To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.


Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Written Question
Chemicals: Health Hazards
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what processes the Environment Agency follows in identifying and nominating chemical substances to the Prioritisation and Early Warning System (PEWS) for chemicals of emerging concern; and whether there are routes for individuals or other organisations to raise chemical substances of concern to PEWS.

Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Environment Agency has developed a nomination process that integrates horizon scanning, environmental monitoring, and international collaboration. Nominations are received from internal and external stakeholders, collected from systematic reviews of published research, and watchlists developed by international environmental agency counterparts.

Individuals and organisations are able to feed into the nomination process by raising chemical substances of concern to any contact within DEFRA or the Environment Agency via PEWS@environment-agency.gov.uk who can nominate the substance following the instructions provided on the internal intranet page for PEWS.

The Environment Agency has adopted recommendations made by the Hazardous Substances Advisory Committee on stakeholder engagement, from their 2021 review of PEWS.


Written Question
Soil: Environment Protection
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

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.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

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.

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.


Written Question
AquaCultured Seafood: Finance
Tuesday 12th March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

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.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

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.


Written Question
Fish Products: Norway
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the products of the Norwegian fish farming industry imported into the UK on global health insecurity and food shortage as a result of the industry's use of feed and fish oil from Mauritania.

Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Addressing the ongoing global food security crisis and delivering sustainable food security for countries struggling with hunger and malnutrition is a priority for His Majesty’s Government. In 2022 the UK was one of the top 6 countries donors to the World Food Programme (over $400 million). Between 2016 and 2021, the UK spent £2.6 billion on longer-term food and agriculture programmes.

We are aware of recent reports that have suggested that the fishmeal industry based in Mauritania which supplies, among others, the Norwegian aquaculture sector is contributing to loss of livelihoods and malnutrition in West African nations. Assessments on the impact of supply chains to the Norwegian aquaculture sector are the responsibility of the Norwegian government.

The UK works directly to support food security and sustainable Ocean Management in West African countries affected by declining fish stocks. For example, as part of the £500 million Blue Planet Fund, the UK formalised a bilateral Ocean Country Partnership with Senegal in 2023. This partnership aims at reducing marine pollution, preserving marine biodiversity as well as helping fishing to be more sustainable.


Written Question
Sanitary Products: Safety
Wednesday 6th March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the safety of the use of silver in period products, including period pants and menstrual cups, in the light of concerns among the scientific community regarding the safety of the wearer and environmental impacts, particularly on aquatic life.

Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The UK has a comprehensive regulatory framework in place to ensure products are safe before they are placed on the market. Period products, including period pants and menstrual cups, are regulated by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005. This provides a baseline of safety for applicable products, requiring that only safe products, in their normal or reasonably foreseeable use, can be placed on the market. The law places obligations on producers, manufacturers, importers and distributors to ensure consumers are provided with safety information, including instructions for safe use. This includes risks that are not immediately obvious to consumers without adequate warnings, such as the use of additives and antimicrobial substances and the presence of silver in these products.

Period products are not classed as biocidal products under the GB Biocidal Products Regulation but are instead articles which contain or are treated with a biocidal product (such as a silver compound). A number of silver active substances are currently waiting to be assessed for safety and efficacy as biocides under the GB review programme of existing active substances. While this is the case they can be legally used in treated articles including period products.

Defra continues to monitor research on chemicals in period products as part of the UK REACH Work Programme, working closely with the Health and Safety Executive and the Environment Agency. This ongoing work covers all risks, including those relating to aquatic life. Studies carried out in the EU found that the chemicals identified in these products were present only in low concentrations, with no evidence of significant risks to human health.


Written Question
Sanitary Products
Wednesday 6th March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will take action to prevent the unnecessary use of additives and antimicrobial substances in period products claiming ‘anti-odour’ or ‘antimicrobial’ properties.

Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The UK has a comprehensive regulatory framework in place to ensure products are safe before they are placed on the market. Period products, including period pants and menstrual cups, are regulated by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005. This provides a baseline of safety for applicable products, requiring that only safe products, in their normal or reasonably foreseeable use, can be placed on the market. The law places obligations on producers, manufacturers, importers and distributors to ensure consumers are provided with safety information, including instructions for safe use. This includes risks that are not immediately obvious to consumers without adequate warnings, such as the use of additives and antimicrobial substances and the presence of silver in these products.

Period products are not classed as biocidal products under the GB Biocidal Products Regulation but are instead articles which contain or are treated with a biocidal product (such as a silver compound). A number of silver active substances are currently waiting to be assessed for safety and efficacy as biocides under the GB review programme of existing active substances. While this is the case they can be legally used in treated articles including period products.

Defra continues to monitor research on chemicals in period products as part of the UK REACH Work Programme, working closely with the Health and Safety Executive and the Environment Agency. This ongoing work covers all risks, including those relating to aquatic life. Studies carried out in the EU found that the chemicals identified in these products were present only in low concentrations, with no evidence of significant risks to human health.


Written Question
West Africa: Timber
Tuesday 13th February 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

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.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

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.

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.

The requirement to exercise due diligence under UKTR does not apply where a valid CITES permit accompanies the timber.

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.

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).

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.


Written Question
Forests: Commodities
Tuesday 23rd January 2024

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

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.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

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.

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.

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.


Written Question
Forests: Supply Chains
Tuesday 5th December 2023

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce deforestation and other environmental impacts of commercial supply chains in the light of evidence indicating that they result in (1) the spread of infectious disease, and (2) the proliferation of antimicrobial resistance.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Government has introduced world-leading due diligence legislation through the Environment Act to help tackle illegal deforestation in UK supply chains. We ran a consultation from 3 December 2021 to 11 March 2022 to seek views on the details of regulations that will implement the Environment Act provisions, to ensure that these are designed effectively. The Government published a summary of responses to this consultation on 1 June 2022 and is committed to implementing due diligence provisions at the earliest opportunity through secondary legislation.

The Government has funded the development of the Global Environmental Impacts of Consumption indicator, to better understand the deforestation and other environmental impacts of supply chains. This does not include impacts related directly to infectious disease and antimicrobial resistance (AMR), but does cover biodiversity loss, water stress and a range of other impact types.

The UK is leading the way in the world’s fight against antimicrobial resistance, both at home and abroad. Our five-year national action plan for AMR, published in 2019, sets out our comprehensive One Health approach, acting across humans, animals, food and the environment. We are currently developing the next five-year national action plan on AMR, which is expected to be published in 2024 and run until 2029.


Written Question
Pesticides: Environment Protection
Monday 4th December 2023

Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the environmental impacts from including saponins, phosphorous peroxide, and other substances which are irritants or otherwise harmful to worms and other soil organisms, in products labelled as "soil conditioners" or "anti-worm caster"; and what guidance they have issued about the legality of doing so.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

No assessment has been made. The Environment Agency assesses the presence of many chemicals in the environment, but has very limited data for chemicals in soil and the potential impacts on individual species. Saponins are a very broad and diverse group of compounds with biosurfactant and biopesticide properties and with many applications including some personal care products. The Environment Agency has developed a Prioritisation and Early Warning System for chemicals of emerging concern to systematically consider this challenge and to integrate horizon scanning with environmental monitoring and international collaboration. Substances can be added for future assessment, depending on the availability of evidence.

The Government recognises how vital healthy soil is for food production, water regulation, biodiversity, carbon storage and providing diverse habitats and agricultural opportunities. Earthworms are an excellent indicator of soil health, as they are impacted by pH, waterlogging, compaction, tillage, rotation and organic matter management.

Pesticides are strictly regulated because of their potential impacts on human health and the environment (including impacts on earthworms and soil micro-organisms) and, if authorised, are subject to conditions to ensure safe use. For many products, professional use only by properly trained operatives is one of those conditions. There are no plant protection products that are currently authorised for the control of worm casts on turf.

A consultation and call for evidence on a new fertiliser regulatory framework is planned for early 2024. The process of regulation development will be iterative as more research is needed into newer fertiliser types before requirements for these products can be drafted into law. Soil conditioners may be subject to regulation under the future revised framework for fertilisers.