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1662299

registered interest
date	21/09/2023
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	Agriculture: Soil
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support regenerative agriculture.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL10419
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/09/2023 answer text <p>Environmental land management (ELM) is the foundation of our new approach to farming. ELM includes the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI). This pays farmers for actions that support food production and can help improve farm productivity and resilience, while protecting and improving the environment. It will support sustainable food production and contribute towards the environmental targets set out in the government’s Environmental Improvement Plan. The SFI 2023 opened for applications on 18 September 2023, and farmers who have a live SFI 2023 agreement before the end of the year will receive an accelerated payment in the first month of their agreement.</p><p> </p><p>ELM’s Landscape Recovery (LR) scheme also supports a regenerative approach to agriculture. It focuses on restoring nature across a wider landscape, bringing together landowners and managers who want to take a more large-scale, long-term approach to producing environmental and climate goods on their land.  Projects involving elements of regenerative farming can apply. Round two LR pilot applications closed on 21 September 2023, but we have committed to launching a further round in 2024 and expect to continue to launch at least annual rounds in future years as we scale the scheme up.</p><p> </p><p>Our Countryside Stewardship scheme includes actions that can form part of a regenerative or restorative farming approach: to improve soil quality, enhance biodiversity, decrease water pollution, and restore, create, and manage habitats. We are expanding the scheme to make around 30 additional actions available to farmers by the end of 2024, as well as targeting our funding towards actions in places where they can have the biggest impacts, in ways that are joined up across larger areas.</p><p> </p><p>We are also offering farmers and land managers, including those who take a regenerative approach, funding for equipment, technology, and infrastructure that improves farm productivity and benefits the environment through the Farming Investment Fund. This offers funding for equipment, technology, and infrastructure that improves farm productivity and benefits the environment.</p><p> </p><p>The Farming Innovation Programme encourages groups of farmers, growers, businesses, and researchers to get involved in collaborative research and development. Farmers testing out regenerative approaches to agriculture will be able to apply for these grants, and we believe that by working together, they will be able to solve challenges and exploit opportunities for increasing productivity and environmental sustainability in the agricultural and horticultural sectors in England.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 28/09/2023 08:58:20 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1662302

registered interest
date	21/09/2023
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	Village Halls: Finance
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how much grant-funding was paid to village halls seeking to improve and modernise their facilities in (1) 2019, (2) 2020, (3) 2021, and (4) 2022.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL10422
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/09/2023 answer text <p>Village halls received grant funding to improve and modernise their facilities under the Village Hall Improvement Grant Fund in the amounts of (1) £392,228 in financial year 2019-2020, (2) £1,180,917 in financial year 2020-2021, (3) £868,357 in financial year 2021-2022, and (4) £203,742 in financial year 2022-2023.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 26/09/2023 13:31:03 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1660680

registered interest
date	13/09/2023
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	Farming Investment Fund
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 Benyon on 24 July (HL9373), how much has been paid out as part of the Farming Investment Fund.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL10160
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2023 answer text <p>The Farming Investment Fund (FIF) provides grants to farmers, foresters and growers (including contractors) to invest in the equipment, technology and infrastructure that will help their businesses grow, whilst increasing farm productivity and environmental sustainability. We have paid out over £46 million to date. This includes smaller value grants towards a specified list of items proven to be effective in raising farm productivity alongside environmental sustainability and animal health and welfare outcomes. It also includes larger grants run on a more flexible model where applicants are making higher-value investments for more significant infrastructure and equipment that is transformative to their farm businesses such as on-farm reservoirs, slurry storage and automation and robotics.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 18/09/2023 14:04:36 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1658882

registered interest
date	06/09/2023
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	Lighting: 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 results of Star Count 2023 project published by CPRE, the countryside charity.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL9948
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/09/2023 answer text <p>The Government has not made a formal assessment of the results of CPRE’s Star Count 2023. We recognise that light pollution may have an impact on people and the environment and have put in place a range of measures to ensure that artificial light is managed effectively. These include controls in the planning system, the statutory nuisance regime, and improvements in street lighting.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 15/09/2023 12:15:01 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1655044

registered interest
date	24/07/2023
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 Worrying
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to take forward in the current parliamentary session the provisions of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill on livestock worrying.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL9637
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/07/2023 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of livestock worrying very seriously, recognising the distress this can cause farmers and animals, as well as the financial implications. We will be taking forward measures from the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill individually through other means during the remainder of this Parliament.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 27/07/2023 10:47:35 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1653273

