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1699318

	registered interest
	date	27/03/2024
	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	Chemicals: Regulation
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for incorporating into pharmaceutical, pesticide and other chemical regulation consideration of impacts on human, animal, plant and soil microbiomes.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
	uin	HL3654
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) operates a robust programme of regulating and monitoring medicines to ensure patients have access to safe and effective medicines. While the microbiome is still an evolving field, the MHRA is working to further our understanding on the impact of pharmaceuticals on the microbiome. Experts in MHRA are leading on international efforts to improve understanding of this area, for example through the development of World Health Organisation reference reagents for the microbiome.</p><p> </p><p>The potential impact of a chemical on plant health, including soil microbiomes is already considered, as appropriate, as part of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)’s robust risk assessment process for pesticides and for biocides.</p><p> </p><p>The legislation around veterinary medicines makes it clear that when considering the authorisation of antimicrobial substances for use in animals, there should be consideration of the impacts on the human, target animal, and environmental microbiomes, including plants and soils.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 09/04/2024 11:12:25 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
	tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1697492

	registered interest
	date	20/03/2024
	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	Flood Control: Costs
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Seventh Report of the Committee of Public Accounts of Session 2023-24 on Resilience to flooding, HC 71, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the increase in construction costs on investment in flood defence maintenance; and what discussions he has had with the Environment Agency on any impact on its target of maintaining 98% of its high consequence flood defence assets at required condition.
	tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle
	tabling member printed	Emma Hardy
	uin	19692
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>At the last Spending Review the Government increased funding for maintenance of flood defences by £22 million per year. This funding ensures flood defences are kept in good working order. In 2023/24, the Government has gone even further, including switching £25 million from the capital programme to fund maintenance, so that the total allocation for this year is over £220 million.</p><p> </p><p>Defra and the Environment Agency (EA) are assessing the effects of inflation on the EA’s ability to maintain its flood and coastal risk management assets at the required condition. The effects of inflation and the recent winter storms have had an impact on flood defence condition.</p><p> </p><p>As of Q3, 97.2% of EA maintained assets in high consequence systems were at or above the required condition. Where assets are not in required condition, this identifies that work is required. It does not mean that there is a risk of asset failure or that performance in a flood is compromised.</p><p> </p><p>The EA are currently funded to maintain between 94-95% of high consequence EA assets at their target condition. The long-term target is to ensure 98% of all such assets are at required condition. Future flood defence maintenance budgets will be determined as part of the next Spending Review.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 09/04/2024 10:30:43 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4645 label Biography information for Emma Hardy

1696162

	registered interest
	date	14/03/2024
	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	Sewage: Flooding
	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 take steps to ensure water companies provide compensation for (a) businesses and (b) residential properties flooded with sewage in the water.
	tabling member constituency	York Central
	tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
	uin	18745
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>The Government considers the level of sewage being discharged to our waterways to be unacceptable. However, sewage is sometimes released to waterways under strict conditions to avoid it backing up into peoples’ homes and businesses.</p><p> </p><p>Water companies are obliged to provide sewerage services under the Water Industry Act 1991. If a water company has failed to provide minimum standards of service to consumers, consumers are entitled to complain to their provider. We expect companies to respond to complaints appropriately and in a timely manner.</p><p> </p><p>This Government is acting to drive down flood risk from every angle. At the last spending review the government increased funding for maintenance of flood defences by £22 million per year, so now over £200 million per year goes on maintenance. This funding ensures flood defences are kept in good working order.</p><p> </p><p>Homeowners and businesses should contact their insurance provider if their property has been flooded. Flood Re is a joint government and insurance industry re-insurance scheme for UK households at high flood risk, available via more than 85 insurance brands.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore grouped question UIN 15951 question first answered 09/04/2024 09:38:23 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1695497

