EU: Common Fisheries Policy

Lord Campbell of Alloway Excerpts

Wednesday 13th July 2011 Lords Chamber

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, I think the noble Lady has got that slightly wrong. As I understand it, following this report from the Commission, this will be a matter for the Council of Ministers and for the European Parliament. It will be a matter for co-decision, so it will take some time. As a result, it is very important that we build up the appropriate alliances in Europe and within the European Parliament to make sure that we can negotiate the best deal possible for a proper, radical reform of the common fisheries policy.

[Lord Campbell of Alloway]

My Lords, could the Minister answer my noble friend’s question, which is of crucial consequence and requires an answer?

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, I thought that I had dealt with that point in answering my noble friend on discards. We think that the wasteful practice of discarding fish should be brought to an end. We are doing a great deal already within the United Kingdom to make sure that it is being reduced by various practical measures relating to net sizes and other matters. We will also continue, in the negotiations for reform of the common fisheries policy, to make sure that we do all we can to bring it completely and utterly to an end.

Japanese Knotweed

Lord Campbell of Alloway Excerpts

Thursday 24th June 2010 Lords Chamber

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, we are all aware that my noble friend has been pursuing this matter for about 20 years. This is an experiment worth doing. We have put a great deal of research into the safety of the psyllid that is being introduced to ensure that it will not eat anything other than Japanese knotweed. So far, as far as we know, it does not. If we find any evidence that the psyllid moves off, we will quickly eradicate it to ensure that it does not cause the damage that uncontrolled releases of biological agents can cause.

[Lord Campbell of Alloway]

What has been done about it over the past eight years?

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, a great deal has been done about it. I notice that the noble Lord, Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, is laughing, because he has had to address these questions before. I am grateful for the work that the previous Administration did in this area in introducing research into the said psyllid, the—let us get the name right again—Aphalara itadori. We hope that it will do the appropriate job in due course.