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1713208

registered interest
date	23/04/2024
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: Urban Areas
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 help reduce flooding in urban areas.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Hall Green
tabling member printed	Tahir Ali
uin	23305
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2024 answer text <p>The Government is investing £5.6 billion between 2021 and 2027 to better protect communities across England from flooding and coastal erosion. This investment includes a record £5.2 billion capital investment programme, a £200 million Flood and Coastal Innovation Programme, £170 million for economic recovery from flooding and over £30 million of funding for flood incident management.</p><p> </p><p>This investment will benefit both urban and rural communities. We forecast that around 55% of the £5.2bn investment, and around 60% of schemes, will better protect properties in urban areas. This includes investment in major flood projects benefitting urban areas, such as the Thames Estuary Programme, the Southsea Coastal Scheme, and others.</p><p> </p><p>Flood risk is also an important consideration in the planning system and there are strong safeguards in place. In 2022/23, 96% of all planning decisions complied with Environment Agency advice on flood risk.</p><p> </p><p>On 13 March 2024 the Government published its response to the National Infrastructure Commission’s study into ‘reducing the risk of surface water flooding’. Our response sets out actions to strengthen and further develop the implementation of current policy, supporting lead local flood authorities to access better data, information and to improve co-operation between bodies.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 26/04/2024 09:03:29 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4747 label Biography information for Tahir Ali

1713296

registered interest
date	23/04/2024
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	Wildlife: Conservation
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 impact of animal population decline in other countries on the UK, following the WWF’s Living Planet Report 2022 which showed that worldwide animal populations have declined by 69 per cent since 1970.
tabling member printed	Lord Mendelsohn
uin	HL4037
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2024 answer text <p>The UK is susceptible to impacts from animal population decline worldwide through global impacts on food supply and the increasing emergence and transmission of diseases. For example, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Pollinators Assessment showed that 35% of global crop production volume depends on animal pollination, while the IPBES Workshop report on Biodiversity and Pandemics showed that over 30% of emerging disease events are caused by land-use change and its impacts on wildlife. Healthy ecosystems are also vital for mitigating and adapting to climate change, thus animal population declines may also exacerbate the climate impacts felt by the UK, as set out in the UK’s Climate Change Risk Assessment. The UK Government with others continues to support the work of the IPBES and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to further understand these global impacts.</p><p> </p><p>A recently published report from the Green Finance Institute, entitled ‘Assessing the Materiality of Nature-Related Financial Risks for the UK’, with direction from Defra and others, showed that about half of all UK nature-related risk comes from overseas, through supply chains and financial exposures. It showed that the combination of biodiversity loss and environmental degradation could lead to major economic shocks leading to UK Gross Domestic Product being up to 12% lower that it may otherwise have been by the 2030s (even lower when combined with climate impacts).</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 26/04/2024 13:43:36 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4286 label Biography information for Lord Mendelsohn

1702415

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
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
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 has undertaken consultations with (a) stakeholders and (b) investors in relation to Operation Timber in the last 12 months.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	22799
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>Fundamentally water companies are commercial entities, and it would be inappropriate to comment further on the specific situation of any individual company.</p><p> </p><p>The Government and Ofwat – the financial regulator for the water sector – are carefully monitoring the situation, and Ofwat continues to engage with Thames Water to support it in improving its financial resilience within the context of its licence and broader statutory obligations.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 29/04/2024 12:40:29 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1702416

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
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
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 estimate he has made of the potential cost to the public purse of Operation Timber.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	22800
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>Fundamentally the company is responsible for raising capital, be it equity or debt – not the regulator or the Government. There are a variety of avenues to explore, which it is vital the company must do, while continuing to fulfil its statutory obligations of providing water and wastewater services to customers.</p><p> </p><p>The Government and Ofwat will always act to protect consumers as a priority and any intervention that would put pressure on the public purse would be considered very seriously and as a last resort.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 29/04/2024 12:39:02 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1702522

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
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	Environment Agency: 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 full time staff work in the Environment Agency Economic Crime Unit.
tabling member constituency	South Holland and The Deepings
tabling member printed	Sir John Hayes
uin	22665
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2024 answer text <p>Fifteen full-time staff worked for the Environment Agency Economic Crime Unit on 22 April 2024.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 26/04/2024 09:25:51 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	350 label Biography information for Sir John Hayes

1702523

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
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	Darwin Plus: 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, pursuant to the Answer of 18 April 2024 to Question 21017 on Darwin Plus, if he will provide a breakdown of Darwin Plus fund projects funded since 2019.
tabling member constituency	Suffolk Coastal
tabling member printed	Dr Thérèse Coffey
uin	22727
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2024 answer text <p>Pursuant to the Answer of 18 April to Question 21017, a summary of Darwin Plus projects funded since 2019, broken down by Territory, can be found below. These figures include the latest awards from Rounds 12 of Darwin Plus Main and Fellowships, Round 1 of Darwin Plus Strategic, and Round 3 of Darwin Plus Local.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Overseas Territory</p></td><td><p>Grant Funding from 2019 - 2024</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Anguilla</p></td><td><p>£4,818,639.72</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bermuda</p></td><td><p>£961,876.60</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>British Antarctic Territory</p></td><td><p>£1,368,375.75</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>British Indian Ocean Territory</p></td><td><p>£1,695,969.14</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>British Virgin Islands</p></td><td><p>£4,652,346.29</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Cayman Islands</p></td><td><p>£4,152,086.03</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Falkland Islands</p></td><td><p>£3,789,195.36</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Gibraltar</p></td><td><p>£319,343.10</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Montserrat</p></td><td><p>£2,842,585.69</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Pitcairn, Henderson, Oeno and Ducie Islands</p></td><td><p>£423,105.00</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>St Helena, Ascension and Tristan Da Cunha</p></td><td><p>£6,486,241.84</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands</p></td><td><p>£5,278,964.75</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Sovereign Base Area of Akrotiri and Dhekelia</p></td><td><p>£1,883,252.50</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Turks and Caicos Islands</p></td><td><p>£4,120,137.14</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 26/04/2024 11:30:49 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4098 label Biography information for Dr Thérèse Coffey

1702291

registered interest
date	18/04/2024
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	Environment Agency: Floods
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 additional projects the Environment Agency has completed in response to flooding in the last two years.
tabling member constituency	North Shropshire
tabling member printed	Helen Morgan
uin	22663
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>We are in the fourth year of the current 6-year £5.6 billion <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Fflood-and-coastal-erosion-risk-management-an-investment-plan-for-2021-to-2027&amp;data=05%7C02%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7Caea54baf54ce4157350808dc62bb4751%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638493803710458117%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=gMn4zPwvgNa50a63WjpGZfk6bbu82nsy8dUzrWpf3lA%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) investment programme.</a> This investment programme will better protect hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses from flooding and coastal erosion.</p><p> </p><p>At the end of March 2024, approximately £2.3 billion of this funding has been invested with over 88,000 properties better protected from flooding and coastal erosion. This was delivered through 300 completed projects.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 29/04/2024 12:35:40 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4934 label Biography information for Helen Morgan

1702319

registered interest
date	18/04/2024
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	Food: Waste
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of high levels of pollutants in food produced near waste incinerators in Europe; and whether they have any plans to conduct similar assessments in the UK.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL3930
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2024 answer text <p>The Environment Agency (EA) has not made any assessment of reports on this subject and does not plan to conduct any such assessments in England.</p><p> </p><p>The impact on food produced in proximity to waste incinerators is considered as part of environmental permitting regulations. The EA is responsible for deciding whether new incinerators in England should get a permit to operate. For each permit application it receives, the EA uses the results of air quality modelling and a human health risk assessment (HHRA) to determine the impact of the proposed incinerator.</p><p> </p><p>The HHRA assesses impacts on the food chain. Impact assessments are very conservative and permit decisions are based on worst-case scenario impacts.</p><p> </p><p>The EA also consults the UK Health Security Agency and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) on every permit application it receives and will not issue a permit if the proposed plant could cause significant pollution or harm to human health, including via the food chain.</p><p> </p><p>The FSA is responsible for the management of public health risks in relation to food. In general, the FSA considers that if incinerator facilities are correctly operated and monitored, with the appropriate level of emissions abatement, there should be no impact on the local area in terms of elevated levels of contaminants in soil and locally produced food. Measures are in place to manage the risk from chemical contaminants and keep levels as low as reasonably achievable through good practices and regulatory controls.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 26/04/2024 11:06:48 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1701994

registered interest
date	17/04/2024
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	Water Companies: Debts
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government why OFWAT calculate gearing levels of water companies by using a debt-to-assets ratio as opposed to a debt-to-equity ratio.
tabling member printed	Lord Sikka
uin	HL3909
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2024 answer text <p>It is standard practice for regulated sectors to calculate gearing by reference to Regulator Capital Value (RCV). This is because there exists an RCV which represents costs incurred to date which can be recovered from customers in the future. This approach to calculating Regulatory Gearing is used by Ofgem and the Civil Aviation Authority and is recognised by the Rating Agencies.</p><p> </p><p>As the RCV represents the net stock of investment that has been contributed by debt and investors over time, it grows with net levels of investment. This provides the capacity against which companies may raise debt and equity to finance investment programmes.</p><p> </p><p>There is no equivalent to an RCV for companies operating in a competitive market. Gearing measured by reference to RCV is a more useful metric than standard accounting measure of gearing in a utility sector because future revenue streams are more certain than they would be for companies operating in a competitive market.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 26/04/2024 10:59:33 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4885 label Biography information for Lord Sikka

1701071

registered interest
date	15/04/2024
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	Water Supply: Planning
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 he is taking to encourage agencies involved in water management to produce joint plans.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	21724
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>In January 2023, the Government published its Environmental Improvement Plan. This included a commitment for more joined up management of the water system. The current water and floods policy and legal framework has been developed incrementally over time, resulting in over 15 national plans and strategic documents. Whilst each plan has its own purpose, we want to make the whole framework more outcome-focussed and fully integrated with other environmental plans and government delivery plans. We reiterated this commitment in our landmark Plan for Water published in April 2023.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 29/04/2024 09:33:32 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell