Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - 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 extent to which measures required under the Nature Restoration Fund take agricultural land out of food production.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises that food security is national security and is committed to safeguarding the most productive agricultural land to maintain long-term food production.
The Nature Restoration Fund will offer opportunities for farming and land management businesses to diversify their business revenue through the provision of conservation measures.
The impact on agricultural land use and management will depend on the nature of the environmental service they will be paid to provide as part of a given Environmental Delivery Plan (EDP). Natural England already considers the impact of its activities on agriculture, for example, when designing mitigation measures, the existing Nutrient Mitigation Scheme seeks to avoid the best and most versatile agricultural land. We expect Natural England to apply this approach to EDPs.
By shifting to a strategic approach, we can leverage economies of scale across an EDP and reduce the need for piecemeal or disjointed mitigations secured by individual development projects. This will ensure every pound spent helps deliver our environmental goals.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - 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 extent to which the Nature Restoration Fund is accessible to individual farmers.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Nature Restoration Fund will provide opportunities to fund farmers, habitat banks, and environmental and conservation groups to deliver conservation measures. This will represent a source of revenue diversification for these businesses and organisations.
The Bill is drafted to enable delegation and partnership working, allowing Natural England to fund farmers to supply conservation measures directly or through third-party arrangements. The Government will publish guidance to Natural England on how they should work with the third parties to deliver EDPs.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - 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 extent to which the Nature Restoration Fund is accessible to environmental and conservation groups.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Nature Restoration Fund will provide opportunities to fund farmers, habitat banks, and environmental and conservation groups to deliver conservation measures. This will represent a source of revenue diversification for these businesses and organisations.
The Bill is drafted to enable delegation and partnership working, allowing Natural England to fund farmers to supply conservation measures directly or through third-party arrangements. The Government will publish guidance to Natural England on how they should work with the third parties to deliver EDPs.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what further steps they are taking to increase the speed with which businesses reduce their use of plastic packaging and eliminate unnecessary waste.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to moving to a circular economy – a future where we keep our resources in use for longer, waste is reduced, we accelerate the path to net zero, we see investment in critical infrastructure and green jobs, our economy prospers, and nature thrives.
Alongside the delivery of the Collection and Packaging Reforms, this Government is currently considering further actions that can be taken to address the challenges associated with plastic packaging. As we develop our Circular Economy Strategy for England, we will consider the evidence for action from right across the economy and evaluate what interventions may be needed.
The Government also funds the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), who run the UK Plastics Pact. Pact members cover the entire plastics value chain and are responsible for the majority of plastic packaging sold through UK supermarkets, and approximately two thirds of the total plastic packaging placed on the UK market. Since 2018, members of the Pact have increased the average recycled content in their packaging from 8.5% to 26%.
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 ensure that waste collected for recycling is recycled rather than exported.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. The Government has convened a Circular Economy Taskforce of experts to help develop the first ever Circular Economy Strategy for England, which we plan to publish for consultation in the coming months.
The Simpler Recycling reforms will ensure that across England, people will be able to recycle the same materials, whether at home, work or school, putting an end to confusion over what can and cannot be recycled in different parts of the country.
Waste collected from households and workplaces must be collected separately from other waste for recycling or composting.
This policy will make recycling easier and ensure there is a comprehensive, consistent service across England. This will reduce confusion with recycling to improve recycling rates, ensuring there is more recycled material in the products we buy, and that the UK recycling industry will grow.
Where the UK cannot currently recycle materials economically, exports can help ensure those materials are recycled. The export of waste is subject to strict controls and exporters are required to ensure that the waste they ship is managed in an environmentally sound manner. Any UK operators found to be illegally exporting waste can face a two-year jail term and an unlimited fine.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they can confirm that the mandatory use of closed-circuit television cameras in slaughterhouses, which came into effect on 5 November 2018, has been implemented and complied with in full.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Mandatory Use of Closed Circuit Television in Slaughterhouses (England) Regulations 2018 came into force in May 2018, with a transition period of six months for implementation. Since November 2018 all slaughterhouses in England have been required to have CCTV recording in all areas where live animals are present.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) monitor and enforce animal welfare legislation in approved slaughterhouses and confirmed that all slaughterhouses in England were fully compliant with the CCTV Regulations early in 2019.
Official Veterinarians of the FSA carry out daily reviews of CCTV footage and monitor compliance with the CCTV Regulations. If non-compliances are identified, appropriate and proportionate enforcement action is taken. The FSA also carries out a rigorous programme of audits in approved slaughterhouses which include examining CCTV systems.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to require cigarette manufacturers to switch to producing biodegradable butts.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst the plastic component of filters is of concern, the chemicals, toxins and heavy metals contained within a littered cigarette butt also pose a danger to the environment. For this reason, Defra does not support a move to plastic-free or biodegradable filters which would likely contain the same pollutants and have not been shown to break down quicker if littered in the environment.
Tobacco litter remains a concern for Defra, with cigarette filters consistently scoring as the most littered item in surveys. Local authorities already have powers to punish those who litter them including through prosecution. They can also create smoke free areas through the use of Public Space Protection Orders.
Defra believes the best way to tackle littering of filters is through reductions in smoking rates. We therefore continue to support all initiatives designed to encourage people to quit smoking or prevent them from starting smoking. Indeed, through the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, the Government is committed to creating a smoke-free generation, gradually ending the sale of tobacco products across the country and breaking the cycle of addiction and disadvantage.
We will continue to monitor the available evidence on the prevalence of littered cigarette filters before considering further action.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the 43 per cent decline in the number of hen harrier chicks fledging in 2024 compared to 2023, what steps they are taking to introduce licensing of grouse shooting in England.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises well-managed grouse shooting can be an important part of a local rural economy, providing direct and indirect employment. It also appreciates that many people hold strong views on the issue of grouse shooting and there is evidence to suggest a link between it and crimes against birds of prey. While Defra has not yet made any formal assessment of the potential merits of the licensing of grouse shooting in England, it will continue to work to ensure a sustainable, mutually beneficial relationship between grouse shooting and conservation.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to continue to make subsidies for sustainable farming practices available to farms of all sizes; and at what rate.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We have moved away from the EU’s approach to subsidies to a ‘public money for public goods’ system.
We currently have a record 50,000 farm businesses and half of all farmed land now managed under our schemes – with more money being spent through these schemes than at any point.
Going forward we’ve committed an average of £2.3 billion a year to directly benefit tens of thousands of farmers, including small farmers, supporting farm profitability through investment in research and technology and sustainable food production, at the same time as improving the quality of the water in our rivers, the air we breathe and our spaces for wildlife.
Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what measures they are considering to protect hares and their young during the breeding season; and what assessment they have made of the introduction of a close season for the killing of hares.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra Ministers support the ambition to introduce a close season for hares in England. The hare is a much-loved species, and we fail to give it the protection we should. England and Wales stand out as being among the few European countries not to have a close season for their hares. A close season should reduce the number of adult hares being shot in the breeding season, which runs from February to October, meaning that fewer leverets (infant hares) are left motherless and vulnerable to starvation and predation. A close season is also consistent with Natural England's advice on wildlife management that controlling species in their peak breeding season should be avoided unless genuinely essential and unavoidable.