Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>The Government shares the public’s high regard for animal welfare, and the welfare of our farmed livestock in all systems is protected by comprehensive and robust legislation. After we leave the EU we will look to strengthen our world class welfare standards as new research and evidence emerges. In England, we intend to develop publicly funded schemes for farmers to deliver animal welfare enhancements beyond our high regulatory baseline that are valued by the public, but not sufficiently rewarded by the market. We also want to provide greater transparency and certainty for consumers, so that they have a clear understanding of the animal welfare standards applying to products. We note that the European Chicken Commitment initiative is also promoting enhancements beyond the regulatory baseline and we look forward to seeing how this voluntary initiative progresses.</p>MacclesfieldDavid Rutley2019-07-17false2019-07-17T14:40:12.617Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-12Poultry: Animal Welfare1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to encourage (a) supermarkets, (b) restaurant chains and (c) hotel groups to sign up to the European chicken commitment.falseNewcastle-under-LymePaul Farrelly276519Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Gov.uk contains a guidance page that provides information on the identification and treatment of Japanese Knotweed as well as providing links to The Invasive Non-Native Specialists Association and Property Care Association website for further advice.</p><p> </p><p>The Non-Native Species Secretariat website includes general information on Japanese knotweed and has also made a good practice management guide for Japanese knotweed freely available for download.</p><p> </p>Suffolk CoastalDr Thérèse Coffey2019-07-17false2019-07-17T14:32:32.827Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-12Japanese Knotweed: Weed Control1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that homeowners are aware of Japanese knotweed, and what guidance his Department provides to homeowners who are affected by that invasive species.falseNewcastle-under-LymePaul Farrelly276522Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>The Government is keen that the welfare needs of racehorses are well met, both during their racing lives and afterwards. The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) is responsible for the safety of racehorses at British racecourses and the BHA works alongside the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare to make horseracing as safe as possible.</p><p> </p><p>In relation to starting stalls, the incidence of stalls fatalities is low. In 2018 there was one stalls fatality over the course of 6,591 flat races. In addition the BHA Starting Team discuss any incident which occurs in the stalls with Veterinary Officers and staff handlers to improve safety.</p><p> </p><p>However, both I and the BHA consider that more can be done to make horseracing safer in general which is why I have been holding regular discussions with the BHA about this. Most recently on the 14 May, I met with the BHA as well as the new independent Chair of the BHA’s newly appointed Horse Welfare Board. This was a constructive meeting where the number of fatalities of racehorses was acknowledged and both sides agreed that further action is required to tackle avoidable harm and make the sport safer.</p><p> </p><p>The Board committed to doing all it can to improve welfare outcomes. I stressed the need for the BHA in conjunction with the Horse Welfare Board to develop a robust action plan that will deliver tangible results and intend to stay in regular contact with both the BHA and newly appointed Horse Welfare Board to continue to press for improvements in racehorse welfare.</p>MacclesfieldDavid Rutley2019-07-16false2019-07-16T15:45:53.287Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-11Horse Racing: Animal Welfare1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2019 to Question 242198 on Horse Racing: Animal Welfare, what the timescale is for improving the design of starting stalls.falseYork CentralRachael Maskell276229Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Our current high standards, including import requirements, will apply when we leave the EU. High standards and high quality are what our domestic and global customers demand, and that is what we will provide. We have been clear across Government, from the Prime Minister down, that we will not lower our standards in pursuit of trade deals.</p>Scarborough and WhitbyMr Robert Goodwill2019-07-16false2019-07-16T13:45:06.097Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-11Beef: South America1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to ban the import of beef from South America if it does not meet UK standards for sustainable farming after the UK leaves the EU.falseNewcastle-under-LymePaul Farrelly276166Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>The Government welcomes the report by the Committee on Climate Change. We are committed to taking robust action to improve resilience to climate change, and will formally respond to the Committee’s detailed recommendations in October, in line with the timetable set out in the Climate Change Act.</p><p> </p>MacclesfieldDavid Rutley2019-07-15false2019-07-15T14:00:31.523Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-10Climate Change1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the report of the Committee on Climate Change entitled, Progress in preparing for climate change, published on 10 July, for what reasons good progress was not made in any of the 33 sectors assessed by that Committee on actions needed to manage climate change risks.falseStroudDr David Drew275655Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>As set out in our 25 Year Environment Plan, this Government recognises the importance of green spaces for health and happiness as well as for environmental benefits such as sequestering carbon, absorbing noise, cleansing pollutants, absorbing surface water and reducing high temperatures. In the right place, using green spaces in towns and cities to help divert or store flood water can be beneficial, including using sustainable drainage systems such as permeable surfaces and ponds or natural flood management techniques in towns and cities as well as upstream.</p><p> </p><p>As we build more homes, preserving and creating green spaces in towns is more important than ever. We want to encourage local authorities to consider all flood management opportunities and developers to take into account all the benefits when deciding how much land to allocate as green space.</p><p> </p><p>To support this we have worked with colleagues in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to revise the National Planning Policy Framework to further encourage sustainable drainage systems, and published our Surface Water Management Action Plan which includes actions that will join up planning for surface water management and build local authority capacity. In addition, Natural England is developing a framework of national standards for green infrastructure in close consultation with stakeholders.</p>Suffolk CoastalDr Thérèse Coffey2019-07-15false2019-07-15T12:16:36.1Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-10Recreation Spaces1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of increasing green spaces in the UK to reduce the effect of flash flooding.falseCoventry SouthMr Jim Cunningham275672Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Environmental policy is largely a devolved matter. Northern Ireland officials requested to make options available to ensure that environmental governance in Northern Ireland can be safeguarded after the UK’s departure from the EU. We are working in conjunction with officials in DAERA to ensure the forthcoming Environment Bill enables the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) to provide effective oversight of the environment in Northern Ireland should the Executive in Northern Ireland agree to it.</p><p> </p><p>Executive officials’ agreement to extension of the Bill is on the basis of a default position that decisions on implementation will be left for returning Ministers and subject to the requisite Assembly scrutiny procedures.</p><p> </p><p>If a Northern Ireland executive decides to use the OEP in the future, it will then be for the OEP to work with the Executive to address any issues specific to the needs of Northern Ireland.</p><p> </p>Suffolk CoastalDr Thérèse Coffey2019-07-15275766275768false2019-07-15T16:52:48.337Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-10Office for Environmental Protection: Northern Ireland1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that the Office of Environmental Protection will take account of Northern Ireland’s specific environmental requirements should its jurisdiction apply there.falseBelfast EastGavin Robinson275765Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Environmental policy is largely a devolved matter. Northern Ireland officials requested to make options available to ensure that environmental governance in Northern Ireland can be safeguarded after the UK’s departure from the EU. We are working in conjunction with officials in DAERA to ensure the forthcoming Environment Bill enables the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) to provide effective oversight of the environment in Northern Ireland should the Executive in Northern Ireland agree to it.</p><p> </p><p>Executive officials’ agreement to extension of the Bill is on the basis of a default position that decisions on implementation will be left for returning Ministers and subject to the requisite Assembly scrutiny procedures.</p><p> </p><p>If a Northern Ireland executive decides to use the OEP in the future, it will then be for the OEP to work with the Executive to address any issues specific to the needs of Northern Ireland.</p><p> </p>Suffolk CoastalDr Thérèse Coffey2019-07-15275765275768false2019-07-15T16:52:48.387Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-10Office for Environmental Protection: Northern Ireland1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Office of Environmental Protection will have a physical presence in Northern Ireland should it have jurisdiction there.falseBelfast EastGavin Robinson275766Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Environmental policy is largely a devolved matter. Northern Ireland officials requested to make options available to ensure that environmental governance in Northern Ireland can be safeguarded after the UK’s departure from the EU. We are working in conjunction with officials in DAERA to ensure the forthcoming Environment Bill enables the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) to provide effective oversight of the environment in Northern Ireland should the Executive in Northern Ireland agree to it.</p><p> </p><p>Executive officials’ agreement to extension of the Bill is on the basis of a default position that decisions on implementation will be left for returning Ministers and subject to the requisite Assembly scrutiny procedures.</p><p> </p><p>If a Northern Ireland executive decides to use the OEP in the future, it will then be for the OEP to work with the Executive to address any issues specific to the needs of Northern Ireland.</p><p> </p>Suffolk CoastalDr Thérèse Coffey2019-07-15false2019-07-15T16:46:15.643Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-10Office for Environmental Protection: Northern Ireland1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure that (a) Northern Ireland is represented on the Office of Environmental Protection’s (OEP’s) Board and (b) that the specific needs of Northern Ireland are taken into account when the OEP’s budget and strategy is agreed.falseBelfast EastGavin Robinson275767Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs<p>Environmental policy is largely a devolved matter. Northern Ireland officials requested to make options available to ensure that environmental governance in Northern Ireland can be safeguarded after the UK’s departure from the EU. We are working in conjunction with officials in DAERA to ensure the forthcoming Environment Bill enables the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) to provide effective oversight of the environment in Northern Ireland should the Executive in Northern Ireland agree to it.</p><p> </p><p>Executive officials’ agreement to extension of the Bill is on the basis of a default position that decisions on implementation will be left for returning Ministers and subject to the requisite Assembly scrutiny procedures.</p><p> </p><p>If a Northern Ireland executive decides to use the OEP in the future, it will then be for the OEP to work with the Executive to address any issues specific to the needs of Northern Ireland.</p><p> </p>Suffolk CoastalDr Thérèse Coffey2019-07-15275765275766false2019-07-15T16:52:48.43Z13Environment, Food and Rural AffairsEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs2019-07-10Office for Environmental Protection: Northern Ireland1House of CommonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure Office of Environmental Protection staff have adequate knowledge and experience of Northern Ireland’s legislation and practices.falseBelfast EastGavin Robinson275768100110798