	registered interest
	date	12/03/2024
	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	Power Stations: Air Pollution and 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 account his Department takes of emissions from (a) wood chip and (b) multifuel power plants in overall (i) air quality and (ii) carbon budget assessments.
	tabling member constituency	Slough
	tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
	uin	18246
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>Our accredited official statistics provide data on the emissions of key air pollutants. This includes emissions from the combustion of wood chips and other fuels in energy industries. Estimates of emissions for ‘wood chip’ are included in the total for emissions from the combustion of ‘wood’ more broadly and the data can be found <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env01-emissions-of-air-pollutants" target="_blank">here</a>, and information on each pollutant can be found <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fstatistics%2Femissions-of-air-pollutants&amp;data=05%7C02%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C568c46b5b56d43a436f708dc4429c355%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638460193354590873%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=P7fi12O6MjfbkiuUvC59QXl1lot%2BMH%2FzM3P9mL2Gsks%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p> </p><p>The <a href="https://prtr.defra.gov.uk/facility-search" target="_blank">Pollutant Release and Transfer Register </a>also provides information on the emissions from specific power stations and industrial combustion plants.</p><p> </p><p>Performance against carbon budgets is assessed based on the UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory, which includes all emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels at power stations. In accordance with UNFCCC guidelines, carbon dioxide emissions from biomass use are reported as a change in carbon stocks in the Land-Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry sector of the country where the biomass is harvested. They are also reported as a memorandum item in the country where the biomass is used, but are not counted in that country’s total emissions to avoid double counting.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 09/04/2024 10:14:20 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1694500

	registered interest
	date	07/03/2024
	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	Domestic Waste and Recycling: Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
	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 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council with (a) recycling and (b) rubbish collections.
	tabling member constituency	Bournemouth East
	tabling member printed	Mr Tobias Ellwood
	uin	17527
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>The Government is introducing Simpler Recycling to ensure that across England, people will be able to recycle the same materials, no longer needing to check what their council will accept for recycling. The costs to deliver the new duties on local authorities for this reform will be funded by a combination of Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility payments provided to local authorities for the cost of collecting and managing household packaging waste through efficient and effective services, and reasonable new burdens funding from the Government to provide weekly food waste collections. We have brought forward up to £295 million in capital funding to roll out weekly food waste collections across England. This will cover the cost of additional bins and vehicles. Initial grants have now been issued to local authorities, including Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, for their transitional capital funding allocation for financial year 2023/24. Transitional resource costs will be paid from the 2024/25 financial year and ongoing resource costs paid from 1 April 2026.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 09/04/2024 11:36:57 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	1487 label Biography information for Mr Tobias Ellwood

1694146

	registered interest
	date	06/03/2024
	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 Charges
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department have made an assessment of the increase in water costs for metred properties against unmetered properties.
	tabling member constituency	Tewkesbury
	tabling member printed	Mr Laurence Robertson
	uin	17276
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>Customers with water meters installed are charged based on the volume of water consumed, while those without a meter are charged for their water and sewerage services based on the rateable value of their property.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has asked water companies to increase smart metering and has enabled compulsory metering in areas of water stress, where there is consumer support and it represents value for money, as set out in the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/plan-for-water-our-integrated-plan-for-delivering-clean-and-plentiful-water/plan-for-water-our-integrated-plan-for-delivering-clean-and-plentiful-water#chapter-3-securing-a-plentiful-supply-of-water" target="_blank">Plan for Water</a>. This can allow bill payers to cut costs by using water more efficiently where possible and assist in reducing overall water consumption by enabling water companies to reduce leakage, further reducing bills for customers.</p><p> </p><p>Some water companies also offer a lowest bill guarantee for consumers who switch to a metered charge, which guarantees the best value price for the first few years of installation and the option to switch back to unmetered charges if the meter is not helpful.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 09/04/2024 09:57:29 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	253 label Biography information for Mr Laurence Robertson

1694224

	registered interest
	date	06/03/2024
	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	Biodiversity
	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 plans to take to help tackle biodiversity decline.
	tabling member constituency	Croydon North
	tabling member printed	Steve Reed
	uin	17340
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>This Government is committed to turning the tide on nature’s decline. That is why, in England, we have set four legally binding targets for biodiversity. We have legislated to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030 and 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 habitats.</p><p> </p><p>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. We have set out our plan to deliver on these ambitious targets, along with our other environmental targets, in the <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64a6d9c1c531eb000c64fffa/environmental-improvement-plan-2023.pdf" target="_blank">Environmental Improvement Plan</a> (EIP23) published 31 January 2023. Here we link the different objectives, plans and mechanisms for recovering nature.</p><p> </p><p>We have introduced significant new funding for nature - for woodland and peatland restoration, for green recovery and for landscape scale nature recovery - and we are developing new land management schemes that reward environmental benefits. In the update to our Agricultural Transition Plan, published in January this year, we announced premium payments for actions that will achieve greater environmental benefits, supporting habitats and species.</p><p> </p><p>In November we announced the 34 projects selected for the £25 million second round of our Landscape Recovery scheme. These projects will collectively restore more than 35,000 hectares of peatland, create over 7,000 hectares of new woodland and benefit more than 160 protected sites (SSSIs).</p><p> </p><p>In June last year we also launched a £25 million Species Survival Fund to provide early progress towards our species abundance targets and support the recovery of declining species. The fund will support projects focussed on the creation and restoration of wildlife-rich habitats, including on protected sites. Successful applications to the fund will be announced this month.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/04/2024 13:01:14 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4268 label Biography information for Steve Reed

1693612

	registered interest
	date	04/03/2024
	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	Deposit Return Schemes
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Welsh Government on a potential exclusion from the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 in the context of the inclusion of glass in a deposit return scheme.
	tabling member constituency	Swansea East
	tabling member printed	Carolyn Harris
	uin	16973
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>We have always maintained that deposit return schemes across the UK should be interoperable to reduce complexity for businesses and consumers, and to avoid unnecessary barriers to trade. We want to ensure that the schemes operate seamlessly for businesses and consumers across the UK.</p><p> </p><p>Defra is working closely with devolved administrations on the next steps to achieve interoperable schemes that work across the UK.</p><p> </p><p>There has been no recent discussion with the Welsh Government on a potential exclusion from the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 in the context of the inclusion of glass in a deposit return scheme.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 09/04/2024 10:06:23 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4480 label Biography information for Carolyn Harris

1692128

	registered interest
	date	27/02/2024
	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	Rivers: Sewage
	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 compensation do water companies who have released sewage into the river pay to (a) residents and (b) businesses when they flood with contaminated water.
	tabling member constituency	York Central
	tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
	uin	15951
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>The Government considers the level of sewage being discharged to our waterways to be unacceptable. However, sewage is sometimes released to waterways under strict conditions to avoid it backing up into peoples’ homes and businesses.</p><p> </p><p>Water companies are obliged to provide sewerage services under the Water Industry Act 1991. If a water company has failed to provide minimum standards of service to consumers, consumers are entitled to complain to their provider. We expect companies to respond to complaints appropriately and in a timely manner.</p><p> </p><p>This Government is acting to drive down flood risk from every angle. At the last spending review the government increased funding for maintenance of flood defences by £22 million per year, so now over £200 million per year goes on maintenance. This funding ensures flood defences are kept in good working order.</p><p> </p><p>Homeowners and businesses should contact their insurance provider if their property has been flooded. Flood Re is a joint government and insurance industry re-insurance scheme for UK households at high flood risk, available via more than 85 insurance brands.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore grouped question UIN 18745 question first answered 09/04/2024 09:38:23 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1685443

	registered interest
	date	29/01/2024
	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	Electronic Cigarettes: Waste Disposal
	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 take legislative steps to minimise harm to the environment as a result of improper disposal of vapes.
	tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
	tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
	uin	11835
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2024 answer text <p>Following the consultation on creating a smokefree generation and tackling youth vaping, the recently published government response confirmed that the UK Government intends to bring forward legislation as soon as possible to ban the sale and supply of disposable vapes in England. Scotland and Wales also confirmed they intend to bring forward similar legislation and Northern Ireland is considering next steps following the consultation.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 09/04/2024 09:27:39 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
	tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq