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1307579

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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	Slaughterhouses: Inspections
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the availability of English-speaking Official Veterinarians to monitor abattoirs.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL14806
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2021 answer text <p>The Department can confirm that all vets working in abattoirs, on behalf of the Food Standards Agency or for Food Standards Scotland, providing statutory controls and certification duties, are registered with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and speak English.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 26/04/2021 15:31:15 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1228163

registered interest
date	28/07/2020
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	Ragwort: Weed Control
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the Ragwort Control Act 2003 in preventing and controlling the spread of ragwort on (1) privately owned property, and (2) publicly owned land, such as roadside verges.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL7468
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/08/2020 answer text <p>Defra’s injurious weeds policy aims to balance a variety of different interests in the countryside. We have not made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Ragwort Control Act 2003, as this Act amends the Weeds Act 1959 by inserting a provision enabling the Secretary of State to produce statutory guidance in the form of a ‘code of practice’ on how to prevent the spread of ragwort.</p><p> </p><p>The Secretary of State published a code of practice in 2004, which aims to define the situations in which there is a likelihood of ragwort spreading to neighbouring land where it will then present an identifiable risk of ingestions by vulnerable animals, and to provide guidance on the most appropriate means of control, taking into account both animal welfare and environmental considerations. This is available on the GOV.UK website.</p><p> </p><p>Natural England is the responsible authority for investigating complaints about injurious weeds under the Weeds Act 1959 in England and collects data on injurious weeds complaints to monitor the number of complaints in each season. This data is reviewed annually by Defra and Natural England, and from the 2018 season this data is available on data.gov.uk.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 11/08/2020 11:56:12 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1225399

registered interest
date	15/07/2020
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	Somerset Levels
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the landscape value, and (2) the level of landscape protection, of the Somerset Levels.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL6901
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/07/2020 answer text <p>Natural England published a detailed Natural Character Area profile of the Somerset Levels in June 2013. This study provides a description of the natural and cultural features that shape the landscape, how the landscape has changed over time, the current key drivers of landscape change and a broad analysis of the area’s characteristics and ecosystem services.</p><p> </p><p>The Somerset Levels have no formal landscape protection. Large areas of the Somerset Levels are, however, afforded protection because of their nature conservation value through designation as: a National Nature Reserve; a Special Protection Area (under the Wild Birds Directive); and a Ramsar site (under the Ramsar Convention on wetlands of international importance). These designations are underpinned by several Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Further information is available online via Natural England’s Designated Sites Viewer and the MAGIC website:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteList.aspx?siteName=somerset&amp;countyCode=&amp;responsiblePerson=&amp;DesignationType=All" target="_blank">designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteList.aspx?siteName=somerset&amp;countyCode=&amp;responsiblePerson=&amp;DesignationType=All</a></p><p> </p><p><a href="https://magic.defra.gov.uk" target="_blank">magic.defra.gov.uk</a></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 29/07/2020 15:06:13 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1224731

registered interest
date	14/07/2020
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	Nature Conservation
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risks to humans arising from re-wilding in England.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL6857
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/07/2020 answer text <p>Rewilding often includes the re-introduction of species to restore ecosystems and natural processes. Any reintroduction or conservation translocation of a species should follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) guidelines. As part of this, a rewilding project should consider the risk or impacts that the reintroduction may have on humans.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is currently developing of Code of Best Practice and Guidance for assessing the merits and risks of a reintroduction proposal. We would expect any such proposal to follow this, which will set the standards that a project needs to meet where a licence for release is needed.</p><p> </p><p>Natural England already considers risks to humans in its assessment of a reintroduction proposal. The Government has also taken action to address such risks. For example, we have limited the potential sources for importation of beaver to ensure that animals released in England are disease-free.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 27/07/2020 15:30:13 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1192000

