Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1470559

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	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, what assessment he has made of the progress made by Natural England in implementing the reforms outlined in its 2021-22 action plan.
tabling member constituency	Romsey and Southampton North
tabling member printed	Caroline Nokes
uin	18886
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/06/2022 answer text <p>Natural England will be publishing its annual report in the autumn which will detail its operational and financial performance, including progress made on the ambitions identified in the 21-11 action plan. In line with governance guidelines, Defra assesses Natural England’s performance at quarterly reviews and an annual Ministerial Performance Review. Recent reviews with Natural England have indicated good performance across its ambitious targets, building its capacity and capability to help tackle the critical challenge of nature recovery, climate change and improving people’s wellbeing.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 24/06/2022 14:17:26 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4048 label Biography information for Caroline Nokes

1470571

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Waste Management: 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 assessment he has made of the potential merits of establishing a requirement for all waste management companies to measure their carbon emissions more accurately beyond just EfW sites.
tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
uin	18788
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2022 answer text <p>Defra has made no assessment of the potential merits of establishing a requirement for all waste management companies to measure their carbon emissions.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 23/06/2022 17:08:32 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

1470615

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Joint Unit for Waste Crime
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 he has made of the performance of the Joint Unit on Waste Crime since its introduction in combatting (a) waste crime and (b) the increase in the involvement of organised crime in the waste industry.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	18812
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2022 answer text <p>In the two years since its launch in January 2020 the Joint Unit for Waste Crime has worked with over 50 partner organisations and engaged in 74 multi-agency days of action. These have resulted in 52 associated arrests. It is the lead responsible organisation for four organised criminal groups. There have been a number of multi-agency interventions against these groups, including refusal of permits, intelligence-targeted waste sampling and spray marking, and intelligence-led road stops.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 23/06/2022 17:15:30 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1470616

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Joint Unit for Waste Crime: Finance
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 he has made of the adequacy of the current funding model for the Joint Unit on Waste Crime.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	18813
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/06/2022 answer text <p>The Government has ensured that recent additional funding to the Environment Agency (EA) to tackle waste crime is now part of its baseline, and so, the EA is able to prioritise funding for the Joint Unit for Waste Crime more effectively.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 28/06/2022 16:10:41 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1470617

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Joint Unit for Waste Crime: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many personnel are currently employed full-time to the Joint Unit on Waste Crime.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	18814
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2022 answer text <p>The Joint Waste Crime Team currently employs 14 staff.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 23/06/2022 17:12:22 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1470621

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Waste: Crime
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 plans to assess the cost of waste crime to the UK economy.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	18816
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/06/2022 answer text <p>The Environmental Services Association (ESA) estimates the cost of waste crime to the English economy in the 2018/19 financial year at £924 million. Scaled up to UK-level, the cost is estimated to be a little over £1 billion. The work done on behalf of ESA uses data produced by sources including HMRC, the Environment Agency (EA) and Defra, as well as EA analysis into costs and impacts of waste crime.</p><p>We have already taken action by introducing new powers to stop illegal waste sites posing a risk to the environment, including the ability to lock up sites and to force rogue operators to clean up all their waste. Building on this, measures in the Environment Act 2021 give agencies stronger powers of entry and access to evidence in prosecuting waste crimes. We have also set up the Joint Unit for Waste Crime to disrupt serious and organised waste crime and reduce its impact.</p><p>Our electronic waste tracking reforms will make it harder than ever to mis-identify waste or dispose of it inappropriately. Planned changes to the Carriers, Brokers and Dealers licensing regime will modernise licensing and make it even harder for rogue operators to escape detection. We will also soon publish our plans for reform of the exemptions regime, removing opportunities for criminals to abuse the system.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 22/06/2022 16:35:32 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1470625

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Electronic Equipment: 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, whether he is taking steps to ensure the safe export of e-waste.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	18819
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2022 answer text <p>There are a number of legal mechanisms in place to control the export of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), and to ensure that when WEEE is exported it is managed safely. These include:</p><p> </p><ul><li>A ban on exporting WEEE from the UK for disposal;</li><li>A ban on exporting hazardous WEEE from the UK to countries which are not members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development;</li><li>A requirement for those involved in the export of waste, including WEEE, to take all necessary steps to ensure the waste is managed in an environmentally sound manner throughout its shipment and during its recycling or recovery;</li><li>A requirement for businesses to obtain approval from the Environment Agency (EA) to export whole items of WEEE or WEEE derived materials.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The Basel Convention on the transboundary movement of hazardous waste, to which the UK is a Party, agreed changes on 15th June which will further tighten international controls on the export of WEEE. The UK Government supports these changes which, from 2025, will require exporters to obtain prior consent from the Competent Authority in both the country of dispatch and destination to export all types of WEEE for recycling.</p><p> </p><p>The EA regulates the export of waste in England, including WEEE. EA officers carry out pro-active and intelligence led inspections to stop waste shipments that breach regulations before they leave ports. In 2020-21, 869 containers were stopped, of which 176 were returned to a waste site as they were unsuitable for export; 27 of those containers were found to contain WEEE.</p><p> </p><p>Any UK operator found to be illegally exporting waste can face a two-year jail term and an unlimited fine.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 20/06/2022 16:06:34 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1470627

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Waste Management
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 plans to create a fit and proper person test for people operating waste management companies.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	18820
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/06/2022 answer text <p>The requirement to demonstrate competence for waste site permits is well established.</p><p>In 2019 the Government strengthened the regulators' assessment and enforcement of operator competence to raise the standard of competence across all permitted waste sites. This included expanding the list of convictions to be taken into account when assessing permit applications to include, for example, offences related to organised crime and violent or threatening behaviour as well offences relating to fraud and tax evasion.</p><p>The Government also recently consulted on reform of the waste carrier, broker, dealer regime and expect to publish the response in due course.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 22/06/2022 16:35:53 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1470649

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	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, what recent steps he has taken to introduce a deposit return scheme; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Feltham and Heston
tabling member printed	Seema Malhotra
uin	18914
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2022 answer text <p>A second consultation on introducing a deposit return scheme for drinks containers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was held last year. The Government is analysing the responses to that consultation, with a view to publishing a Government response in due course.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 20/06/2022 15:13:21 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	4253 label Biography information for Seema Malhotra

1470664

registered interest
date	15/06/2022
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	Water Abstraction
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 take steps to help prevent excessive water abstraction in areas with high water stress.
tabling member constituency	Romsey and Southampton North
tabling member printed	Caroline Nokes
uin	18887
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/06/2022 answer text <p>The Environment Agency regulates the abstraction of water from rivers, lakes and groundwater across England on behalf of the government. Defra and the Environment Agency launched the Abstraction Plan in December 2017 setting out how the Environment Agency will deliver abstraction reform to protect the environment from unsustainable abstraction. The Abstraction plan is now being implemented. In addition, the Environment Agency is updating its local Abstraction Licensing Strategies for all catchments by 2027, to set out how much water is available for abstraction whilst taking account of local environmental needs.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, Water Resources Management Plans, produced by water companies, set out how water supply needs are met from sustainable sources over a 25 year period. New Water Resources Management Plans will be consulted on at the end of 2022.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency's Restoring Sustainable Abstraction programme has already returned 49 billion litres of water to the environment, including 37 billion litres of water to chalk streams since it started in 2008. During this time the Environment Agency has removed the risk of approximately 900 billion litres of water being abstracted from unused or underused abstraction licences.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 27/06/2022 14:29:16 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4048 label Biography information for Caroline Nokes