registered interest
date	14/07/2023
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	Farms: Renewable Energy
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what incentive schemes exist to promote the uptake of renewables among British farmers.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL9373
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/07/2023 answer text <p>Food production is the primary purpose of farming and we are backing British farmersdelivering long-term energy security with more renewables.</p><p><br> At the No 10 Farm to Fork Summit, the Government committed to expand this year’s grant offer for farmers to fund investments in barn-top solar. This will first be available for cattle farmers wishing to install solar alongside wider upgrades to their calf housing as part of the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway.</p><p><br> Government have also announced the Farming Investment Fund, which supports farmers investing in technologies with improved energy-use efficiency and use of renewable energy, and have provided funding for the Farming Innovation Programme which offers support to industry-driven research into innovative technologies. Government is also exploring renewable energy sources such as capturing methane on farms for use as biogas and green fuels for farm machinery, supporting further research into innovative new technologies.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 24/07/2023 15:17:00 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1653274

registered interest
date	14/07/2023
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	Farms: Carbon Capture and Storage
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what support exists for farmers who are not claimants of the Basic Payment Scheme and who want to plant hedges and trees for the purpose of carbon sequestration.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL9374
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/07/2023 answer text <p>There are several options available for farmers who are not claimants of the Basic Payment Scheme. Under the Countryside Stewardship (CS) Scheme, we pay for the management of hedgerows by rotational cutting and leaving some hedgerows uncut (BE3) and capital grants to plant and restore hedgerows. This includes hedgerow laying, hedgerow cropping and hedgerow gapping up.</p><p> </p><p>We pay for actions to create woodland under CS and the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO). This includes capital grants which are required to create woodland, such as planting trees and allowing natural colonisation of trees. Producing woodland creation plans ensure all proposals for new woodland consider any impacts on existing biodiversity, landscape character, water, soil and the historic environment, and that local stakeholders have been consulted. Maintenance payments are also essential to support the establishment of young trees.</p><p> </p><p>Woodland creation maintenance payments currently exist across multiple schemes including CS, EWCO and the Tree Health Pilot. We plan to bring these together into a single offer when EWCO transitions into the Environmental Land Management schemes. For Woodland management, under CS, we pay for producing a woodland management plan, woodland improvement and restoring plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites.</p><p> </p><p>Farmers and land managers can also apply to get money for projects that support carbon sequestration via our Landscape Recovery Scheme.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 24/07/2023 10:49:59 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1650589

registered interest
date	05/07/2023
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 Worrying
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 Benyon on 13 June (HL8317), how many (1) arrests, and (2) prosecutions, were made in connection to livestock worrying in the last four years.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL9080
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2023 answer text <p>Defra does not hold this information. Data on arrests and prosecutions may be held by individual police forces or by the courts.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 11/07/2023 11:27:45 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1643215

registered interest
date	08/06/2023
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	Horticulture: Peat
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what exemptions will there be to the general ban on the sale of peat and peat-containing products in the retail horticultural sector from 2024.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL8365
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2023 answer text <p>In August last year Ministers announced that the Government in England would be banning the sale of peat for use in the amateur gardening sector by 2024. We intend to provide various exemptions for professional growers up to 2030, including those for mushroom growing and plug plants. Discussions with stakeholders on the detail of these exemptions are ongoing. The legislation implementing our proposals will be introduced when Parliamentary time allows.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 16/06/2023 11:31:07 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans

1642831

registered interest
date	07/06/2023
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 Worrying
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support farmers who suffer from livestock worrying.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of St Albans
uin	HL8317
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/06/2023 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of livestock worrying very seriously, recognising the distress this can cause farmers and animals, as well as the financial implications. Section 3 of the Animals Act 1971 provides that anyone who is the keeper of a dog which causes damage by killing or injuring livestock will be liable for that damage. Furthermore, farmers can obtain and claim on their insurance in relation to losses incurred as a result of livestock worrying incidents. As highlighted in our 2021 Action Plan for Animal Welfare, we look forward to progressing the delivery of additional measures to tackle livestock worrying soon.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 13/06/2023 10:12:16 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4308 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of St Albans