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1724744

registered interest
date	30/07/2024
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	Pesticides: Regulation
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to impose restrictions on the sale of herbicides, insecticides, nematicides, fungicides or other pesticides to domestic users.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL487
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/08/2024 answer text <p>The Government is currently reviewing its pesticide policies.</p><p> </p><p>A pesticide may only be placed on the market in GB if the product has been authorised by our expert regulator, the Health and Safety Executive, following a thorough scientific risk assessment that concludes all safety standards are met. Pesticides that pose unacceptable risks are not authorised.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 05/08/2024 09:56:13 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1724760

registered interest
date	30/07/2024
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	Roads: Cayman Islands
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 environmental impacts of the Cayman Islands government’s proposed east-west arterial road project.
tabling member printed	Lord Randall of Uxbridge
uin	HL523
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/08/2024 answer text <p>The responsibility for any environmental impact assessments for road projects is with the Cayman Islands Government, as environment is devolved to Overseas Territories (OTs) governments. Defra regularly engages with the OTs to facilitate knowledge exchange on environmental issues, where requested.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 08/08/2024 15:13:48 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	209 label Biography information for Lord Randall of Uxbridge

1724767

registered interest
date	30/07/2024
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	Air Quality Grant Scheme: Finance
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Douglas-Miller on 24 May (HL4084), whether they will consider reinstating funding for the Air Quality Grant Scheme and, if not, what plans they have to better deliver positive outcomes for local air quality and public health.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL530
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/08/2024 answer text <p>No decisions have been made yet on the future of the Air Quality Grant.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 07/08/2024 12:37:48 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1724770

registered interest
date	30/07/2024
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	Poaching: Prosecutions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bellamy on 21 March (HL3214) what assessment has been made of the drop in prosecutions for poaching in England, from 107 in 2019 to 34 in 2023.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL533
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/08/2024 answer text <p>The Government recognises the problems and distress which poaching can cause for local communities. Tackling it is one of the UK's national wildlife crime priorities.</p><p> </p><p>The number of prosecutions for poaching in England can vary year from year due to a number of factors. For example, the levels of hare coursing, an abhorrent form of poaching, can be affected by the suitability of local ground conditions during a hare coursing ‘season’. If it is too wet, there is an increased risk that the vehicles used to facilitate coursing might get stuck in fields where hares are found so the activity is less likely to be carried out. If it is too dry, the dogs used by coursers are at an increased risk of injury. The numbers of prosecutions in a local area will also depend on effective enforcement. The level of resourcing assigned to tackle poaching may vary year from year depending on decisions taken by local police forces.</p><p> </p><p>The difference in prosecutions between 2019 and 2023 might also have been affected by a key change in legislation. The 2019 figure provided by the Ministry of Justice in its answer of 21 March (HL3214) is from a time prior to the enactment of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This legislation increased police powers and sentences for a number of hare coursing offences. It is reasonable to suspect it had a deterrent effect on potential offenders and offences that may have led to prosecution. In combination with this new legislation, improved police tactics, intelligence and information sharing as well as the use of community protection notices and criminal behaviour orders may also have had an impact on recent poaching prosecution numbers. Finally, it must be noted that the 2023 figure of 34 used in the Lord Bishop’s question is not consistent with the other years as it only includes prosecutions for the months from January to June rather than, as with the years being compared with it, the full calendar year.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 08/08/2024 10:55:23 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1723949

registered interest
date	29/07/2024
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	Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the impact of the badger cull on the long-term viability and health of badger populations, and (2) the findings of Rogerson et al, in Absence of effects of widespread badger culling on tuberculosis in cattle, published in Scientific Reports on 15 July; and whether it plans to stop this cull.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL409
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/08/2024 answer text <p>The Government is currently studying the existing information surrounding the long-term viability and health of badger populations and considering commissioning research to fill any information gaps. It is important to this Government that any policy is informed by adequate scientific research and information.</p><p> </p><p>We are currently considering the findings of the published Torgerson et al paper, which is a reanalysis of the Randomised Badger Culling Trial carried out in the 2000s.</p><p> </p><p>The Government included a commitment in their election manifesto to work with farmers and scientists towards a package that can create bovine TB free status, including rolling out vaccinations, herd management and biosecurity to protect farmers' livelihoods. This Government will end badger culling.</p><p> </p><p>More details of the Government’s approach to tackle bovine TB and to end badger culling will be set out in due course.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 12/08/2024 15:00:54 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1723950

