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1167588

registered interest
date	31/10/2019
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	Soil: Conservation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	What plans she has to (a) evaluate and (b) tackle soil degradation.
tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
uin	900258
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/11/2019 answer text <p>Defra’s 25 Year Environment Plan (25 YEP) sets out our ambition to sustainably manage our soils by 2030. The 25 YEP indicator framework will measure and evaluate ‘Healthy Soils’. We are currently funding research to develop these indicators and accompanying monitoring plans. These will further inform policy for tackling soil degradation. We are already taking action to enhance and protect soil. Defra’s Farming Rules for Water protects soil through measures on erosion control and fertiliser application.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 05/11/2019 13:26:25 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

1167505

registered interest
date	30/10/2019
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	Air 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 steps her Department has taken to improve air quality standards.
tabling member constituency	Manchester, Gorton
tabling member printed	Afzal Khan
uin	7792
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2019 answer text <p>Our Clean Air Strategy (CAS) sets out an ambitious programme of action to reduce air pollutant emissions from a wide range of sources. The World Health Organization has recognised the CAS as an example for the rest of the world to follow. We have also put in place a £3.5 billion plan to tackle roadside nitrogen dioxide concentrations. Our Environment Bill makes a clear commitment to set a legally binding target to reduce fine particulate matter.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 04/11/2019 17:46:31 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4671 label Biography information for Afzal Khan

1167520

registered interest
date	30/10/2019
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	Natural England
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October 2019 to Question 1654 on Natural England, what estimate she has made of the shortfall in the resources available to Natural England to discharge its statutory functions and duties; for what reason Natural England does not have powers to charge for regulatory works; if she will make it her policy to grant Natural England those powers; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	7747
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2019 answer text <p>Natural England (NE), like all other Defra sponsored bodies, receives a budget to carry out its duties and responsibilities in line with what is affordable and the Government’s priorities for the natural environment. Grant in Aid has reduced over recent years, however NE receives income from other sources to carry out its duties. The resulting reduction aligns with the Defra Group average of 23% across the same period.</p><p> </p><p>NE’s primary power to charge for services and licences is in section 11 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (‘the Act’). Under section 11(1) of the Act, NE can charge for its services and, for example, uses this power to underpin its chargeable Discretionary Advice Service, through which it is able to offer advice to developers and others in response to non-statutory requests (e.g. pre-application advice). To exercise its powers under section 11(3) of the Act to charge for its service in issuing licences, enabling legislation would need to be in place. Defra is working closely with NE to consider how to broaden its income base.</p><p> </p><p>The recent one-year Spending Round for the financial year 2020 to 2021 saw some additional funds allocated for biodiversity. Defra will work with NE to determine future funding necessary from 2020 to deliver NE’s contribution to Government’s ambitions for the environment, including its 25 Year Plan for the Environment.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 04/11/2019 17:49:42 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1167156

registered interest
date	29/10/2019
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	Air Pollution: St Helens
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 her Department is taking to improve air quality in the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens.
tabling member constituency	St Helens North
tabling member printed	Conor McGinn
uin	7176
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2019 answer text <p>Our Clean Air Strategy includes new and ambitious goals, legislation, investment and policies which will help us to clean up our air faster and more effectively. The Environment Bill includes measures to improve air quality including ensuring local authorities have a clear framework, and simple to use powers, to tackle air pollution.</p><p>Local authorities already have statutory duties to review and assess local air quality, and to declare Air Quality Management Areas and put in place action plans to clean up local air if improvements are necessary. There are a range of tools available to them to support this work.</p><p>The Borough’s latest assessment of air quality in St Helens is detailed in their Annual Status Report for 2018. This details the measures they have put in place to tackle poor air quality and the progress they are making towards achieving their air quality objectives.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 04/11/2019 17:45:45 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4458 label Biography information for Conor McGinn

1167157

registered interest
date	29/10/2019
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	Air Pollution: St Helens
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 targets her Department set for the reduction of air pollution in the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens.
tabling member constituency	St Helens North
tabling member printed	Conor McGinn
uin	7177
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2019 answer text <p>We have not set local targets for reducing air pollution.</p><p> </p><p>We set concentration limits for a range of pollutants which local authorities are expected to ensure compliance with. Local authorities have statutory duties to review and assess local air quality, declare Air Quality Management Areas and put in place action plans to clean up local air if air quality standards or objectives are not achieved or are not likely to be achieved.</p><p> </p><p>Our national Air Quality Strategy sets out the air quality standards and objectives that must be achieved locally.</p><p> </p><p>Our landmark Environment Bill ensures that local authorities have a clear framework for tackling air pollution and simple to use powers to address air pollution in their areas.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 04/11/2019 16:51:22 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4458 label Biography information for Conor McGinn

1167172

registered interest
date	29/10/2019
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	Animal Experiments: Chemicals
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 her Department is taking to encourage the sharing of data on chemical safety jointly owned through consortia to ensure that duplicate tests on animals for the purposes of a UK REACH registration are reduced.
tabling member constituency	Bristol East
tabling member printed	Kerry McCarthy
uin	7091
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2019 answer text <p>The principle of ‘one substance, one registration’ is a core principle underpinning REACH. The Government has been clear that this principle and therefore the capacity for submission of joint registrations will be retained under UK REACH. This principle will help reduce the amount of testing required to demonstrate safe use and management of a given chemical. We have worked with industry stakeholders one-to-one and in a series of workshops to develop this joint registration process, the supporting IT functionality and published written guidance to support the submission of joint dossiers.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is not able to influence the terms under which data currently used for the purposes of EU REACH registrations can be accessed by UK companies in order to support their registrations under UK REACH. Although this is a matter for commercial negotiations, we will continue to work with and encourage industry to facilitate data sharing arrangements.</p><p> </p><p>We are currently working with key trade associations to develop data sharing guidance, which can be targeted directly to the trade associations’ members and networks. Together this guidance will be used by industry to develop future data sharing arrangements.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 04/11/2019 17:52:28 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	1491 label Biography information for Kerry McCarthy

1156163

registered interest
date	24/10/2019
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	Plastics: Tobacco
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 discussions she has had with cigarette manufacturers on eliminating plastic in cigarette butts.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
uin	4945
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/10/2019 answer text <p>The Government published the Resources and Waste Strategy last year, setting out our plans to reduce, reuse and recycle more plastic than we do now. Our target is to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste throughout the life of the 25 Year Environment Plan, but for the most problematic plastics we are going faster.</p><p>We pledged £20 million to the Plastics Research and Innovation Fund which aims to reduce the environmental costs of plastic and litter. Our sights are set on problematic plastics such as cigarette filters which contain single-plastic polymers and blight our streets and seas. The fund will seek to deliver strategic networking and research that will coordinate existing knowledge across the UK, catalysing new ideas and rapid solutions.</p><p>Ministers have met twice with the Tobacco Manufacturers Association in the last three years, but the Government has not held discussions with any individual tobacco companies about eliminating plastic in cigarette butts.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 29/10/2019 12:43:05 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1156269

registered interest
date	24/10/2019
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	Flood Control: Severn Stoke
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 she has made of the adequacy of flood protection measures in Severn Stoke, Worcestershire.
tabling member constituency	West Worcestershire
tabling member printed	Harriett Baldwin
uin	5021
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/10/2019 answer text <p>Severn Stoke has currently been assessed as benefiting from a 20% annual probability flood level of protection (1 in 5 years) through a low-level agricultural defence.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency (EA) is working in partnership with the community to reduce the impacts of flooding. The EA anticipates submitting for an outline planning application this winter for the construction of an earth embankment bund with ancillary structures to provide protection against a 1% annual flood (1 in 100 years).</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 29/10/2019 13:38:28 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin

1151960

registered interest
date	23/10/2019
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	Solid Fuels
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the heat output tests on various solid fuels were commenced as part of the consultation on the cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Shipley
tabling member printed	Philip Davies
uin	4297
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/11/2019 answer text <p>The heat output tests of solid fuels began in March this year.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 01/11/2019 13:05:24 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies

1151961

registered interest
date	23/10/2019
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	Solid Fuels
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to publish the results of the consultation on the cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood, which closed on 12 October 2018; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Shipley
tabling member printed	Philip Davies
uin	4298
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/11/2019 answer text <p>We intend to publish our response to the consultation on the cleaner burning of solid fuels and wood later this year.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 01/11/2019 13:09:10 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies