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1683049

	registered interest
	date	17/01/2024
	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	Wetlands
	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 recommendation 4.10 in the Annex entitled Guidelines for the implementation of the wise use concept in the publication entitled Guidelines for development and implementing National Wetland Policies adopted by Resolution VII.6 of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, whether his Department plans to formulate a National Wetland Strategy.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	10264
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/02/2024 answer text <p>The UK plays an active role to support and implement the conservation and wise use of wetlands through the Ramsar Convention. In England we are not currently planning to publish a separate National Wetland Strategy but have set out our plan to recover nature and restore our habitats and wetlands in the revised Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP23), as well as our England Peat Action Plan. We are also meeting our commitments under the Ramsar Convention, as laid out in our Environmental Improvement Plan and the National Adaptation Plan, through establishing a UK Wetland Inventory - mapping our wetlands for the first time and supporting future action to protect these vital habitats.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise that wetland restoration will be critical to protect the vast number of wetland species as well as providing critical nature-based solutions to climate change mitigation and adaption. By 2030 we have domestically committed to halt the decline in species abundance and by 2042 we aim to reverse species decline; to reduce the risk of species extinction; and to restore or create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitats outside protected sites. Many wetlands are also Protected Sites, of which we have committed to restore 75% to favourable condition by 2042.</p><p> </p><p>Alongside setting targets in other areas including water and air quality, we are taking targeted action to recover our wetlands. Our recently announced and government-supported Lost Wetlands Nature Recovery Project will reclaim, restore and rewet a mosaic of wetland habitats over 5,000ha in South Greater Manchester and North Cheshire, previously lost to industrialisation, urbanisation and agricultural intensification. Defra has also launched a 60,000-hectare Nature Recovery Project focusing on the Somerset Wetlands, with the 6,140-hectare super National Nature Reserve at its heart. These projects will enhance connectivity, species recovery and resilience to climate change.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 02/02/2024 14:11:53 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1679774

	registered interest
	date	05/01/2024
	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	Wetlands
	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 his Department will support wetlands-focused research on barriers relating to (a) private finance for, (b) land use change affecting and (c) long-term management of wetland sites.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	8245
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/01/2024 answer text <p>Government has a goal of stimulating at least £500m per year of private investment into nature recovery in England by 2027, rising to at least £1bn per year by 2030. Defra is putting in place interventions to set the conditions for this to happen, including publishing a nature markets framework, partnering with the British Standards Institute on nature investment standards, stimulating a pipeline of investable nature projects (including multiple projects in wetland areas), and enabling public funding for nature to crowd-in private investment.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is also supporting eight blue finance projects with around £750,000 of grants through the Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund. This funding is being used to develop a pipeline of projects that can demonstrate viable private-sector investment models, ultimately working to restore important coastal and marine habitats such as saltmarsh. Four of the five Protected Site Strategy Research and Development Pilots involve pressures affecting wetlands, including long-term management and financing, while Natural England is additionally progressing two projects on peatland National Nature Reserves on selling carbon using the Peatland Code.</p><p> </p><p>Defra already supports a range of research projects relating to wetlands, including a recent collaboration with the British Trust for Ornithology modelling the impacts of different land use change scenarios on a range of wetland species. We also fund the Wetlands Bird Survey through grant in aid via JNCC. Through the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership, UK Administrations are working with DESNZ and Defra to address key research questions relating to blue carbon habitats.</p><p> </p><p>Internationally, we provide regular financial and in-kind support to the Ramsar Wetlands Convention to promote the protection and wise use of wetlands.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 18/01/2024 12:38:44 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1679775

