill: Odour 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 support his Department provides to local authorities to (a) monitor and (b) tackle issues relating to (i) air quality and (ii) odour caused by landfill emissions.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	109742
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/11/2020 answer text <p>Landfill sites are regulated under Environmental Permitting Regulations by the Environment Agency (EA). The EA operates a national network of air quality monitoring sites on behalf of Defra. These are designed to provide a representative sample of air quality across the UK, and will not be specific to individual regulated sites. In addition to its statutory air quality activities, the EA can use air quality monitoring equipment in some circumstances to monitor for certain trace gases that form odorous compounds. This is carried out using the EA’s mobile monitoring facilities.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/11/2020 17:40:24 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1258704

	registered interest
	date	07/12/2020
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Work Capability Assessment: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the feasibility of restarting face-to-face work capability assessments; and what plans her Department has to expedite the backlog of cases waiting for assessment.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	126162
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/12/2020 answer text <p>The health and safety of our claimants and staff is our key priority. We suspended all face-to-face assessments for sickness and disability benefits in March. This temporary suspension, brought in to protect people from unnecessary risk of coronavirus at the outset of the pandemic, remains in place, and is being kept under review in line with the latest public health guidance. Any re-introduction of face-to-face assessments would involve additional Covid-related safety measures, and guidance for claimants and assessment providers to ensure compliance with the relevant public health guidance.</p><p> </p><p>Throughout the pandemic our immediate focus has been on supporting people impacted by COVID-19 by putting claims into payment as quickly as possible, as well as paying any additional benefit where claimants may be entitled to a higher award. We continue to complete paper based assessments where possible and have introduced telephone assessments.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 14/12/2020 18:11:54 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1259412

	registered interest
	date	08/12/2020
	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	Walley's Quarry Landfill: Odour 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, how many odour complaints have been received by the Environment Agency about Walley's Quarry Landfill in Newcastle-under-Lyme in each month since January 2019.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	127016
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2020 answer text <p>Walley’s Quarry landfill site holds a permit that is issued and regulated by the Environment Agency (EA), and the EA takes seriously any concerns expressed regarding the site. Although no landfill will ever be completely odour free, the level and type of odour arising from such operations should not be causing annoyance.</p><p> </p><p>The table below details the number of odour complaints (reports of incidents received through the EA Incident Communication Service) about Walley’s Quarry Landfill, over the last two-year period.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Month</p></td><td><p>Number of Odour Complaints</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>January 2019</p></td><td><p>81</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>February 2019</p></td><td><p>259</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>March 2019</p></td><td><p>58</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>April 2019</p></td><td><p>49</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>May 2019</p></td><td><p>31</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>June 2019</p></td><td><p>57</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>July 2019</p></td><td><p>48</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>August 2019</p></td><td><p>95</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>September 2019</p></td><td><p>134</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>October 2019</p></td><td><p>82</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>November 2019</p></td><td><p>159</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>December 2019</p></td><td><p>102</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>January 2020</p></td><td><p>37</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>February 2020</p></td><td><p>94</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>March 2020</p></td><td><p>187</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>April 2020</p></td><td><p>74</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>May 2020</p></td><td><p>68</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>June 2020</p></td><td><p>53</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>July 2020</p></td><td><p>77</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>August 2020</p></td><td><p>92</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>September 2020</p></td><td><p>371</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>October 2020</p></td><td><p>225</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 17/12/2020 12:58:06 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell