Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many on-farm reservoirs have been built in each of the past five years.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Approximately 34 newly built Large Raised Reservoirs (reservoirs with an above ground capacity of more than 25,000 cubic metres of water) have been built on farms in England in the last five years.
Year of final certificate | Count of reservoirs |
2021 | 4 |
2022 | 0 |
2023 | 4 |
2024 | 5 |
2025 | 12 |
2026 | 9 |
Note: the final certificate is the document that marks the end of the ‘under construction’ phase for a reservoir under the Reservoirs Act 1975.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have for the Joint Expeditionary Force to secure the safe operation of undersea cables and pipelines in the Atlantic and North Sea.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) remains a key element of His Majesty’s Government’s approach to enhancing security and resilience across the North Atlantic and North Sea regions. The JEF, comprising the United Kingdom and nine like-minded Northern European nations, is designed to respond rapidly to a range of contingencies, including the protection of critical infrastructure such as undersea cables and pipelines, complementary to NATO.
Securing the safe operation of undersea cables and pipelines is a priority given their vital role in national security, economic stability, and communications. The Ministry of Defence, in close coordination with the JEF partner nations, is developing and refining operational concepts that include maritime domain awareness, intelligence sharing, and rapid deployment capabilities to deter and respond to threats against these assets.
In January 2025, following reported damage to a major undersea cable in the Baltic Sea, the JEF activated an advanced UK-led reaction system, known as Nordic Warden, to track potential threats to undersea infrastructure and monitor the Russian shadow fleet. This was subsequently handed over to NATO under their Baltic Sentry initiative.
The Government remains committed to enhancing the JEF’s capabilities to meet emerging challenges in its area of interest, including the protection of undersea infrastructure in the Atlantic and North Sea.
In summary, while the JEF is not solely dedicated to undersea cable and pipeline security, it forms a component of the UK’s broader strategy to safeguard these essential assets through multinational cooperation, rapid response, and integrated maritime security operations in support of NATO.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what level of support is available for energy costs under the cost of living provisions and additional support under the warm homes discount; whether that support totals £300; and if not, whether they will correct the figure on the Gov.uk website.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We announced in the Autumn Budget that we would cut the cost of living, and as a result, the price cap fell by 7% / £117 to £1,641 per year for an average dual fuel customer paying by Direct Debit.
This action follows the decision to expand the Warm Home Discount this winter, which will see around six million households receive an additional £150 off their energy bills.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to implement the recommendations of the Independent Reservoir Safety Report, published on 13 May 2021.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Many of the recommendations from the Independent Reservoir Safety Report have already been implemented – detail can be found here [see attached]. A public consultation on legislative reforms to take forward further recommendations from this report is planned in due course.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will bring forward the regulations to introduce the waste carriage, broker and dealer reforms as committed to in October 2023.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The commitment made in 2023 was under the previous Government. This Government published its policy paper on gov.uk in August 2025, setting out its plans for reform of the waste carrier broker dealer regime in England [see attached].
Work has begun to draft the necessary legislative amendments and will be progressed when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will introduce stricter liability for waste duty of care on large waste producing business.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government published its new Waste Crime Action Plan on 20 March which is the toughest ever crackdown on illegal waste. We have no plans to introduce a stricter liability for waste duty of care on large waste producing businesses. Businesses already have a duty to ensure their waste is lawfully managed and the Environment Agency (EA) will make full use of its powers to hold those responsible for illegal waste operations accountable. Additionally, the EA will now publicly name and shame illegal waste operators so that those working in the waste sector understand who has been involved in mishandling waste.
We are also introducing a mandatory digital waste tracking system. This will replace paper-based methods with a modern digital platform upon which details about waste movements will need to be recorded. This will provide environmental regulators with a single system to monitor waste movements in near real time, improving transparency and accountability.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will implement plans for a waste crime levy.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government published its new Waste Crime Action Plan on 20 March which is the toughest ever crackdown on illegal waste. We are now committing an additional £45 million for the Environment Agency (EA) to spend on waste crime enforcement over the next 3 financial years, on top of the £5.6 million increase for this financial year announced previously. This new funding will enable the EA to expand its on-the-ground enforcement activity and ensure waste criminals face the consequences of their actions. We continue to consider a waste crime levy to support enforcement but given the extra funding we are providing now, its introduction is not imminent.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to bring forward guidance on permitted development rights for on-farm reservoirs.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
On-farm reservoirs which are necessary for agricultural purposes can be developed under a nationally set permitted development right. Guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/when-is-permission-required.
We intend to update the guidance in the coming months.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that e-bikes sold in the UK comply with the legal requirements for electrically assisted pedal cycles; and what enforcement action is being taken against the sale of non-compliant e-bikes.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency have market surveillance powers to tackle the supply of e-bikes where users are being deliberately misled about where they can and cannot be used.
According to the most recent data available (for 2024), the DVSA’s market surveillance programme identified 39 suppliers of e-bikes. 21 of these suppliers were found to be selling e-bikes that were compliant with the relevant Regulations.
Subsequent mystery shopper exercises, carried out by the DVSA and involving 18 suppliers, found 2 suppliers to be selling non-compliant e-bikes for use on the roads. One of these suppliers has since brought their selling practices into compliance while the other is being investigated further. In addition, over 400 listings of non-compliant e-bikes have been removed from online marketplaces following intervention by DVSA.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the unrestricted sale of e-scooters and e-bikes that do not meet the legal requirements for road use; and what steps they plan to take to prevent such vehicles entering circulation.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
E-bikes and e-scooters must comply with the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 to be placed on the UK market.
While it is not illegal to sell an e-scooter for use on private land, retailers are breaking the law if they knowingly mislead a buyer or do not make the legal restrictions on e-scooter use sufficiently clear. To provide a more proportionate and agile process for regulating e-scooters, the Government has committed to pursuing legislative reform when parliamentary time allows.
Regarding e-bikes, those that do not comply with the Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle Regulations 1983 are treated as motor vehicles. They cannot therefore be legally used on the road unless they are approved and registered with the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency, taxed and insured.
It is for the police to take enforcement action where such vehicles are used on the road illegally, and the Government will continue to support the police to ensure they have the tools needed to enforce road traffic legislation.