Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to introduce animal welfare standards for imports to ensure that products produced in ways that are illegal in the UK cannot enter the UK market.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All agri-food products must comply with our import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. This includes ensuring imported meat products have been slaughtered to animal welfare standards equivalent to our domestic standards.
The Government shares the public’s high regard for the high welfare standards we have in this country. As set out in the UK’s Trade Strategy, Defra will not lower food standards and will uphold high animal welfare standards.
Defra recognises concerns about methods of production which are not permitted in the UK. While production methods vary in line with different climates, diseases and other contextual reasons, Defra will always consider whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any impact that may have. Where necessary, the Government will be prepared to use the full range of powers at our disposal to protect our most sensitive sectors.
Asked by: Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrat - Wells and Mendip Hills)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2026 to Question 106499 on Tyres: Waste Disposal, how many of the 1,891 applications for an Annex VII document originated from exporters or businesses operating under a T8 exemption.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Of the 1,891 Annex VII documents received by the Environment Agency regarding the export of waste tyres between 28 October and 15 December 2025, 605 are from sites that have a T8 exemption.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her planned timetable is for a) reviewing and b) strengthening penalties for cruelty against wildlife.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The commitment to review and look to strengthen penalties for cruelty against wildlife - so they are consistent with higher levels of sentencing available for animal welfare offences against pets and livestock - was made in the Government’s Animal Welfare Strategy, published in December 2025. Any strengthening of penalties for cruelty against wildlife will require primary legislation, and Defra will seek to deliver this change as soon as a suitable primary vehicle is identified. The strategy document itself states there is an aim to achieve the changes and improvements set out within it by no later than 2030.
Asked by: Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrat - Wells and Mendip Hills)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2026 to Question 106499 on Tyres: Waste Disposal, how many Annex VII documents were submitted late for which the latest data is available.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency has received a total of 3,442 annex VII documents between 28 October to 2 February 2026 relating to the movement of waste tyres from England. 241 of these were considered late as they were received less than the required 3 days before the waste movement. The Environment Agency is now undertaking follow up activities and considering the use of stop notices for non-compliant companies.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many civil servants employed by their Department work in roles primarily focused on (a) transgender policy, (b) diversity, (c) equity and (d) inclusion; and at what annual salary cost.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The team responsible for policies relating to equity, diversity, and inclusion do not align roles to single protected characteristics. As of 31 December 2025, there were six employees (with a full-time equivalent of 6.0) on payroll in this team. The annual salary for the six employees totalled £302,927.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether environmental assessments undertaken by regional fisheries management organisations are regarded as meeting the requirements under Part 4 of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill; and if so, how deficiencies in cumulative impact assessment and public participation will be addressed.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Part 4 of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Bill introduces changes to the marine licensing regime to meet some of the UK’s obligations to the BBNJ Agreement. Fisheries issues are not typically considered within the remit of the marine licensing regime.
Part 4 of the BBNJ Agreement provides that an environmental impact assessment may not be required under the Agreement where the impacts of an activity have been assessed in accordance with the requirements of another relevant body. Such bodies may include, for example, Regional Fisheries Management Organisations. This includes where the regulations or standards arising from the assessment have been designed to prevent, mitigate or manage potential impacts below the threshold for an environmental impact assessment under the Agreement, and those have been complied with.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve water quality monitoring; and how many water quality monitoring stations are currently in place.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government’s new White Paper sets out once in a generation reforms that will transform the water system, including improvements to water quality monitoring. It sets out our commitment to ending ‘operator self-monitoring’ and to developing a new strengthened Open Monitoring approach for monitoring wastewater.
The Environment Agency (EA) currently undertakes water quality monitoring at 13,000 locations each year. Water quality monitoring is set to expand significantly by 2030 with the introduction of continuous water quality monitors at 25% of all applicable storm overflows and waste treatment works, and the installation of event duration monitors at 50% of all emergency overflows.
More broadly, the EA is actively exploring the potential for innovation, integration of data collected by other organisations and citizen scientists, and other opportunities to improve water quality monitoring. The EA is planning to integrate new data with its own monitoring to improve its understanding of water quality.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how cumulative, ecosystem-wide and transboundary environmental impacts will be assessed where an appropriate authority defers to an equivalent assessment under the Marine Works (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2007 as amended by the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
An appropriate authority will not, under the Marine Works EIA Regulations, be able to defer to another equivalent assessment unless that assessment meets all the requirements of Part 4 of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement. The BBNJ Agreement sets out what should be included in in an assessment including cumulative effects and any transboundary issues.
If the appropriate authority concludes the equivalent assessment does not adequately address the relevant environmental considerations, it must undertake its own environmental impact assessment. This will ensure the relevant impacts are assessed.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total annual expenditure on coastal protection against erosion by the sea, broken down by how much was spent in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales, and (4) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Coastal erosion risk management is a devolved responsibility; therefore, this response applies only to England.
Between April 2024 and March 2026, around £609 million will be invested in schemes that reduce risk from coastal erosion, sea flooding, and tidal flooding. Approximately £102 million of this is allocated to projects where coastal erosion is the primary risk, £56 million for 2024/2025 and £46 million for 2025/2026. Some projects reduce risk from multiple risk sources, so there may be some projects with coastal benefits that may not be included in these figures.
Further to this, on 28 January, the Government announced £30 million for Coastal Adaptation Pilots which will deliver advanced adaptation actions such as selective property purchases and the development of long-term financing solutions in East Riding of Yorkshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. The funding will also deliver smaller adaptation actions, such as relocating or adapting community buildings, and early warning systems in other places facing coastal erosion across England.
Asked by: Lord Smith of Finsbury (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the proposals in the Nuclear Regulatory Review 2025, published on 23 April 2025, whether they plan to retain the protected landscapes duty for national parks.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is carefully considering all recommendations of the Nuclear Taskforce’s report and will present a full implementation plan by the end of February. Defra is working with DESNZ and other government departments to set out this plan. We are considering these recommendations in line with our objectives to achieve win-wins for nature and growth, as well as meeting our international obligations.