1 Biography information for Baroness Chapman of Darlington Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 13 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Darlington Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 278953 House of Commons To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of preventing imports of sheep meat into the UK in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal. false Sheep Meat: UK Trade with EU 2019-07-23T16:18:34.393Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-23 Biography information for Sir Robert Goodwill <p>The Government announced on 13 March that we would apply the maximum level of tariff protection in line with our World Trade Organization (WTO) commitments for the UK sheep meat sector. In particular, the tariff for sheep meat would be set at the ‘bound rate’, which is the highest tariff we are able to apply to imports.</p><p><br> The UK would, however, be retaining a share of current EU WTO quotas for sheep meat, including imports from New Zealand to meet our commitments at the WTO. The share has been calculated based on apportioning the EU quota in proportion to previous trade flows.</p><p> </p> 1 Jenny Chapman 2019-07-18 13 Jenny Chapman Darlington 1 Sheep Meat: UK Trade with EU 278955 2019-07-18 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of potential demand for UK produced sheep meat in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal. false Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2019-07-23T16:22:30.53Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-23 <p>The Government recognises the concerns of our UK sheep farmers and is determined to get the best deal for them as we leave the EU. The UK is the largest producer of sheep and by far the largest exporter of sheepmeat in the EU. Around a third of production is exported, 95% of which is to the EU.</p><p> </p><p>We are doing all we can to mitigate the challenges our farmers will face and we have contingency plans in place to minimise disruption. In the event of a ‘no deal’, an increased availability of lamb on the domestic market could filter through to increased demand for our globally recognised product.</p><p> </p><p>A recent study carried out by The Andersons Centre for the UK’s levy bodies for the red meat sector looked into the impact of tariff and non-tariff measures on the sector, which included analysis on domestic consumption.</p> Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Stroud 2019-07-23T17:15:27.927Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-23 <p>Alongside the introduction of the Agriculture Bill last September we published an analysis of the impacts of phasing out and delinking Direct Payments. Delinking may encourage a faster transition of farming businesses and may help those who choose to leave farming. This could increase the ease with which new entrants can acquire land for farming.</p><p> </p> Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 277626 Agriculture: Subsidies To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of delinking basic payments from the land as outlined in paragraphs 91 to 99 of the explanatory notes to the Environment Bill on patterns of land ownership in rural areas. 1 2019-07-16 Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Biography information for Dr David Drew Dr David Drew 13 false Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Haltemprice and Howden Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 277642 2019-07-16 Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2019-07-22T12:01:27.743Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-22 <p>Farming has a bright future outside the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy. The Great Yorkshire Show demonstrated the strengths that British farming has to offer with a record-breaking number of entries for sheep and cattle, and great produce from Wensleydale cheese to North Yorkshire game.</p><p> </p><p>I know very well the importance of supporting these farmers in Yorkshire and Humber, home to my own constituency and farm, as well as my Rt Hon friend’s constituency, Haltemprice and Howden. As we prepare to leave the EU, the UK Government is taking a number of steps to support our farmers and industry in England and across the UK.</p><p> </p><p>For the UK as a whole, the Government has pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament, expected in 2022; this includes all funding provided for farm support under both Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 of the current Common Agricultural Policy.</p><p /><p>The Government has also guaranteed that any projects where funding has been agreed before the end of 2020 will be funded for their full lifetime. This means, in the event the UK leaves the EU with no deal, the UK Government would fund any remaining payments to farmers, land managers and rural businesses due after October 2019. This would ensure continued funding for these projects until they finish. The guarantee also means that Defra and the devolved administrations can continue to sign new projects after the UK leaves the EU during 2019 and 2020.</p><p> </p><p>As agriculture is devolved, each administration will have the flexibility to develop agricultural policy suited to their own unique circumstances, once the UK has left the EU. It is for the Scottish, Welsh and future Northern Ireland Governments to decide upon future agricultural policies for their respective nations.</p><p> </p><p>For farmers in England, the Agriculture Bill marks a decisive shift in our support. We will create an ambitious new system based on paying “public money for public goods”. Public goods will include improving air and water quality, and habitats for wildlife. By paying for things the public value, we can also improve animal welfare and reduce the use of antibiotics in our food chain. Financial support for innovations like precision farming can help farmers become more productive, reduce the use of expensive chemicals and protect the environment.</p><p> </p><p>Critically, our Agriculture Bill also includes a seven year transition period of 2021–2027 for Direct Payments to help farmers in England to plan for the future. In the meantime direct payments for 2019 and 2020 will be made on the same basis as they are now, with simplifications where possible.</p> 1 Agriculture: Subsidies To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support the farming and agriculture industry in (a) the UK, (b) Yorkshire and the Humber and (c) Haltemprice and Howden constituency. 13 false Biography information for Sir David Davis Mr David Davis Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Sir Nicholas Soames Mid Sussex false Salmon 13 Environment, Food and Rural Affairs To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on salmon stocks in English rivers of seals. 2019-07-22T12:01:44.237Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-22 <p>No formal assessment of the effect of seal activity on Atlantic salmon stocks has been made in English rivers.</p><p> </p><p>Although diet studies suggest that seals typically prey on other fish species, seals are known to consume salmon in estuaries, around nets and river mouths. Predation by seals is controlled by regulations including licensed sustainable culling, as well as non-lethal methods such as sound scaring equipment.</p> 277604 Biography information for Lord Soames of Fletching 2019-07-16 1 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Mid Sussex 1 false Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2019-07-22T11:52:49.237Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-22 <p>Defra funds research conducted by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and the Environment Agency to address factors contributing to the decline of salmon in English rivers. Factors, such as water quality, migration barriers, marine survival and exploitation are addressed in Defra’s 5 year Implementation Plan for Salmon Management in England and Wales, conducted by Cefas for the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation. Progress on these plans is reported on annually.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Projects Defra is currently funding include:</p><p>- Anthropogenic Factors – ‘Prioritising the management of salmonid based on the relative impacts of anthropogenic factors’</p><p>- Stock assessment methodology improvement – ‘Genetic sex ratio analysis of salmon smolts and adults’</p><p>- Climate Change – ‘Predicted effects of Climate Change on UK diadromous fish populations’</p> Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Sir Nicholas Soames Salmon 2019-07-16 13 To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research programmes on the decline of salmon stocks in English rivers his Department is currently allocating funding to. 277605 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 1 2019-07-18T13:12:16.39Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-18 <p>We are pursuing a wide range of interventions as part of the Government’s strategy to eradicate bovine TB in England by 2038, including strengthening cattle testing and movement controls, licensing badger control, and promoting biosecurity on farms to help farmers prevent the spread of Bovine TB. Sir Charles Godfray’s independent review (published in November 2018) is an important contribution that will inform next steps in the strategy.</p><p> </p><p>In my Written Ministerial Statement of 20 June 2019, I announced plans to reinforce TB testing in the High Risk Area, invited applications for a third round of the Badger Edge Vaccination Scheme and confirmed the licensing and authorisation by Natural England of three supplementary badger control areas for 2019.</p><p> </p><p>Our partnerships with other organisations have enabled the development of toolkits that support farmers to understand their role in the prevention and eradication of the disease, including the TB Hub, the iBTB website and the TB Advisory Service.</p><p> </p> Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control Biography information for Mr Steve Baker Mr Steve Baker To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help farmers tackle the spread of bovine TB. Wycombe Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2019-07-15 false Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 13 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 277178 To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to incentivise sustainable agricultural practices through the Environmental Land Management scheme. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Agriculture: Subsidies Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2019-07-15 Layla Moran Biography information for Layla Moran 277285 1 false 13 Oxford West and Abingdon 2019-07-23T15:31:36.037Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-23 <p>The Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS) will be underpinned by the principle of payment of public money for public goods such as: clean air; clean and plentiful water; thriving plants and wildlife; reduced risk of harm from environmental hazards such as flooding and drought; enhanced beauty, heritage and engagement for the natural environment and mitigating and adapting to climate change. As the detail of the ELMS is developed, Defra will be exploring with stakeholders where sustainable farming practices can contribute to the delivery of these public goods.</p><p> </p> 1 To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to help the agricultural sector create new jobs in environmental land management. Layla Moran false 2019-07-23T15:25:22.49Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-23 <p>Through our proposed reforms and the policies set out in the Agriculture Bill we will increase demand and therefore employment opportunities for those who have these skills by financially supporting farmers who undertake environmental works. We regularly discuss these reforms with farmers and the educational and advisory services that serve farming; including the Food and Drink Sector Council who are specifically looking at the workforce, skills and jobs we want to see in the future.</p><p> </p> Agriculture: Environment Protection Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Oxford West and Abingdon 2019-07-15 277287 13 Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Environment, Food and Rural Affairs To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure the equity of the transition to environmental land management payments for farms of different sizes. Agriculture: Subsidies 277105 2019-07-15 13 2019-07-22T16:11:56.317Z Scarborough and Whitby Mr Robert Goodwill false 2019-07-22 <p>The seven year agricultural transition period in England, as set out in the Agriculture Bill, will make sure there is a gradual transition from the current system to the new, avoiding a cliff edge for farm businesses of all sizes. It will give all farmers sufficient time to adapt and prepare for the new Environmental Land Management system which will be piloted and rolled out during the transition.</p><p>During the transition, we will apply reductions to Direct Payments in a fair way, with higher reductions initially applied to amounts in higher payment bands.</p><p>This method balances the views of those who feel recipients of the highest payments should initially face higher reductions with the strong calls for the reductions to be shared amongst all farmers from the start of the transition.</p> false 1 Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Stroud Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Dr David Drew Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 4204 10 0