registered interest
date	30/04/2020
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	Horticulture
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the UK horticultural industry.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL3797
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/05/2020 answer text <p>The Government recognises the crucial role that the UK’s horticulture industry plays in both feeding the country and promoting people’s wellbeing. It is clear that the coronavirus pandemic is having an impact on horticulture businesses up and down the country and the Government is acutely aware of the challenges facing parts of the industry at this time.</p><p>We know it is vital that the sector has access to the labour it needs, and we are aware of concerns about the impact that current restrictions on the movement of people could have on the number of seasonal workers coming to the UK. We are therefore urgently considering what measures could be put in place to help mitigate labour shortages.</p><p>We will continue to work closely with representatives from across the horticulture supply chain to identify what short-term and long-term support the sector needs. As horticulture is part of the agricultural sector, impacts of COVID-19 on the horticulture industry are being overseen by the UK Agricultural Market Monitoring Group, which meets weekly to monitor UK agricultural markets and to provide forewarning of any atypical market movements. During the coronavirus outbreak, this has allowed Defra and the devolved administrations to share the latest stakeholder information and data to assess the effects of COVID-19 on the agricultural industry, to ensure we have an evidence base of what is happening in specific markets and geographical regions.</p><p>We will continue to monitor the situation and to work closely with the sector to assess and respond to emerging issues as they arise.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 15/05/2020 13:57:48 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1191297

registered interest
date	28/04/2020
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	Plants: Imports
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on plant disease of trees and shrubs brought from mainland Europe to the UK.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL3477
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2020 answer text <p>The UK has robust controls in place to protect against plant pest and disease threats. Horizon scanning for new and emerging threats is carried out continuously and the results are considered monthly by all UK Plant Health Authorities, facilitated by the Defra-chaired UK Plant Health Risk Group. The UK Plant Health Risk Register (UKPHRR) is the principal screening tool used for this purpose and all outputs are published. This includes an assessment of the likely impacts of pests screened, including those which are present in mainland Europe but not in the UK. The UKPHRR also includes details of pests which have been introduced to the UK from other countries, including in Europe, assessing their potential for further spread and resulting impacts. The UKPHRR now has more than 1000 entries, informing decision making and prioritisation in relation to plant health threats. Where necessary more detailed assessments are made for risks identified via the UKPHRR through Pest Risk Assessments (PRAs). These PRAs will be used as the basis for UK plant heath legislation and UK legislation is updated frequently to protect against new and revised threats.</p><p> </p><p>The UK is proud of its world-leading plant biosecurity standards and we have recently introduced additional national measures against key threats including Xylella fastidiosa and the Emerald ash borer. These have introduced additional controls on the import of hosts of Xylella which are considered to pose a high risk of harbouring the pathogen. These requirements are based on the outcome of an update to the UK PRA for this pathogen and include details on potential impacts should this pathogen be introduced, including on plants from Europe.</p><p> </p><p>The Tree Health Resilience Strategy sets out the current state of knowledge on tree health in England and provides a framework for management of our trees, including horizon scanning for new and emerging threats associated with plant imports from mainland Europe and beyond. The latest Woodland Natural Capital Accounts, published by the Office for National Statistics in February 2020, classify 85% of woodlands in Great Britain as in a favourable condition for tree health.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 13/05/2020 15:04:46 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1168606

registered interest
date	19/12/2019
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	Trees: Urban Areas
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the benefit of trees in English cities; and what steps they intend to take to prevent any large-scale felling of such trees.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL64
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>The Government recognises the value of urban trees in creating healthy communities and liveable places for people and wildlife. In our manifesto we pledged to plant more trees in towns and cities, and will expect all new streets to be lined with trees.</p><p> </p><p>The public care deeply about this issue, and the Environment Bill, which returns to Parliament in January, will include measures to increase the transparency of decisions over street trees. The proposed duty to consult will encourage authorities to consider concerns raised by the public, and have regard to these when making decisions – giving the public a say in the management of these important natural assets.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 07/01/2020 13:53:26 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1136765

registered interest
date	03/07/2019
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	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the assistance that seasonal farm workers from the Ukraine could provide in meeting the UK’s agricultural requirements; and what barriers, if any, there are to their entry.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL16915
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government has introduced a new immigration pilot scheme for 2019 and 2020 enabling up to 2,500 non-European Economic Area migrant workers, including seasonal workers from Ukraine, to come to the UK to undertake seasonal employment in the edible horticultural sector.</p><p> </p><p>This pilot will test the effectiveness of our immigration system at alleviating seasonal labour shortages during peak production periods, whilst reducing immigration to sustainable levels and continuing to welcome those who make an invaluable contribution.</p><p> </p><p>This pilot is not designed to meet the full labour needs of the horticultural sector. Rather we are seeking to evaluate the immigration pilot’s ability to assist in alleviating labour shortages during peak production periods.</p><p> </p><p>Defra and the Home Office will work closely to monitor the pilot, and review its performance against the stated objectives. This pilot will help inform our understanding of how such immigration routes perform in a modern global context, and support the design of our new immigration system laid out in the recent White Paper. Defra is working to improve the official evidence based on temporary worker supply and demand, through a new quarterly survey of growers, the results of which we will consider carefully. We are also working closely with industry to understand trends in labour demand and supply.</p><p> </p><p>Immigration issues are reserved and remain the policy responsibility of the Home Office. After we leave the EU, we must ensure that we have an immigration system that works in the best interest of the whole of the UK.</p><p> </p><p>Defra is working closely with the Home Office to ensure that there is a long term strategy for agricultural labour as part of the future immigration strategy. The Home Office has launched a 12-month engagement programme with sectors across the UK to enable businesses and other stakeholders to shape the development of the future skills based immigration system.</p><p> </p><p>As such, there are no plans to expand this pilot at this time. We wish to fully assess this pilot and the results will help to inform the design of the new immigration system from January 2021.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 16/07/2019 14:24:07 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1130849

registered interest
date	10/06/2019
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	Trees: Diseases
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the threats from disease to hornbeam trees (Carpinus betulus) in England and Wales.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL16216
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/06/2019 answer text <p>Details of pest and disease threats to hornbeam (<em>Carpinus betulus</em>), along with other plant and tree species, are included on the UK plant health risk register, which can be accessed here: <a href="https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/phiw/riskRegister/" target="_blank">https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/phiw/riskRegister/</a>. Of the 1,040 entries on the risk register, ten of these have hornbeam specifically listed as a major host species, although hornbeam may be a minor host in relation to certain other pests and diseases listed (e.g. those which are polyphagous in nature on broadleaved trees). The risk register includes information about current mitigations in place and priorities for future actions.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 14/06/2019 11:55:15 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1086386

registered interest
date	11/03/2019
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	Flood Control: Somerset
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, since the floods on the Somerset Levels in 2014, what have been the most effective measures taken to reduce such risks; and what remains to be done in the future.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL14415
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2019 answer text <p>Since 2014 approximately £60 million has been invested in the Somerset Levels and Moors to reduce the impact of flooding. This includes National Government Flood Defence Grant in Aid, Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership Funding and precept raised by the Somerset Rivers Authority. Numerous capital schemes have been delivered to better protect communities in Somerset as part of the 25 year flood action plan.</p><p>Examples of measures taken include:</p><ul><li>Dredging over 8.75km of the Rivers Parrett and Tone in combination with infrastructure improvements at several sites to accommodate significant additional temporary pumps. These two measures better protect 130 of the 142 houses flooded in 2013/14.</li><li>Construction of a flood defence wall at Westonzoyland village and road raising at Aller village which better protect 15 houses.</li><li>An extensive programme of repairs at over 50 locations to river banks, spillways and pumping stations. This returns assets to their pre-2013/14 flood design condition.</li><li>Major improvements on the A372 to allow water under the road to reduce the likelihood of road flooding to a major route, and allow better evacuation of flood waters.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency has also developed an operational plan of when and how it will bring in temporary pumps to a number of strategic locations during extreme events.</p><p> </p><p>Significant future works which are due to be delivered include:</p><ul><li>The construction of the Bridgwater tidal barrier which will better protect 12,000 homes.</li><li>Improvements/enhancement of the River Parrett flood relief channel. This will increase channel conveyance through the relief channel, taking more flood water away from the communities flooded in 2014.</li></ul><p>Maintenance dredging to maintain the conveyance and channel profile of the 8.75km dredged section of the Rivers Parrett and Tone.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 19/03/2019 12:25:23 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten