Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made towards their national deer management strategy and their updated Grey Squirrel Action Plan, as committed to in the England Trees Action Plan 2021–2024, and when is the publication date.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We held a public consultation on key proposals for the English deer management strategy in 2022. Consultation responses have been collated, analysed and fed into the development of the deer management strategy. We are also working to refresh the Grey Squirrel Action Plan.
It is our intention to publish them as soon as we are in a position to do so.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what advice they are giving to those who wish to feed birds in the coming winter and spring seasons to minimise the risk of transmission of avian influenza from bird feeders.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We encourage anyone feeding wild birds to do so responsibly and not feed them in the vicinity or on the same premises as poultry or other captive birds and to be aware of the risk of carrying contamination back to their poultry or other captive birds, for example on their footwear.
The feeding of wild garden birds is not prohibited by the Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) measures or other avian influenza disease control legislation. Where an AIPZ has been declared wild gamebirds should not be fed within 500m of a premises where more than 500 poultry or other captive birds are kept (where this area is under the control of the keeper).
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said that avian influenza is primarily a disease of birds and the risk to the general public’s health is very low. However, members of the public should not touch, pick up or transport dead or sick birds and should keep away from bird droppings if possible, and wash their hands thoroughly if they accidentally come into contact with any bird faeces, feathers or other potentially contaminated material. The NHS website [https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/bird-flu/prevention] has further information.
Wild birds are susceptible to a range of different pathogens. The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) provides advice about keeping bird feeders and water baths clean to prevent transmission between wild birds, this guidance will also help minimise the risk of transmission of avian influenza.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 24 March (HL6855), in which he said that stakeholder engagement on the outline of Soil Health Action Plan for England (SHAPE) would start in the spring, and that stakeholder engagement not yet having commenced, when they will announce the timeline for that engagement.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government recognises the importance of stakeholder engagement for the development of a strategic and coherent plan for soil health measures. Further details regarding planned engagement with stakeholders on the importance of soil and the actions needed to ensure it remains a healthy and sustainable resource, will be published soon.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 24 March (HL6855), when the stakeholder engagement on the outline of the Soil Health Action Plan for England (SHAPE) will start; who will be consulted; and how long the consultation will last.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
We are currently developing the stakeholder engagement plan for the Soil Health Action Plan for England and will confirm timelines in due course.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to announce further plans to improve soil quality and structure in England.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
A Soil Health Action Plan for England (SHAPE) is currently being developed. Stakeholder engagement on the outline of SHAPE is planned for this spring ahead of publication, which is anticipated for 2023. As part of the Soil Structure Measuring and Monitoring Scheme, methodology and guidance for arable and grassland soils is being developed and will be tested with practitioners this spring.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what further steps they are taking to avoid crops having to be ploughed in due to a lack of seasonal farm workers.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government recognises the importance of labour to bringing home the harvest.
Defra continues to work closely with industry and other Government departments to understand labour supply and demand, and to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the food and farming workforce beyond 2021.
The expanded Seasonal Workers Pilot has provided a solution to the unskilled labour needs of the edible horticulture sector through 2021, supporting farmers growing UK fruit and vegetables. This sector of agriculture has the highest dependency on seasonal labour.
The Government has announced that the seasonal worker visa route will be extended to 2024 to allow overseas workers to come to the UK for up to six months to harvest both edible and ornamental crops. 30,000 visas will be available. This will be kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 visas if necessary.
In addition, food and farming businesses can continue to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status. Over 5.5 million EU citizens and their families have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme.
The Government encourages all sectors to make employment more attractive to UK domestic workers through offering training, careers options, wage increases and to invest in automation technology. To support these efforts, Defra is working with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to raise awareness of career opportunities in the food and farming sectors among UK workers.
Defra is also leading a Government review of automation in horticulture to improve our understanding of what is required to accelerate the development and uptake of automation technologies in both the edible and ornamental sectors, in England, with the view to reducing the sector’s long-term dependency on seasonal migrant labour. The review’s final report will be published shortly and will inform a range of policy decisions regarding automation and seasonal labour from 2022 onwards.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether issues related to the fishing of non-quota species will be included in their assessment of the operation of the UK–EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Non-quota species (NQS) fisheries in English waters are of significant interest to both UK and EU vessels, given the high value of NQS, and their importance to local communities. Despite this, NQS are in many cases data limited, and improving the robust scientific evidence base underpinning management of NQS is a priority area. Doing so will allow for improved assessments of stock status to take place.
The Fisheries Act also commits the Government to publish Fisheries Management Plans to help deliver our ambition for sustainable fisheries. These plans will set out how we can manage fishing activity to achieve our ambition for stocks to recover and be maintained within sustainable limits, while reducing the impact of fishing on the wider environment. The Joint Fisheries Statement will set out a list of proposed Fisheries Management Plans that will be published over the next five years.
The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement outlines provisions for the management of shared non-quota species. Working with the EU, through the Specialised Committee on Fisheries, we will develop multi-year strategies for the sustainable management of shared NQS which will be key to improved data collection.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 15 November (HL Deb, col 49GC), what are the reasons for the minister's view that the Earl of Caithness has argued that "the choice is between food production and ecological restoration".
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
My remark referred to comments made by my noble Friend during the passage of the Environment Bill, where he implied a focus on the environment could conflict with the need to produce food. The remark did not refer to the speech delivered by my noble Friend during the Beyond Brexit Debate (15 November 2021). The Government is committed to rewarding farmers and land managers for their role as environmental stewards and investing in productivity, through our future environmental land management schemes and current schemes like the recently launched Farming Investment Fund. A healthy environment is crucial to providing the ecosystem services which underpin a thriving agricultural sector, through fertile soils, clean water and pollination.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 8 September (HL Deb, col. 867) regarding the publication of a soil health action plan for England, whether the contract put out to tender by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee in March for the provision of technical assistance in developing a method for producing soil health indicators in England has been awarded to a company; and if so, whether soil health indicators have been published.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The Joint Nature Conservation Committee has awarded Cranfield University the tender to provide technical assistance in its project to develop a soil health indicator for England.
Work is currently underway to establish this indicator based on a conceptual framework that links understanding of our soil systems with an approach that can interpret soil data and provide a foundation to indicate soil health in a number of scenarios. We plan to consult on the draft indicator in due course.
Asked by: Earl of Caithness (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much money they have spent in each financial year since 2015 to support the development and implementation of (1) the Convention on Biological Diversity, (2) the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, (3) the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, (4) the Ramsar Convention, (5) the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, (6) the African–Eurasian Waterbird Agreement, (7) the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, (8) the Berne Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, and (9) the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services; and for each such agreement and body, how much of that money was (a) a voluntary, and (b) a mandatory, contribution.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The information requested on money spent and staff resources to support development and implementation of the listed agreements and bodies is not held centrally. Compiling it would be a complex exercise incurring disproportionate costs. We have therefore provided the information that is readily available below.
As a Party or Member of these Conventions, Agreements and Bodies, the UK is required to make financial contributions to support their development and implementation. Details of the mandatory and voluntary financial contributions made will be publicly available in their financial records. The UK’s mandatory contributions to the conventions and bodies listed amount to more than £18 million since 2015[1].
The UK also implements these agreements through financing a large number of cross-cutting programmes and activities. One example is the world-renowned Darwin Initiative which delivers on multiple international commitments and on the UK’s wider ambitions for the protection of global biodiversity. The Darwin Initiative has committed £57 million since 2015.
Staff resources are in place to work directly on UK input to the listed agreements and organisations and also on programmes to implement them. Given the cyclical timetable of the global meetings of the Conventions and Agreements and the changing nature of the topics which they cover, staff resources are adjusted over time to ensure the UK is able to participate effectively in them. For this reason, it is difficult to accurately quantify the staff resources that have been involved since 2015.
The UK Government is fully committed to putting nature at the heart of our plans for tackling the interlinked global crises of biodiversity loss and climate change. Our departure from the EU presents an important opportunity for the UK to play a stronger global role and in some areas this will require additional resource. Efforts are underway to make sure that resources are available in order that we seize these opportunities, starting with securing an ambitious set of post-2020 global biodiversity targets at CBD COP15 and successful hosting of COP-26.
[1] Based on current exchange rates. Some subscriptions are paid in non-sterling currencies.