Asked by: Baroness Cavendish of Little Venice (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to reconsider DEFRA and Natural England's categorisation of beavers as a non-native species in England, in the light of that animal's categorisation as a native species in Scotland and its status as a European Protected Species.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
Beavers are categorised as a native species in England. Beavers became a European Protected Species in 2022 under Schedule 2 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (the ‘Habitats Regulations’). This makes it an offence to deliberately capture, injure, kill or disturb beavers, or damage and destroy their breeding sites or resting place without a licence issued under regulation 55 of the Habitats Regulations by Natural England.
Recognising the potential risk that unmanaged beaver releases into the wild can bring, legislation was introduced in 2015 adding the beaver to schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (the ‘WCA’) so that releases in England would require a licence.
The Beaver (England) Order 2022 amended Schedule 9 of the WCA to retain the requirement for a licence for release of beavers after the species was given protected status and formally recognised as a returned native species.
Although beavers are a native species whose return is welcomed, licensing their release helps ensure beaver release projects are high quality, follow the England reintroductions code, and take place where benefits can be maximised, and risks minimised.
Asked by: Baroness Cavendish of Little Venice (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to implement the UK Statement Sustainable production of palm oil, published on 30 October 2012, and to reduce the amount of palm oil in food and bathroom products purchased by consumers, in order to prevent further loss of tropical habitats and species from deforestation.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The 2012 Commitment on Sustainable Palm Oil has been a success. Nearly all palm oil imported to the UK is now certified sustainable.
This Government is building on that success by continuing to support zero-deforestation supply chains for key commodities, including palm oil. The UK is a signatory to the Amsterdam Declarations, has endorsed the New York Declaration on Forests and is a member of the Tropical Forest Alliance 2020, all of which support action to prevent deforestation and encourage the production of sustainable palm oil.
Through our international climate finance, the Government is supporting a number of programmes focused on sustainable palm oil production. Those programmes are designed to strengthen governance, promote market-based solutions and put in place incentives, policies and actions that support sustainable production alongside forest protection.