Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1715976

registered interest
date	07/05/2024
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	Soil
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government when soil monitoring data from Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment programme will become available.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL4375
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2024 answer text <p>The Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment is a new environmental monitoring programme, assessing the state and condition of ecosystems in England and their natural capital. The field data, including soils data, is being collected on a five-year cycle that runs from 2023/24 to 2027/28. Final statistics and data will be published after 2027/28 when 100% of the data has been collected and there are outline plans to publish interim statistics, mid cycle, once 50% of the field data has been collected.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 17/05/2024 13:23:15 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1713281

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	Soil
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect soil monitoring data will become available from the Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment Programme.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL4022
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/05/2024 answer text <p>The Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment is a new environmental monitoring programme, assessing the state and condition of ecosystems in England and their natural capital. The field data, including soils data, is being collected on a 5-year cycle that runs from 2023/24 to 2027/28. Final statistics and data will be published after 2027/28 when 100% of the data has been collected and there are outline plans to publish interim statistics, mid cycle, once 50% of the field data has been collected.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 01/05/2024 11:08:06 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1695945

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
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	Soil: Environment Protection
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in developing indicator E7 on healthy soils as part of the Outcome Indicator Framework for monitoring progress of the 25 Year Environment Plan.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL3230
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/03/2024 answer text <p>The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) published a concept model for a soil health indicator in June 2023 (please see attached) and we intend to develop a more comprehensive model by 2025. A progress report on the development of the indicator will be published by June 2024.</p><p> </p><p>Improving soil health and monitoring changes over time is a priority for government. The E7 indicator for soil health in England will use comprehensive data on soil characteristics (physical, chemical, and biological) and land use to show how different soils are contributing to different ecosystem services as a measure of soil health. Towards the end of financial year 2022/2023, we began national soil monitoring under the Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) programme. The data will inform ambitious, proactive, and sustainable policy decisions to support the government's goal to improve the state of the environment within a generation.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 20/03/2024 15:35:11 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1691280

registered interest
date	22/02/2024
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	AquaCultured Seafood: Finance
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have provided public funds towards Aquacultured Seafood Limited for its on-land fish farm in Grimsby; and, if so, how much.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL2698
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2024 answer text <p>Having reviewed our records, we can confirm that Aquacultured Seafood Limited has not received public funding from Defra-managed fisheries funding schemes. Fisheries funding schemes comprise the UK Seafood Fund, the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 12/03/2024 14:23:21 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1687656

registered interest
date	05/02/2024
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	West Africa: Timber
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have assessed the amount of rosewood timber that is exported from West African countries such as Mali, The Gambia and Senegal; what steps they have taken to ban or control within UK markets the sale of products made from West African rosewood; and what steps they have taken to protect endangered wild species, including rosewood in West Africa.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL2178
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/02/2024 answer text <p>The UK is currently contributing funding towards a Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) study on the conservation and trade in rosewood tree species but does yet not have an assessment of rosewood timber exports. We have robust mechanisms in place through the UK Timber Regulations (UKTR), which prohibit the placing of illegally harvested timber and timber products on the GB market and require operators - those first placing timber products on the market - to exercise due diligence. Those who trade in timber and timber products after they have been placed on the market are required to keep records of who they buy timber products from and any traders they sell them to. This enables timber and timber products to be traced.</p><p> </p><p>The primary objective of the UKTR is to tackle illegal logging and to create a demand for legally harvested timber. Implementing the Regulations enables the protection of forests around the world, supporting the Government’s ambition to lead the world in environmental protection, end extreme poverty, and be at the forefront of action against global climate change.</p><p> </p><p>The requirement to exercise due diligence under UKTR does not apply where a valid CITES permit accompanies the timber.</p><p> </p><p>Rosewood species (Dalbergia and Guibourtia spp.) are listed on the CITES Appendices and so most rosewood timber imports into the UK will need a valid permit. Permit applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis by the UK CITES Management Authority, which will only issue permits if it has been possible to determine that the specimens to be imported were legally acquired and sustainably harvested.</p><p> </p><p>The Government provides grants to a wide range of stakeholders to contribute to the protection of endangered wild species, including tackling illegal wildlife trade in West Africa, through the Biodiversity Challenge Funds. While these do not address rosewood in West Africa specifically, this has included empowering communities to protect their forests by the Society for the Conservation of Nature of Liberia, and supporting Royal Botanic Gardens Kew to monitor and halt illegal timber trade through DNA barcoding in Gabon and Congo (Brazzaville).</p><p> </p><p>Further information on these examples and other projects supported by the Biodiversity Challenge Funds can be found at the websites of the Darwin Initiative and the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 13/02/2024 11:51:40 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1682796

registered interest
date	17/01/2024
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	Forests: Commodities
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that regulated persons in relation to forest risk commodities establish and implement due diligence systems in relation to those commodities, as required under the Environment Act 2021.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL1678
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2024 answer text <p>The UK Government introduced new legislation through the Environment Act to tackle illegal deforestation in UK supply chains. Recent research estimates that around 70% of global tropical deforestation for commercial agriculture between 2013 and 2019 was conducted in violation of national laws.</p><p> </p><p>The Government announced further details of our Forest Risk Commodities regulations at COP28 in December. The new law will make it illegal for larger organisations, with a global annual turnover of more than £50m, to use key forest risk commodities produced on land illegally occupied or used. Initial secondary legislation will focus on four commodities identified as key drivers of deforestation: cattle products (excluding dairy), cocoa, palm oil and soy.</p><p> </p><p>Organisations in scope will also be required to undertake a due diligence exercise on their supply chains and to report on this exercise annually. To ensure transparency, information about businesses' due diligence exercises will be published.  Businesses in scope that do not comply with these requirements may be subject to fines and other civil sanctions. The secondary legislation required to operationalise the Environment Act provisions will be laid as soon as parliamentary time allows.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 23/01/2024 15:31:28 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1672487

registered interest
date	22/11/2023
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	Fishing Catches: Cetaceans
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how many cetaceans were caught in UK waters in 2022; and how that number compares to estimates of cetacean bycatch.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL504
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2023 answer text <p>All cetaceans are fully protected in UK waters under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations. In the UK, it is an offence to deliberately disturb, harm, capture or kill wild cetaceans. We are not aware of any cetaceans being caught illegally in UK waters in 2022.</p><p> </p><p>The UK introduced new rules in 2021 making it mandatory under fishing vessel licence conditions for fishers to report any marine mammal bycatch to the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). On the introduction of this requirement, communications were sent out by Defra, the Devolved Administrations and the MMO to ensure that industry understood the new obligations.</p><p> </p><p>This reporting is complemented by a range of other monitoring programmes.</p><p> </p><p>The Government funds the UK Bycatch Monitoring Programme which uses onboard observers to estimate bycatch rates and high-risk gear types. The 2022 annual programme report will be completed and published, once fishing effort figures for 2022 are finalised and can be integrated into bycatch estimates.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, both the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) and the Scottish Marine Animal Strandings Scheme investigate the causes of death of stranded cetaceans around the UK coast to improve our understanding of, and ability to tackle, key threats like bycatch. CSIP strandings data are published in annual reports. Due to unprecedented events, including the coronavirus pandemic and the UK’s largest ever outbreak of avian influenza, the delivery of project reports has been delayed. The 2022 annual report will be finalised shortly and released in due course, following publication assurance processes.</p><p> </p><p>Since 2020, Defra has also funded Clean Catch UK, a research programme which is developing and trialling a range of bycatch monitoring and mitigation measures. This programme has developed a bycatch self-reporting mobile application and an online ‘Bycatch Mitigation Hub’ with information on different approaches to reduce bycatch.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise that accidental bycatch in fisheries is one of the greatest threats faced by cetaceans, and we remain fully committed to tackling this and addressing monitoring gaps. In 2022, the UK Government and Devolved Administrations published the UK Bycatch Mitigation Initiative (BMI). This outlines how the UK will achieve its ambitions to minimise and, where possible, eliminate the bycatch of sensitive marine species. As a core objective of the BMI, the Government will continue to build on existing monitoring work to improve our understanding of bycatch and entanglement of sensitive marine species.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 29/11/2023 14:44:54 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1672488

registered interest
date	22/11/2023
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	Fisheries: Monitoring
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether footage captured through remote electronic monitoring of fishing will be available to the public or just to designated observers; and if just to designated observers, how this will be monitored.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL505
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2023 answer text <p>We do not anticipate making raw footage available to the public. How remote electronic monitoring (REM) data would be reviewed would depend on the data objectives for that fishery. We consulted on the data objectives in our recent consultation on REM in English waters. We are considering responses to this consultation and will publish a response in due course.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 29/11/2023 14:24:45 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1672489

registered interest
date	22/11/2023
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	Fisheries: Monitoring
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government why the rollout of remote electronic monitoring of fishing (1) is voluntary, and (2) has been slow; and what consideration they have given (a) to making it mandatory, and (b) to expediting its implementation.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL506
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2023 answer text <p>Our recent consultation on remote electronic monitoring (REM) in English waters proposed a phased approach to the expansion of REM. This would begin with volunteers in priority fisheries and then become mandatory for all vessels in those fisheries. In this consultation we also sought views on the timeline and other implementation issues. We are considering consultation responses and will publish a response in due course.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 29/11/2023 14:02:15 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

1672490

registered interest
date	22/11/2023
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	Fisheries: Monitoring
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what are their contingency plans in the event that insufficient numbers of fishing vessels volunteer to adopt remote electronic monitoring.
tabling member printed	Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle
uin	HL507
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2023 answer text <p>Our current expectation is that we will have sufficient volunteers to expand the use of remote electronic monitoring (REM) in 2024. In our recent consultation on REM in English waters, we proposed the establishment of steering groups. Among other things, these would enable us to develop our approach with stakeholders across relevant fisheries. This could include looking at alternatives if sufficient volunteers were not forthcoming.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 29/11/2023 13:57:29 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4719 label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle