Hares: Close Season

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Wednesday 24th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord and others in this Chamber for their huge support to further this legislation. As I said, it needs primary legislation. Legislative slots are always tight, but we are actively looking at how we can find a space during this Parliament. I think the best way that people can help is to express why this is so important and the difference it would make to hares, and to demonstrate that this country is an anomaly in not having a close season.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

While a close season is certainly a good idea, I have previously recounted in this House the case of a farming family who, sadly, feel obliged to kill all the hares on their land—because, otherwise, gangs running lucrative betting on illegal hare-coursing crash through their gates, destroy their hedges and drive four-wheel drive vehicles across their food crops, terrorising anyone who tries to stop them. Does the Minister agree that a close season will have no effect on these dangerous people, and that more resourcing for rural policing is what is needed to combat them?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord, who has raised this issue previously. The close season for hares is a separate issue from the problem of hare-coursing. Hare-coursing is an illegal activity. It should not be taking place. Unfortunately, it has been picked up by criminals and has proved very lucrative for those criminals, who run betting rings on it. I am extremely concerned by the increase in it, particularly in certain areas. I have written to the Home Office asking for a meeting to discuss this further, because the noble Lord is absolutely right that, without enforcement, this will not to be resolved. These are dangerous people, and we need to do something about it.

Thames Water

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Wednesday 17th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

On the basis that I do not know how many pipes, what size reservoir and where it would be, it is difficult to assess a capital investment. The Government have a reservoir policy. We have committed to building new reservoirs. No Government have done that for many years now, which is partly why we have issues with supporting housing development and important infrastructure development in the south-east. We are working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government because we must get this right to ensure that our economy is fit for the future.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

I agree with the Minister that debt overburdening of the company was a major cause of its problems. She has heard me call many a time for the new regulator to have the proper understanding of financial engineering, which the current Ofwat team simply did not have. That enabled the companies to get away with this. I underline this again because it was a simple inadequacy of understanding of financial engineering that enabled this situation to occur.

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

The noble Lord is correct that how debt was leveraged was unsustainable. It has led us to a situation where companies—not just Thames Water—are saddled with a ridiculous amount of debt that the regulator should have had more of a grip on. I am happy to discuss further the noble Lord’s thoughts on this. We have had discussions before. When we come to the next water Bill, making sure that we get the regulator correct will be crucial.

Water Companies

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Tuesday 9th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

The Government are very keen to press forward with new reservoirs. It is unfortunate that no new reservoirs have been built in almost 40 years. There are a number of reasons for that, and it is one of the reasons why we brought in the Planning and Infrastructure Act: to allow major projects—nationally significant infrastructure projects—to be able to move forward more quickly. We are currently working through that process.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, yesterday I asked the Minister how long it takes to build a reservoir, but I am not sure I got an answer. I am told by a bit of internet research that it will take roughly 10 years to get through planning and then a further five to 10 years to build a reservoir, by which time I think most Members of this House will be either former Members or late Members. Are those the figures that the Minister is working to?

South East Water: Disruption of Supply

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Monday 8th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

The noble Lord makes good points. One problem that we clearly have is that there are parts of the country that have plenty of water and parts that have very little water. Unfortunately, the parts that have very little water tend to be the ones with the highest populations. We have to look at how we are going to manage that long term, because clearly what we are doing at the moment simply is not working and is not the right approach. Again, that is why we want to reform the water industry and shake it up properly. It is critical that the points the noble Lord makes are taken into consideration, because we have to get this right.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

The Minister knows that she has my full support in shaking up the water industry, as we have discussed on quite a number of occasions. While it is all very well for us to tell her to hurry up and supply more water, can she tell the House how long it takes to build a reservoir?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

That is a very good question. Obviously, we have not built a new reservoir for more than 30 years. That is one reason why we have reduced domestic capacity, as the noble Lord knows. We need to just get on with this as best we can. We are trying to get a co-ordinated system-wide approach to it. Havant Thicket is the first new reservoir, so we are using that as a live learning opportunity for the Government, regulators and the water companies, because we all need to work together if we are going to do this. A reservoir senior sponsorship group was established by the Water Delivery Taskforce, designed to both identify and resolve any barriers that we have in delivering a new reservoir. There has been talk of reservoirs for years, so we need to work out why it is not happening so that we can crack on and make it happen.