	registered interest
	date	05/01/2024
	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	Wetlands
	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 plans to celebrate World Wetlands Day.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	8246
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/01/2024 answer text <p>Yes, my Department will be marking World Wetlands Day, including through a variety of communications and engagement activities. Wetlands play a crucial role in sustaining life globally - they benefit water, food, livelihoods, climate, cultural pursuits, and biodiversity – and this day marks an opportunity to promote these benefits.</p><p> </p><p>This year’s World Wetlands Day theme is ‘Wetland and human wellbeing’, reflecting that Wetlands positively impact mental wellbeing by promoting mindfulness and emotional balance through the connection to nature they provide and offer recreational opportunities, contributing to stress management and relaxation.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 18/01/2024 12:36:46 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1639357

	registered interest
	date	22/05/2023
	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	Environment Protection: Urban 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 responsibilities (a) her Department, (b) the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and (c) Natural England have for research into the benefits of green and blue infrastructure.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	186259
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/05/2023 answer text <p>Natural England launched the Green Infrastructure Framework: Principles and Standards for England in January 2023. During the course of developing the Framework they produced and commissioned research, working with government Departments for: Environment Food and Rural Affairs; Levelling Up, Housing and Communities; Transport and Health and Social Care. They also sought wider from input from experts in public bodies and private organisations to steer and advise.</p><p> </p><p>Natural England and Public Health England (Office for Health Improvement and Disparities) published a Rapid Scoping Review of Health and Wellbeing Evidence as part of the project. In addition, Defra has also funded research into the economic modelling of accessible green space across England and Wales, known as the Outdoor Recreation Valuation tool.</p><p> </p><p>As set out in the Environmental Improvement Plan 2023, we will use the Green Infrastructure Framework to track progress in our commitment for everyone to have access to green or blue space within 15 minutes from their front door</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison grouped question UIN 186172 186190 question first answered 30/05/2023 11:50:10 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1639358

	registered interest
	date	22/05/2023
	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	Saltmarshes: Carbon Capture and Storage
	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 her Department plans to help finance (a) research on and (b) delivery of salt marsh restoration projects as a contribution to the national evidence base on carbon sequestration.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	186260
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/05/2023 answer text <p>Through the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership, Defra is working with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero alongside the other UK Administrations to address key research questions relating to blue carbon habitats, such as saltmarsh. In 2022, the UK Government launched its £140 million Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) programme, a flagship three-year R&amp;D programme, spanning England’s land, coast and sea. The programme includes mapping of blue carbon stock and sequestration rates in important coastal environments such as saltmarsh habitats, alongside wider ecosystem services which provide societal, ecological and economic benefit.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative is working to restore our estuarine and coastal habitats to benefit people and nature. The EA’s restoration handbooks are a key tool to support restoration of coastal blue carbon habitats in the UK and beyond.</p><p> </p><p>We are also supporting direct investment into saltmarsh restoration through our £80m Green Recovery Challenge Fund, which is supporting nature recovery projects across England. The Government is supporting eight blue nature finance projects, including blue carbon, with around £750,000 of grants through the Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund. This funding is being used to develop a pipeline of projects that can demonstrate viable private-sector investment models, ultimately working to restore important blue habitats such as saltmarsh.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 30/05/2023 11:46:13 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1543290

	registered interest
	date	17/11/2022
	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	Big Nature Impact Fund: Saltmarshes
	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 the seed finance made available through the Big Nature Impact Fund will be used to fund saltmarshes.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	89918
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/11/2022 answer text <p>The Big Nature Impact Fund (BNIF) will be a private sector vehicle and could invest in projects involving saltmarsh habitats that meet its criteria for investment.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 28/11/2022 16:12:49 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1537772

