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1714110

registered interest
date	26/04/2024
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	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Electronic Purchasing Card Solution
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 the cost to the public purse was of government procurement card spending by his Department in each year since 2010.
tabling member constituency	Croydon North
tabling member printed	Steve Reed
uin	23869
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/05/2024 answer text <p>The table below sets out total expenditure using government procurement cards for the given financial years. Information relating to 2010 to 2016 is not readily available.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Financial Year</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Amount</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2016-17</p></td><td><p>£147,167</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2017-18</p></td><td><p>£474,619</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2018-19</p></td><td><p>£1,324,366</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2019-20</p></td><td><p>£1,311,324</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2020-21</p></td><td><p>£698,353</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2021-22</p></td><td><p>£584,345</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2022-23</p></td><td><p>£660,352</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2023-24</p></td><td><p>£646,102</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 07/05/2024 12:30:16 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4268 label Biography information for Steve Reed

1713734

registered interest
date	24/04/2024
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	Air Quality Grant Scheme
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made an assessment of the impact that withdrawing funding for the Air Quality Grant Scheme will have on public health.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL4084
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p>An impact assessment on public health was not carried out before withdrawing the Air Quality Grant Scheme for 2023-2024. The Minister used his discretion not to fund the Local Air Quality Grant Scheme for the 2023-2024 financial year. He has asked Defra officials to consider the future of the scheme and how it might be redesigned to better deliver positive outcomes for local air quality and public health and therefore enhanced value for money for taxpayers.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 24/05/2024 09:15:38 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1713735

registered interest
date	24/04/2024
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	Air Quality Grant Scheme
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 report by the University of Copenhagen Lifetime exposure to air pollution and academic achievement: A nationwide cohort study in Denmark, published in March, particularly the finding that high levels of air pollution may negatively impact children’s cognitive development; and whether in light of this they will consider reinstating funding for the Air Quality Grant Scheme.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL4085
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p>The Government keeps new studies on health impacts of air pollution under review and is advised by the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP).</p><p> </p><p>The Minister used his discretion not to fund the Local Air Quality Grant Scheme for the 2023-2024 financial year. He has asked Defra officials to consider the future of the scheme and how it might be redesigned to better deliver positive outcomes for local air quality and public health and therefore enhanced value for money for taxpayers.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 24/05/2024 09:51:12 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1713738

registered interest
date	24/04/2024
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	Immigration Controls: Borders
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support small businesses in adapting to additional costs for post-Brexit border checks.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL4088
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2024 answer text <p>To support SMEs, Defra has identified and issued guidance on a number of facilitations and mitigations to reduce the burden of sanitary and phytosanitary import requirements using groupage.</p><p> </p><p>The Common User Charge is designed to spread the costs to be recovered across the maximum number of imports. This approach distributes the cost across business of all sizes and sectors and provides a high level of predictability on costs for all importers.</p><p> </p><p>The impact of the Common User Charge on businesses, and especially on small businesses, will be kept under monthly and quarterly reviews, with rates reviewed and updated annually.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 13/05/2024 11:25:20 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1713026

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	Inland Border Facilities: Ashford
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 number of checks that will be carried out on medium risk goods under the Border Target Operating Model at Sevington in May 2024.
tabling member constituency	Walthamstow
tabling member printed	Stella Creasy
uin	23195
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2024 answer text <p>Estimates of the operational capacity of Sevington have been based on a throughput model that seeks to model the flow of goods into the site based on the volumes, seasonal trends, timetabling of ferries and operational assumptions around the number of bays in use, and the duration of inspections including marshalling time and cleaning.</p><p> </p><p>Our checks are intelligence-led and based on biosecurity risk. It would be inappropriate for us to set out operational details like the exact inspection details from 30 April. Traders should continue to follow the published guidance which sets out BTOM inspection rates.</p><p> </p><p>DEFRA will gradually increase changes in controlled stages to balance biosecurity risk and maintain trade flows whilst minimising disruption at the border.</p><p> </p><p>This will allow the level of goods inspected at the border to be operationally manageable over the introductory stages.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer grouped question UIN 24030 24031 question first answered 13/05/2024 16:03:40 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4088 label Biography information for Stella Creasy

1713088

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	Textiles: Recycling
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to his Department's policy paper entitled The waste prevention programme for England: Maximising Resources, Minimising Waste, updated on 10 August 2023, what progress he has made on developing a pilot Extended Producer Responsibility scheme for textiles; what his planned timetable is for publication of that pilot scheme; and what progress he has made on an impact assessment for non-domestic premises to support the textiles waste hierarchy.
tabling member constituency	Bedford
tabling member printed	Mohammad Yasin
uin	23261
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2024 answer text <p>The EPR sandbox led by UKFT, and funded by UK Government is using data to explore a system that incentivises circular economy principles across the textiles supply chain. We look forward to the results of this project later this year.</p><p> </p><p>Since publication of Maximising Resources, Minimising Waste we have been engaging with stakeholders across the supply chain to develop the proposals for the consultation and build the evidence base for the impact assessment. The consultation is our priority, but we are open to other suggestions from the industry about what the most effective interventions could be, including how a potential Extended Producer Responsibility scheme for textiles could work.</p><p> </p><p>We are collaborating with our delivery partner the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) on the Textiles Waste Hierarchy. It will be a comprehensive guide for organisations that will be impacted by the proposals and those who handle used textiles. By including examples of good practice and case studies we hope, once developed, it will help organisations and citizens navigate changes that will reduce textiles waste across the supply chain.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 16/05/2024 16:43:57 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4598 label Biography information for Mohammad Yasin

1712645

registered interest
date	22/04/2024
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	Import Controls
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 12 March (HL2920), whether they will forecast the impact of different charges at different border control posts on traffic volumes, queues and emissions once the commercial ports have set their own fees.
tabling member printed	Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick
uin	HL4006
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2024 answer text <p>It is up to individual commercial ports to determine their own charging structure and rates. This will allow ports to ensure costs cover their expenses while remaining viable for both industry and businesses.</p><p> </p><p>Border Control Posts are designed to handle high volumes of imported sanitary and phytosanitary goods and offer extended opening hours with staff working shifts on site to carry out reliable checks which minimise friction on traffic flow.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has worked with port and airport operators, traders, Port Health Authorities and the Animal and Plant Health Agency to make sure we have the right infrastructure, systems and resources in place.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 13/05/2024 11:24:53 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4130 label Biography information for Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick

1712647

registered interest
date	22/04/2024
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	Lake Windermere: Pollution
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 impact of pollution in Lake Windermere.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL4008
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p>A thorough investigation by the Environment Agency (EA) into the pollution incident at Lake Windermere earlier this year remains ongoing, which involves examining further evidence from United Utilities (UU). If the EA determines a permit breach has taken place, it will not hesitate to take enforcement action up to and including a criminal prosecution.</p><p> </p><p>Windermere is affected by pollution from a range of different sources, including sewage discharges from water company assets, private septic tanks/sewage works and road and agricultural run-off, as well as physical modifications. Climate change has also altered temperature, precipitation and weather patterns which can affect the lake's water quality, by altering nutrient cycles, water chemistry and aquatic habitats, and affect the amount of water resulting in droughts and floods.</p><p> </p><p>The last Water Framework Directive full water body classification results in 2019 assessed that Lake Windermere achieved moderate ecologic status and is impacted by excessive nutrients, leading to algal growth and cyanobacterial blooms.</p><p> </p><p>Recent data shows a 30% reduction in phosphorus – which can lead to algal blooms – entering the lake since 2020 and this reduction is predominantly due to EA-driven improvements to UU Wastewater Treatment Works.</p><p> </p><p>Water quality modelling continues to quantify the different sources of pollution in Windermere and the impact that it is having in different parts of the lake. The EA is also working with the Love Windermere partnership to improve the overall health of the lake through behavioural and societal change.</p> answering member printed Lord Douglas-Miller question first answered 24/05/2024 09:12:55 answering member 5006 label Biography information for Lord Douglas-Miller
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1712731

registered interest
date	22/04/2024
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	Pollution: Slough
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to enhance the monitoring of industrial pollution from (a) the new power station, (b) the Grundon energy from waste plant in Colnbrook and (c) other sites in Slough.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	23009
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2024 answer text <p>Industrial activities in England are regulated under the Environmental Permitting Regulations (England and Wales) 2016. All large industrial facilities, such as large combustion plants and energy from waste, are regulated by the Environment Agency (EA) and must comply with environmental permits, use best available techniques (BAT) to reduce emissions to air, water and land, and monitor and report their emissions. The BAT approach ensures standards are enhanced over time by defining the available techniques which are the best for preventing or minimising emissions and impacts on the environment.</p><p> </p><p>The EA inspects and audits industrial installations to ensure they are complying with the requirements of their permits. For example, energy from waste sites have continuous air emissions monitoring for key pollutants which all plants must carry out. Smaller sites are regulated by local authorities. Control and monitoring requirements of emissions to air are set through a BAT approach which informs permit requirements.</p><p> </p><p>The EA has confirmed that the current monitoring of industrial pollution of the sites it regulates in Slough meets all of the requirements set out in the Industrial Emissions Directive. There is an accreditation standard for monitoring of all industrial emissions.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Sir Mark Spencer question first answered 20/05/2024 14:39:55 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1702494

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	River Wear: 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 steps he is taking to reduce the level of pollution in the River Wear.
tabling member constituency	City of Durham
tabling member printed	Mary Kelly Foy
uin	22815
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p>The Environment Agency (EA) routinely assesses the level of pollution in the River Wear, taking water samples from multiple sampling sites. The EA is working with the Coal Authority, Northumbrian Water and local farmers to reduce pollution levels in the River Wear.</p><p /><p>Northumbrian Water who operate in and around the River Wear has been informed that the inspection rates of their facilities will increase fourfold over this financial year. This will put the onus on Northumbrian Water to increase compliance at their sites which discharge into the River Wear.</p><p> </p><p>The government's Storm Overflow Discharge Reduction Plan is driving investment to reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows. This includes storm overflows discharging into the River Wear.</p><p> </p><p>Since 2011, the Water and Abandoned Metal Mine programme has delivered a number of small-scale interventions in the Wear catchment to begin to address the approximately 80km of the River Wear and its tributaries that are polluted by lead, cadmium or zinc.</p><p> </p><p>Defra and the EA continue to work with farmers in the River Wear catchment, and across the country, to minimise and prevent agricultural pollution. This includes through advice-led enforcement of farm regulations to bring farmers into compliance, providing significant grant funding to improve infrastructure and adopt new technologies, and paying farmers through Environmental Land Schemes to deliver improved environmental outcomes.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Robbie Moore question first answered 24/05/2024 13:29:44 answering member 4861 label Biography information for Robbie Moore
tabling member	4753 label Biography information for Mary Kelly Foy