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, further to the Written Answer by Lord Benyon on 25 October (HL10678), what steps they intend to take to ensure that the environmental horticulture industry, previously known as “ornamental” horticulture and not including food, receives adequate support and acknowledgement, and is regarded as part of the “green economy” in assessment.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government recognises that the UK’s environmental (or ornamental) horticulture sector plays a crucial role as part of the ‘green economy’ and is aware that the priorities of the sector align with many of the environmental goals in the Environmental Improvement Plan.
Ornamental horticulture is in scope of the majority of competitions in the Farming Innovation Programme. Under this programme we have committed over £80 million to 163 projects. Of that funding, around a quarter (£19 million) is earmarked for projects focusing on horticulture and just under two thirds of that (£12 million) has potential application across both edible and ornamental sectors.
Beyond this, the Tree Production Capital Grant will reopen soon for new funding applications. This grant provides funding to increase domestic production of tree seed and saplings by supporting investments in expansion, automation and mechanisation of facilities and equipment. This will help to improve nursery resilience and sustainability and increase the diversity of tree species produced, as well as the quantity of trees and tree seed coming into the market.
Defra will continue to engage with the ornamental horticulture industry to understand the issues they face.
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 Preferred Fiber & Materials Market Report by Textile Exchange, indicating that there are likely to be only 30 million tonnes available globally of "preferred materials" for fashion production, accounting for 19 per cent of global demand; and what steps are they taking to reduce the use of "non-preferred materials".
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Defra has not made an assessment of the Preferred Fiber and Materials Report by The Textiles Exchange. One of Defra’s delivery partners, WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme), manages Textiles 2030, which commits signatories, who represent 62% of the fashion industry, to meet ambitious targets to reduce water and carbon consumption. WRAP has also done research on sustainable clothing design and produced guidance on fibre and fabric selection.
In July, Defra announced proposals for keeping textiles in use for longer and minimising textile waste. These proposals, which will be subject to consultation in 2024, include a requirement for non-domestic settings such as businesses to separate their textile waste from other types of waste so that it can be collected for reuse or recycling. This separately collected textile waste should not enter landfill or be incinerated. Defra is also proposing that certain retailers provide in store facilities so that customers can return their pre-loved textiles for recycling or reuse.
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 how many applications have been received for the Sustainable Farming Incentive since its rollout in August 2023, and how many payments have been made under that scheme.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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 plans they have to reduce the future (1) production, and (2) sale, of small electrical items; what progress has been made on the implementation of the "producer-pays" principle for such items; and what steps they are taking to increase recycling of these items, in particular those that remain unused in storage.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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 value of retrofitting existing wastewater treatment infrastructure to sequester small molecule pharmaceutical pollution such as antibiotics; and what plans, if any, they have to do so.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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 plan to take to ensure that the environmental horticulture industry receives adequate support and acknowledgement, and is regarded as part of the "green economy" in assessment and support.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government recognises the crucial role the UK’s environmental (or ornamental) horticulture sector has in not only promoting people’s wellbeing and in meeting our environmental goals, but to the economy – ornamental horticulture production being worth £1.5 billion in 2022.
With announcements made at the No.10 Farm to Fork Summit this year, we have committed to work across Government to support horticulture on energy, planning and seasonal labour. This is in addition to the existing funding streams that the horticulture sector can access, including the Farming Innovation Programme, the Farming Investment Fund and the Sustainable Farming Incentive.
Defra regularly engages with the horticulture industry to understand what support they need to continue to produce great food. Our discussions with industry representatives help inform future policy development and help us understand what support the sector needs to help it thrive.
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 how the cost of living crisis has affected ultra-processed food consumption in lower socioeconomic groups.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Defra has not made an assessment how the cost of living crisis has affected ultra-processed food consumption in lower socioeconomic groups.
The Government’s food strategy sets out the significant investments that are already being made across the food system, which is from farm to fork and catch to plate. This includes over £130 million joint funding with UK Research and Innovation in food systems research and innovation; £100 million in the Seafood fund; £270 million across the Farming Innovation Programme; a new programme of food system trials to encourage and enable healthier and more sustainable diets, and an £11 million investment supporting new research to drive improvements in understanding the relationship between food and health.
Government advice on a healthy, balanced diet is encapsulated in the UK’s national food model, the Eatwell Guide.
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 any public demand for labelling all foods containing genetically modified organisms in regulations under the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government considered a range of evidence, including data from a number of consumer insight studies, in the development of its policy on the labelling of food and feed derived from precision bred organisms.
All food containing genetically modified organisms will continue to be labelled as such and information on authorised food and feed derived from precision bred organisms, will be published on a public register.
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 estimate they have made of the costs of installation of microplastic fibre capture filters on domestic washing machines; and what engagement they have had with industry regarding the feasibility of installing such filters.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government has taken significant steps to tackle plastic pollution (eg. microplastics), including restricting the supply of several single-use plastics through introducing a plastic packaging tax from April 2022; restricting the supply of plastic straws, plastic drink stirrers, and plastic-stemmed cotton buds; and preventing billions of plastic micro-beads from entering the ocean each year by introducing a ban on microbeads in rinse off personal care products.
Defra have been working closely with industry to understand the costs of installing microfibre filters on washing machines with prices ranging from £30 to £122 per machine dependant on manufacturer and whether the filters are disposable or re-useable. Defra’s Plan for Water includes a commitment for industry to develop low cost, effective microfibre filters on washing machines and encourage their effective use.
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 prevent microplastic fibre pollution.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government has taken significant steps to tackle plastic pollution (eg. microplastics), including restricting the supply of several single-use plastics through introducing a plastic packaging tax from April 2022; restricting the supply of plastic straws, plastic drink stirrers, and plastic-stemmed cotton buds; and preventing billions of plastic micro-beads from entering the ocean each year by introducing a ban on microbeads in rinse off personal care products.
Defra have been working closely with industry to understand the costs of installing microfibre filters on washing machines with prices ranging from £30 to £122 per machine dependant on manufacturer and whether the filters are disposable or re-useable. Defra’s Plan for Water includes a commitment for industry to develop low cost, effective microfibre filters on washing machines and encourage their effective use.