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1124553

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Plastic Bags: Biodegradability
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 his Department is taking to ensure that plastic bags labelled as biodegradable or compostable break down quickly in a natural environment.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
uin	250462
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/05/2019 answer text <p>The Government is concerned that, in the absence of agreed standards, claims about the biodegradability of plastic based products cannot be verified leading to potential confusion in the market place, possible increased levels of consumption and potential environmental harm at the point of disposal.</p><p> </p><p>As part of the Bioeconomy Strategy published on 5 December 2018, the Government committed to work with UK Research and Innovation and industry to seek evidence on the demand, benefits and implications (for example the impact on recycling streams) of a standard for bio based and biodegradable plastics that would include carrier bags. The call for evidence will seek evidence in relation to labelling and information provision.</p> answering member constituency Suffolk Coastal answering member printed Dr Thérèse Coffey question first answered 09/05/2019 12:11:25 answering member 4098 label Biography information for Dr Thérèse Coffey
tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1124633

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Eggs
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of eggs produced in the UK for enriched colony systems in 2019.
tabling member printed	Baroness Kennedy of Cradley
uin	HL15501
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>UK Packing Station egg throughput figures are collated quarterly and cover the vast majority of total eggs produced. Eggs produced from hens in enriched colony systems accounted for 42% of the total throughput in the first quarter of 2019 in the UK. This equates to 1.2 billion eggs.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 16/05/2019 16:44:27 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	4303 label Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley

1124634

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Packaging: Waste
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 Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations; and whether those Regulations need to be reformed.
tabling member printed	Baroness Kennedy of Cradley
uin	HL15502
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>In 2017 the Government published a Post Implementation Review of the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations.</p><p> </p><p>In our Resources and Waste Strategy we committed to reform our current packaging producer responsibility system which includes measures to incentivise producers to make better, more sustainable decisions at the design stage and point of manufacture.</p><p> </p><p>On 18 February 2019 the Government published a consultation on proposals to reform the producer responsibility regime for packaging, including mechanisms to incentivise better design, encourage the use of recycled material and ensure that producers pay the full costs of disposal for packaging they place on the market. The consultation closed on 13 May.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 13/05/2019 15:04:23 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	4303 label Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley

1124635

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Beavers
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 introduction of beavers in the UK; and of the risk of flooding as a result of their introduction.
tabling member printed	Baroness Kennedy of Cradley
uin	HL15503
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The Government is engaged with a number of projects to further our understanding of the impact of beavers on the environment and flooding. We also maintain contact with the Scottish Government to learn from its experience on the River Tay.</p><p> </p><p>The trial reintroduction of beavers on the River Otter in Devon, which started in 2015, will conclude in 2020. The latest annual report from this trial, undertaken by the Devon Wildlife Trust, highlights assessments made on water flows and flood risks. Defra will assess the River Otter trial in 2020 and will seek advice from Natural England.</p><p> </p><p>The Forestry Commission is currently undertaking two enclosed trial releases which will contribute to our understanding of the impacts of beavers on water flow and surrounding ecology.</p><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency is working with a number of projects that are gathering evidence from beaver trial sites to improve our understanding of the opportunities and implications for flood risk management. Natural England and the Environment Agency are working with the University of Exeter to understand how beavers affect water flow in rivers. The results of these trials will inform decisions on future reintroductions of beavers in England</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 17/05/2019 12:26:25 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	4303 label Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley

1124636

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Hill Farming
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are giving to hill farmers.
tabling member printed	Baroness Kennedy of Cradley
uin	HL15504
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>Upland farmers are eligible to receive payments under the Common Agricultural Policy's Basic Payment Scheme (BPS). We will pay Direct Payments for the 2019 scheme year on the same basis as for 2018 and plan to allocate the money paid in Direct Payments for 2020 in much the same way that we do now.</p><p> </p><p>Upland farmers can also apply for a Countryside Stewardship agreement, and many receive support through Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship. The current round of Countryside Stewardship is open for applications until 31 July. This includes a specific Wildlife offer for Upland farmers. Capital grants are also available through the Hedgerow and Boundaries grant, which closed for applications on 3 May.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has also pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of the Parliament, expected in 2022. The figure includes all EU and Exchequer funding provided for farm support under both Pillar 1 and Pillar 2. Furthermore, all Pillar 2 agreements signed by 31 December 2020 will be funded for their lifetime.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 17/05/2019 12:27:30 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	4303 label Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley

1124637

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Livestock: Disease Control
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what contingency plans they have in place to address any outbreak of a notifiable disease on UK farms.
tabling member printed	Baroness Kennedy of Cradley
uin	HL15505
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/05/2019 answer text <p>The Defra contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals in England was presented to Parliament on 27 November 2018 and is available on GOV.UK. The plan is regularly tested through local and national exercises.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 10/05/2019 12:40:54 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	4303 label Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley

1124638

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Butterflies
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 health of the UK butterfly population.
tabling member printed	Baroness Kennedy of Cradley
uin	HL15506
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme is organised and funded by Butterfly Conservation, the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, the British Trust for Ornithology and the UK Government’s nature conservation adviser, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Records are collected by volunteers and provide an invaluable dataset for planning and monitoring action for insect conservation. The scheme’s data is published annually and incorporated into the Government’s UK and England Biodiversity Indicators.</p><p> </p><p>The UK indicator of butterfly abundance shows long term declines since 1976 but has shown no overall trend since 2012, despite increases for some species and decreases for others. We have seen real conservation success stories, often where farmers, landowners, voluntary bodies - such as Butterfly Conservation - and Government have worked together to put the right management in the right place. For example, the high brown fritillary, one of Britain’s most threatened butterflies, having lost 85 per cent of its population since the 1970s, has been the focus of conservation efforts and has seen numbers increase by 271 per cent over the last 10 years.</p><p> </p><p>Short-term increases in numbers across species were also seen in 2018 when the Monitoring Scheme’s most recent data was published in April 2019. More than two- thirds of UK butterfly species were seen in higher numbers than the previous year, with two of the UK’s rarest, the large blue and black hairstreak, recording their best years since records began. The Government knows, however, that butterfly numbers fluctuate from year to year in response to weather conditions. The Government must closely monitor the underlying trends and keep conservation actions under review to build on progress and ensure that efforts continue to be targeted effectively.</p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble question first answered 13/05/2019 15:21:47 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	4303 label Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley

1124654

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Peat
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce regular reporting on the proportion of peat being sold in compost and used as a growing medium in horticulture.
tabling member printed	Lord Teverson
uin	HL15522
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>We are working with the industry to put in place a replacement for our previous monitoring of peat use in growing media, which last reported in 2016.</p><p> </p><p>The 2016 report showed that peat use in 1) the amateur sector (2020 target) was down 21% in 2015 compared to 2011, and 2) the professional grower sector (2030 target) was down 26% since 2011. Nevertheless, whilst progress had been made in reducing peat use, it appears to be stalling.</p><p> </p><p>We stated in the 25 Year Plan for the Environment that if by 2020 we have not seen sufficient movement to peat alternatives, we will look at introducing further measures. We have been discussing how we should judge what constitutes “sufficient movement” away from peat use and what potential further measures could look like. These discussions are ongoing.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble grouped question UIN HL15523 HL15524 question first answered 16/05/2019 16:34:42 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	3789 label Biography information for Lord Teverson

1124655

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Peat
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of progress towards their voluntary targets for the phasing out of the use of peat from compost and horticulture for (1) 2020, and (2) 2030.
tabling member printed	Lord Teverson
uin	HL15523
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>We are working with the industry to put in place a replacement for our previous monitoring of peat use in growing media, which last reported in 2016.</p><p> </p><p>The 2016 report showed that peat use in 1) the amateur sector (2020 target) was down 21% in 2015 compared to 2011, and 2) the professional grower sector (2030 target) was down 26% since 2011. Nevertheless, whilst progress had been made in reducing peat use, it appears to be stalling.</p><p> </p><p>We stated in the 25 Year Plan for the Environment that if by 2020 we have not seen sufficient movement to peat alternatives, we will look at introducing further measures. We have been discussing how we should judge what constitutes “sufficient movement” away from peat use and what potential further measures could look like. These discussions are ongoing.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble grouped question UIN HL15522 HL15524 question first answered 16/05/2019 16:34:42 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	3789 label Biography information for Lord Teverson

1124656

registered interest
date	02/05/2019
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	Peat
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce mandatory targets for the phasing out of the use of peat for compost and horticulture; and whether any such targets will be earlier than the current voluntary targets.
tabling member printed	Lord Teverson
uin	HL15524
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>We are working with the industry to put in place a replacement for our previous monitoring of peat use in growing media, which last reported in 2016.</p><p> </p><p>The 2016 report showed that peat use in 1) the amateur sector (2020 target) was down 21% in 2015 compared to 2011, and 2) the professional grower sector (2030 target) was down 26% since 2011. Nevertheless, whilst progress had been made in reducing peat use, it appears to be stalling.</p><p> </p><p>We stated in the 25 Year Plan for the Environment that if by 2020 we have not seen sufficient movement to peat alternatives, we will look at introducing further measures. We have been discussing how we should judge what constitutes “sufficient movement” away from peat use and what potential further measures could look like. These discussions are ongoing.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Gardiner of Kimble grouped question UIN HL15522 HL15523 question first answered 16/05/2019 16:34:42 answering member 4161 label Biography information for Lord Gardiner of Kimble
tabling member	3789 label Biography information for Lord Teverson