	registered interest
	date	31/10/2022
	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	Saltmarshes: 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, whether her Department has taken recent steps to (a) strengthen protections for and (b) promote the restoration of saltmarsh habitats.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	74985
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2022 answer text <p>HM Government recognises the important role that nature-based solutions, including blue carbon habitats, such as saltmarsh can play to prevent biodiversity loss and support adaptation and resilience to climate change, alongside their carbon sequestration benefits.</p><p> </p><p>England’s Environment Agency (EA) reports on the extent and zonation of saltmarsh in England. The latest report (looking at saltmarsh area change over a decade from 2006-2009 to 2016-2019) is published on GOV.UK and has mapped existing restoration sites and supports further restoration practices. 38% of UK waters are already in Marine Protected Areas, covering the majority of saltmarsh habitats. Our focus is now on ensuring these are effectively managed.</p><p> </p><p>The EA also lead the ‘Restoring Meadows, Marsh and Reef Initiative’, working with partners across government, the eNGO sector, academia and industry to streamline regulatory processes, build capacity and share knowledge to facilitate the accelerated restoration of estuarine and coastal habitats, with an initial focus on three priority habitats - saltmarshes, seagrass beds and native oyster reefs. At COP26, as part of this initiative, the EA also launched its Saltmarsh Restoration Handbook, a guide written by practitioners and experts to support groups wanting to undertake their own saltmarsh restoration project, one of 3 ‘Blue Carbon Restoration Handbooks’.</p><p> </p><p>We are also working to increase private investment in nature. The £10 million Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund is also supporting three projects with almost £300k of grants, to explore, develop and then test methodologies to measure and verify the carbon storage potential in saltmarsh habitats. This includes a project to develop a Saltmarsh Carbon code from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.</p><p> </p><p>Finally, through the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership, UK Administrations are working with the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Estate and Defra to continue to strengthen our evidence base relating to blue carbon habitats including saltmarsh. The first aim of the Partnership has been to identify and then clearly set out the most pressing research questions relating to blue carbon within an Evidence Needs Statement that will act as a signal to the research community for further work.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 04/11/2022 14:12:16 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1379954

	registered interest
	date	18/11/2021
	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	Rights of Way
	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 representations to delay or cancel the 1 January 2026 deadline to correct legal record rights of way.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	77508
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/11/2021 answer text <p>We understand the concerns that many stakeholders have about the 2026 cut-off date due to delays to the project brought about by our EU Exit and the need to reprioritise the Government’s legislative agenda accordingly.</p><p> </p><p>Deferring the 2026 cut-off date for registration of historic rights of way is a possibility, which would create more time for the reforms to rights of way legislation to be implemented effectively. However, we must weigh this against the desire for certainty around where rights of way exist, which implementing the cut-off date will bring. Officials will continue to keep this under review in consultation with the Stakeholder Working Group.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 26/11/2021 14:52:36 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1364192

	registered interest
	date	28/10/2021
	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	Wetlands: Carbon Emissions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	What steps he is taking to help ensure that coastal wetland habitat creation and other nature-based solutions form part of the Government's plans to reach net zero.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Siobhan Baillie
	uin	903881
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/10/2021 answer text <p>As stated in the Net Zero Strategy, nature-based solutions, including protecting, restoring and sustainably managing coastal wetlands, are key to tackling climate change and averting its impacts. We do not currently have the required data to include coastal wetlands habitats in the UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory, but we are working to address these evidence gaps. We are also championing nature-based solutions internationally, and supporting delivery through our Official Development Assistance, including International Climate Finance.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 28/10/2021 10:54:29 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4847 label Biography information for Siobhan Baillie

1150665

	registered interest
	date	18/10/2019
	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	Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control
	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 Answer of 7 October 2019 Question 290620 on Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control, whether she has made an assessment of the potential effect on research outcomes of the culling of animals that are part of that research programme.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	1887
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/10/2019 answer text <p>The Animal and Plant Health Agency’s ongoing study of the wild badger population at Woodchester Park can adapt to assess any new impacts on the badger population, including from licensed badger culling taking place across Gloucestershire, which is in the Bovine TB High Risk Area of England. Woodchester Park’s work will continue to support policy and research in line with our TB strategy’s adaptive and evidence-based approach.</p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice grouped question UIN 1885 1886 question first answered 28/10/2019 10:51:21 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew