Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they provide to enable local authorities to improve the quality of their air and reduce pollution through the introduction of Clean Air Zones.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The Government has ring-fenced £880 million to help local authorities tackle NO2 exceedances through the development and implementation of local air quality plans and through funding to support those impacted most by these plans.
Local authorities introducing a Clean Air Zone as part of a local air quality plan can bid for Clean Air Fund funding. The Clean Air Fund can support a range of measures such as vehicle upgrade grants to individuals and businesses along with bus retrofit schemes, improvements to bus fleets, installation of electric chargepoints, provision of park and ride services, concessionary travel schemes and freight consolidation centres.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what conditions the Environment Agency has imposed on HS2 in connection with the construction of the Chiltern Tunnel; and whether they will publish copies of all documents issued by the Environment Agency in connection with their consent to construction of the Chiltern tunnel.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The conditions imposed on the construction of the Chiltern Tunnel are within the relevant consents that have been issued by the Environment Agency. The consent for the construction of the tunnel (HS2/P10191) will be deposited in the Library of the House. The related consents for water discharge (EPR-QB3092NR) and waste treatment (FB3709KP) at the Chilterns Tunnel South Portal are held on the public register.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
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 17 February (HL12930), whether they will place a copy of the correspondence between the Department and the European Commission in the Library of the House.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
A copy of the correspondence between the Department and the European Commission has been deposited and has been available to Members since 17 February.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they plan to make to the EU, if any, to remove its ban on the import of live molluscs from the UK.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
It is wholly unacceptable that the European Commission has changed its position regarding the export of live bivalve molluscs from Class B waters. There is no scientific or technical justification for this, and it is already impacting businesses on both sides of the channel. We are publishing a series of correspondence between Defra and the European Commission, which clearly reinforces our position.
The Secretary of State has written to Commissioner Kyriakides. We continue to seek urgent resolution with the European Commission, and we have offered to provide reasonable additional reassurances to demonstrate shellfish health, on the understanding that the Commission must recognise the existing high standards and history of UK-EU trade.