registered interest
date	29/07/2024
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	Bread
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to introduce a legal definition of (1) sourdough bread and (2) other sourdough products.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL410
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/08/2024 answer text <p>The Government has no current plans to introduce a legal definition to specifically cover the use of the term ‘sourdough’. The UK maintains high food standards including on requirements relating to food labelling and information. Existing legislation ensures the labelling and marketing of food, including sourdough products, does not intentionally mislead consumers.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 05/08/2024 09:52:56 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1723955

registered interest
date	29/07/2024
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	Thames Water: Nationalisation
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Hayman of Ullock on 23 July (HL Deb col 354) that taking Thames Water into public ownership would "cost billions of pounds and take years to unpick the current ownership model", whether they plan to publish a full analysis of those costs.
tabling member printed	Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb
uin	HL429
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/08/2024 answer text <p>The cost of nationalisation was calculated in a report published by the Social Market Foundation titled ‘The cost of nationalising the water industry in England’. The report estimated the costs of nationalising water companies, including Thames Water, would be £90bn. This research draws on a range of existing academic studies, as well as publicly available data from Ofwat, the London Stock Exchange and the annual accounts of the water companies. The research can be viewed on the Social Market Foundation’s website www.smf.co.uk.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 08/08/2024 10:51:24 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4297 label Biography information for Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb

1723957

registered interest
date	29/07/2024
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	Coastal Erosion
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of England's coastal flood defences.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL431
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/08/2024 answer text <p>The Environment Agency applies the same methodology for condition assessment and allocation of maintenance funding for all flood assets and does not differentiate between coastal and other assets.</p><p> </p><p>At the last Spending Review in 2021 the government increased funding for maintenance of flood defences by £22 million per year. In 2023/24, £25 million was reallocated from the capital programme to fund maintenance, meaning that the total allocation for last year was over £220 million.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency visually inspects its assets to assess their condition. The results inform their expected performance when operated either on a daily basis or during a flood event. Our target based on available funding for 2024/25 is for 94.5% of high consequence assets to meet the target condition.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency plans to publish an updated national flood risk assessment in December 2024.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 05/08/2024 09:50:31 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1723958

registered interest
date	29/07/2024
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: Somerset Levels
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 flood defences on the Somerset Levels.
tabling member printed	Lord Patten
uin	HL432
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/08/2024 answer text <p>The Somerset Levels and Moors is a man-made managed drainage system created over many centuries. The area has always been prone to flooding due to its low-lying nature, much of the land sitting below the highest tide levels, and having riverbanks raised above ground level.</p><p> </p><p>Following one of the wettest winters on record, flood risk assets in the Somerset Levels and Moors have, once again, been significantly tested. The Environment Agency (EA) routinely inspects its flood risk assets and undertakes additional post-incident inspections. It reports that 91% of those assets, in this area of interest, are at or above their specified condition.</p><p> </p><p>As with most winters, there are repairs required after high river levels and the associated overflow. The EA is delivering a programme of repairs to reinstate these damaged flood risk assets, bringing them back to target condition.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 07/08/2024 11:06:51 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	1137 label Biography information for Lord Patten

1723962

registered interest
date	29/07/2024
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	Internal Drainage Boards: Finance
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to address concerns about the way in which internal drainage boards are funded; and if so, whether they have a timetable for implementing changes.
tabling member printed	Lord Porter of Spalding
uin	HL436
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/08/2024 answer text <p>Defra has committed to work with the internal drainage board (IDB) sector and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to review IDBs’ current funding and costs. This will include examination of whether any changes are needed to their funding model.</p><p> </p><p>Once the review is complete, Defra and MHCLG will consider the findings and decide on next steps, if any are required.</p> answering member printed Baroness Hayman of Ullock question first answered 02/08/2024 10:34:57 answering member 4395 label Biography information for Baroness Hayman of Ullock
tabling member	4555 label Biography information for Lord Porter of Spalding