Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the prohibition of visitors bringing their folding bikes into the DEFRA office at 2 Marsham Street in London; and whether that prohibition is compatible with the aims of that Department’s environmental policies.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Defra is a tenant at 2 Marsham Street, with the Home Office (Defra’s Landlord) occupying the majority of the site. Defra follows the security protocols set by the Home Office.
For folding bikes the following protocols apply across the whole building:
Full building pass holders can bring folding bikes into the office but most enter via the car park and leave bikes at the bike racks.
VIPs are permitted to enter the office space with a folding bike.
Pre-booked visitors are requested to take their bike to the car park entrance where it can be left in a secure sheltered area (visitor bike racks are provided).
Unannounced visitors are required to contact their host/sponsor to vouch for them and book them in on arrival so that they can leave their bike at the car park entrance.
Folding bikes cannot be processed through the security scanners at the Marsham Street reception.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment, if any, they have made of (1) possible conflicts of interest in the appointment of auditors, and (2) inappropriate payments to senior executives, at Thames Water; and whether they will ask OFWAT to launch an investigation.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government has not made an assessment of conflicts of interest in the appointment of auditors or the level of pay to senior executives at Thames Water.
The Government fully supports Ofwat’s reforms to the price review process which requires water companies to ensure that executive pay is linked to customer service, share profits with customers, and make dividend payments more transparent.
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 Gardiner of Kimble on 8 May (HL7364), whether water companies are required to operate phosphate removal plants.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
There is no automatic requirement for water companies to provide and operate specific phosphorus removal treatment at sewage treatment works.
The requirement for such treatment depends on the environmental legislation and standards that apply to the receiving water into which a sewage treatment work discharges. Where a receiving water is a designated sensitive area (eutrophic) under the urban waste water treatment regulations, sewage treatment works of a particular size will require the provision of phosphorus removal treatment to meet standards set out in the regulations. Alternatively, where environmental standards in the receiving water are not achieved to meet the Water Framework Directive regulations and conservation requirements, phosphorus removal treatment may be required at a sewage treatment work.
The requirements for treatment and the limits to be achieved are set out in the environmental permit to discharge for each sewage treatment work which is issued and regulated by the Environment Agency in England.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether water companies are required to operate phosphate removal plants in areas where there are high levels of phosphorus run-off; and what proportion of water supply facilities in such areas have operational phosphate removal plants.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Phosphorus inputs to English rivers and lakes are mainly from sewage effluent, including contributions from food and detergents and drainage from agricultural land. Dramatic reductions from very elevated river phosphorus concentrations in the 1980 and 1990s have been achieved in recent decades through reduced detergent phosphorous contributions, the introduction of phosphorus reduction treatment at sewage treatment works, and falling fertiliser use and livestock numbers. Despite this, phosphorus is the most common reason for English rivers not achieving Good Ecological Status under the Water Framework Directive Regulations.
Between 1995 and 2015 the phosphorus loading from water company sewage treatment works to rivers reduced by about 60%. By 2017 almost 700 sewage treatment works had treatment in place to reduce phosphorus loadings. This equates to some 25 million population equivalent, or just over 60% of the population served by sewage treatment works which discharge to rivers.
Even after these reductions, sewage treatment works remain the largest source of phosphorus entering rivers nationally, and further improvement works are being planned and implemented by water companies to meet Water Framework Directive Regulations.
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 Ahmad of Wimbledon on 21 December 2016 (HL4156), whether the Environment Agency intends to support the removal by Network Rail of the three weirs on the river Exe above Exeter to reduce the risk of flooding on the rail line.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Environment Agency (EA) has been aiding Network Rail and their consultants on producing a flood and geomorphology risk assessment on the proposal to remove the three weirs near Cowley Bridge.
The EA has provided all the local flood history, river flow and river state data that it has, and the required specification and scenarios that any modelling results must produce.
Once this report is submitted, the EA will assess the impact on third parties and the environment in terms of flood risk and environmental impacts. The EA will also assess the impact, if any, on the new flood defence scheme currently being built in Exeter.
The EA recently issued flood risk activity permits for the Network Rail improvement to the flood culvert under the railway upstream of Cowley Bridge. The culvert works are expected to be completed during summer 2018 and will reduce flood risk to the railway.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what restrictions or changes to air and sea transport services are required on any operation within the Special Protection Area of the Isles of Scilly.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The UK has a long history of environmental protection and we will safeguard and improve on this record. The Isles of Scilly Special Protection Area (SPA) was classified in 2001 under the EU Wild Birds Directive. Natural England is preparing advice to government on a proposed extension to the existing SPA and the addition of new features.
Any plans or projects that are likely to have a significant effect on a SPA are subject to a Habitats Regulations Assessment by the relevant competent authorities in order to make sure that any potential impacts are avoided or mitigated. Where such impacts cannot be ruled out, planning proposals may nevertheless be approved provided certain tests are met: no feasible alternatives; imperative reasons of overriding public interest; and compensatory measures secured.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what, in 2016–17, were the remuneration packages, including bonuses, of the top three executive directors of Tideway; and what assessment they have made of that remuneration given that the Thames Tideway Tunnel will not be completed, and available to deliver a service, for another six to seven years.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The remuneration packages of the top three executives of Tideway are publically available in Tideway’s annual report for 2016/17, which is published on their website. As a private company, Tideway is responsible for setting its own remuneration policy that is approved by its shareholders in the normal way, and which does not impede it from carrying out its functions under the terms of its project licence. Remuneration is directly related to the delivery of the project, and forms part of the costs reflected in the company’s Regulated Capital Value regulated by Ofwat. A key element of Ofwat’s regulatory remit is to ensure that the revenue charges made by Tideway via Thames Water to customers are fair. Tideway is also incentivised through the terms of its project licence, regulated by Ofwat, and the Government Support Package to deliver the project on time and to budget.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the differences between the target for recycling 65 per cent of urban waste by 2035 agreed by the European Council and Parliament in December 2017 and their 25 year environmental plan that justified their opposing the EU target; and what assessment they have made of the extent to which such opposition will enhance the credibility of their 25 year plan.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government has yet to receive the formal text of the outcome of the trilogue discussions and we will consider it carefully. There are several targets in the circular economy package of which the 65% recycling by weight target by 2035 is just one.
The Government has committed to publishing a new Resources and Waste Strategy in 2018 aimed at making the UK a world leader in resource efficiency. It will ensure resources are kept in use for longer and set out how we will work towards eliminating all avoidable waste by 2050, and all avoidable plastic waste by the end of 2042. This is consistent with the EU’s Circular Economy Package and in some respects goes beyond it.
As we develop the Resources and Waste Strategy we will explore whether more innovative targets can be developed that deliver clear benefits over those proposed by the EU, including weight-based measures. Should they be preferable, the UK Government will present proposals to the UK Parliament following the UK’s departure from the EU.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what quantity of fish and fish products was (1) imported from, and (2) exported to, (a) the EU, and (b) elsewhere, in 2016; and what tonnages of quotas have been sold by the UK fishing industry to fishermen based in other EU member states to allow them to fish within UK waters.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
In 2016, the UK imported 252,000 tonnes of fish and fish preparations (excluding products such as oils, meals and flours) from EU member states (worth £1,044 million), and exported 324,000 tonnes of fish to EU member states (worth £1,165 million).
The UK imported 479,000 tonnes of fish and fish preparations (excluding products such as oils, meals and flours) from the rest of the world, including the EFTA countries (worth £2,029 million) and exported 117,000 tonnes (worth £475 million).
Further details on the UK’s trade in fish products can be found in the Marine Management Organisation’s UK Sea Fisheries Statistics 2016 at GOV.UK.
Sales of fish quotas allocated to member states are not permitted either between national governments or the fishing industries. However, quota can be exchanged for quota from another member state through international quota swaps. While these can be initiated by the fishing industries themselves, they are approved and enacted by the fishery administrations within each member state. In 2016, a total of 42077.9 tonnes of UK fishing quota was swapped out to other member states in exchange for 51321.3 tonnes of fishing quota coming in to the UK.
UK quota is linked to the vessels it is allocated to. Some UK registered vessels are foreign-owned. All UK registered vessels, including foreign-owned vessels, which catch quota stocks must meet “economic link” requirements. The aim of these is to make sure that the UK gains genuine economic benefits from UK quota. They require, for example, most of a vessel’s landings to be in the UK, most crew members to be UK resident or for other benefits to accrue to UK coastal communities.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of regulation 5(1) of the Water Industry (Specified Infrastructure Projects) (English Undertakers) Regulations 2013, which provides that “the incumbent undertaker must not undertake a specified infrastructure project”, what assessment they have made of statement in the Thames Water Utilities’ annual report and financial statements 2016–17 that “On completion of construction of the Thames Tideway Tunnel, substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership will lay with the Company” –that is, Thames Water Utilities.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Bazalgette Tunnel Limited (trading as ‘Tideway’) is the private sector company set up to design, build, finance, operate and maintain the Thames Tideway Tunnel. Once the Thames Tideway Tunnel construction and system acceptance is completed, the above ground assets, structures and equipment constructed by Tideway on land acquired by Thames Water for purposes of the project will transfer to Thames Water’s ownership. The deep tunnels, shafts and other related non-mechanical assets will remain in Tideway’s ownership, along with responsibility for inspections and any necessary maintenance arising to ensure the tunnel continues to operate effectively. Thames Water’s statutory obligation for ensuring effective drainage of its area remains, and as part of this it will have the right to exclusive use of the Thames Tideway Tunnel to discharge sewage into it and remove it for treatment. This arrangement is a finance lease as defined under international accounting standards, from which the terminology in Thames Water’s published accounts relating to risks and rewards of ownership lying with the company derives.