Plastic Pollution Reduction

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd April 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree that one of the biggest practical difficulties in all this is separating plastic from general waste? Are the Government going to get involved in incentivising the earlier separation of plastic from general waste?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

The noble Lord is right. Of course, another issue is inconsistency across the country as to how that is done, which can confuse people when they are staying in other places. The key to resolving that issue is the work that we are doing with local authorities, because this is a local authority responsibility. The Government need to work with local authorities so that they have the resources and the powers that they need to make this work effectively.

Trail-hunting

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Wednesday 18th March 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

My Lords, the consultation has been designed to be open-handed and fair, so that all concerns, from both sides of the argument, can be heard and fully taken into account as we move forward to design the legislation. As I said, this is a manifesto commitment. It is important to point out that we believe that rural areas offer significant potential for growth and are central to our economy. There are many businesses that we can support within the rural communities to continue to bring forward greater productivity—rural productivity is less than urban productivity. We are doing our utmost to support the rural economy in many areas. One of the key areas in which we can do so is by improving our transport links.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, my family, on our farm, has not allowed fox-hunting across that land for well over 40 years. However, as a student, I occasionally used to run cross-country with a piece of rope and a scented rag, and was pursued by hounds. I can assure the House that no animals were harmed in that process—I was left exhilarated but rather breathless. On an equally serious point, does the Minister agree that a higher priority should be to resource the police to deal with the rapidly rising tide of rural crime, including waste-tipping, theft and hare-coursing, rather than chasing after people who simply like to dress up and ride along a pre-set trail?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

I commend the noble Lord on his earlier fitness—I do not know if he still carries it out. It is important to stress that there are no plans to include other activities, such as drag hunting and clean boot hunting, in the ban on trail-hunting. The noble Lord makes a really important point about enforcement. I have asked for a meeting with Home Office Ministers to discuss exactly that, in not just this area but others within Defra, as we feel that we need to work much more closely with the Home Office to ensure the enforcement of the laws that we bring in.

Sustainable Farming Incentive: Small Farms

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Wednesday 11th March 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

I am beginning to wish I lived in Norfolk so that I could come—it is a long way from Cumbria. I reassure the right reverend Prelate that one of the things we have been working much harder on in Defra, as we develop policies and then manage and oversee them, is working with other departments where there is also an impact. It is really important to have that oversight. The noble Lord was just talking about energy prices, and we work with DESNZ on how best we can approach that. It will be the same for rural-proofing more broadly. It is certainly very much on our agenda.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords—

[Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (GP)]

My Lords—

[Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms and Chief Whip (Lord Kennedy of Southwark) (Lab Co-op)]

It is the turn of the Cross Benches.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, can the Minister confirm that, in the first round of SFI26, the maximum per farm will be capped at £100,000? According to my mathematics, these aspirant billionaires with 50 hectares cannot possibly fit enough options in there to get to £100,000. Would it not be better to reduce the cap—make it, say, £30,000—and spread it far more widely over these small farms than will be possible now?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

The noble Lord is absolutely correct that there is a cap of £100,000. The first tranche is open to small farms and those who do not have an agreement, and then there will be another tranche in September, which will be open to all. That is why the cap is important.

Water Companies: Fines

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Thursday 29th January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

In March last year, Yorkshire Water agreed to pay an enforcement package of £40 million to address the failures that were found by the investigation at that time. That package is to prioritise work on some of the most problematic storm overflows in environmentally sensitive areas to ensure that they spill less than 20 times a year. Surely that must be our priority.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, it may have come as a surprise to many water bill payers that payment plans out to 2030 were agreed to pay fines. Will the Minister agree that when fines are imposed in future, a payment plan that goes with them should also be announced?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

The noble Lord makes a helpful suggestion, and I am happy to take that back to the department.

Large-scale Waste Crime

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Wednesday 14th January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

I am sure the noble Viscount and others know that the Kidlington situation was utterly appalling. It was, as he said, quite extraordinary that it was allowed to happen. It is important to recognise that it was exceptional. We need to concentrate on the fact that waste crime is more and more frequent. It is a serious criminal activity that blights our countryside, which is why, as I said, the status quo is not acceptable, and we are seriously looking at what we can do to make the improvements that are needed.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, the Minister’s department has confirmed in Answers to a series of Written Questions from me that neither the Government nor local authorities have any responsibility for dealing with the disposal of material dumped by third parties on private land. Criminals are of course aware of this, and target fields and tracks off immediate public highway verges with impunity. Victims typically lack the money or expertise to remove illegal waste yet are told that it is down to them to deal with it. Does the Minister feel that this state of affairs is just? Do the Government have any plans to address it and give practical assistance to the victims?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

As I said, we do not think the status quo is working. We need to look at how tidying up and tackling waste crime, both from the start and at the clearing up end of things, are properly resourced, and at how the criminals carrying out this illegal activity are caught and dealt with. As the noble Lord said, that is difficult because of the nature of where it happens but, again, we are working across government to look at the best way to tackle this, because unless we all come together across government, we will not resolve this issue.

Planning and Infrastructure Bill

Lord Cromwell Excerpts

Committee stage
Wednesday 17th September 2025 Lords Chamber

[Earl Russell (LD)]

My Lords, I rise briefly to speak to my Amendment 246 in this group on strengthening the NRF model and, most importantly, on the overall improvement test for environmental delivery plans under Clause 55.

This is a really interesting amendment, and I welcome the speech the noble Lord has just made. We recognise the amendments that the Government have made, but judging by the size and the number of them, and the uniformity of purpose across the amendments and across political parties, I think it is fair to say that concerns remain and that many Members are still looking for further reassurance and guidance from the Government on these matters.

My amendment makes it clear that the conservation measures must not merely mitigate or offset environmental harm but significantly and measurably outweigh it. That is important, because that is about delivering a genuine net gain on the conservation status of our natural heritage. Against that there are two things. First, we have the new policies and plans the Government have put forward. There is a background worry about the disregard for nature and the dangers inherent in some of the Government’s plans, but there is also a worry that the bar is too low and that too often in the past we have seen, with the best will, government intentions and legislation ultimately failing to deliver what they promise, particularly for nature.

It is therefore important to put in those measures, and other Members have picked up on them as well. It gives clarity to developers and those involved that they need to do something more than merely replace. The amendment would enshrine in law a clear principle that any harm caused by development must be more than compensated by concrete improvements. As my noble friend Lady Grender said, that aligns with the Government’s own biodiversity and net gain targets and sets robust, measurable standards.

We are all aware that we are already, famously, one of the most nature-deprived countries in the world and the few precious sites we have left are often not properly looked after and maintained. They are very disparate and very precious. Organisations and Members across the House have raised these issues, so while I welcome “materially outweigh” that the Government have put forward, there is a need to go further. I hope we can have further conversations on this area. These matters are important.

I support most of the amendments in this group. Again, what is important is the sense in this House that on these matters we seek reassurance.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

My Lords, this is my first intervention today and, of course, I am speaking personally. I wholeheartedly support what the Government Whip said about this being Committee stage and how it should be conducted, but this is a big Bill and it needs proper scrutiny. As the Minister has told us today, there are lots of things still to clarify and many questions still to be answered. Some speakers may need reining in, and I am sure the House will support the Whips when they attempt to do that, but I put it on record that I thought the crude attack yesterday in Oral Questions was inappropriate and unhelpful.

I support most of the amendments in this group, particularly Amendments 286 and 300 and others that have been raised such as those by the noble Baroness, Lady Grender, a few moments ago. These all seek to introduce some quantification, comparison and accountability into the EDP process. There will always be a temptation for implementing bodies, be it Natural England or those that it subcontracts, to introduce subjectivity—or, shall we say, optimism—into their results and reporting. Openness with data and debate will be essential to enable candour, challenge and particularly third-party professional scrutiny. EDPs are a new adventure, and lessons will need to be learned early and fully. I therefore support, as Amendment 300 puts it,

“a high degree of certainty based on an objective assessment”.

I also support Amendment 264 in this group from the noble Earl, Lord Caithness, and, to save time, Amendment 275 in the next group from the noble Earl, Lord Russell. Both seek to introduce some discipline and accountability via mitigation hierarchy and a stepped approach.

Finally, I have two related questions for the Minister. Will there be an independent audit process of Natural England and EDPs—not just of their finances but of the outcomes and results? If so, who will select these auditors and evaluators?

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

My Lords, I will speak to Amendment 290 in my name, which was tabled as Amendment 119 in the other place by my honourable friend Ellie Chowns. I agree with the noble Earl, Lord Russell, that the noble Lord, Lord Lansley, has clearly identified where this group has taken us, and we have heard powerful expositions from the noble Baroness, Lady Grender, and the noble Lord, Lord Gascoigne.

This amendment specifically addresses European sites, European marine sites, European offshore marine sites and Ramsar sites, so we are talking about the overall improvement test, but in a limited subset. Again, we are talking about the nature of the overall improvement test.

These sites are, of course, hugely precious and terribly important, and Ramsar sites are described as internationally important places. Amendment 290 says that the Secretary of State has to be

“satisfied that there would be no adverse effect on the integrity of the relevant site”.

That is part 1 of the test. Paragraphs (ii) and (iii) state some offsetting allowances if there is no alternative and if appropriate measures are taken, but the amendment sets a very high standard for these terribly important places, which is crucial for them.

I note that in Monday’s debate, the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, talked about how, under Clause 89, Ramsar sites were previously protected by guidance rather than legislation. This is indeed legislation, but if the test is not sufficiently strong then it is not any kind of protection at all. Also on Monday, the noble Baroness said that SSSIs have protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. I have not had time to really absorb what this morning’s letter says. It refers to that protection, but I would be interested to hear from the Minister on how that interacts with the changes that the Government have made and how Clause 55 works.

It is worth focusing for a second on what we are talking about. When I think of Ramsar, I always think of Rutland Water. I am sure that many noble Lords have visited it and seen the amazing birds at that site—I am looking at the noble Lord, Lord Randall. I also think of the Inner Thames Marshes SSSI, which is part of the Rainham Marshes Nature Reserve. I think of that because I was there in 2018 on Hen Harrier Day, when we had the wonderful and amazing pleasure of a marsh harrier swooping over to inspect our event for defending their cousins. I can remember the sense of wonder and amazement in the crowd, many of whom were local people. It is important to stress how important those SSSIs are to nature but also to local communities. We might think, “That will always be all right. That will always be protected”, but in the 1990s, the site was a candidate location for a Universal theme park, which, happily, was not built.

--- Later in debate ---

The noble Lord, Lord Cromwell, raised the issue of an independent audit process for Natural England, which will be subject to audit, as all public bodies are. I will revert back to him on the issue of who selects the auditor. I do not have the answer to that in front of me, but I will come back to him on that.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

All the amendments in this group are basically trying to answer the question: what would success look like, and how do we measure it? I guess it is the old consultants’ cliché, I guess. The point I was concerned about was not just a financial audit but measuring the performance of EDPs. Environmental change is fantastically difficult and subjective to measure, so is there a commitment to use external third-party expertise to evaluate their success, or will Natural England mark its own homework?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

As if by magic, I have the answer for who audits Natural England, so I can answer the noble Lord’s question. The accounts of Natural England are audited by the Comptroller and Auditor-General under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006. It is the National Audit Office, so I hope that is helpful.

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

That is helpful, and I am sure that it will look deeply into the financial performance, but I am worried about how the actual performance of the EDP will be measured.

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I was just coming to that. The performance of EDPs will be monitored in the ways that have been set out. There will be oversight from the department and a process for monitoring the EDPs. It might be helpful if, between Committee and Report, the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, and I can set out exactly how that process will work, and we will aim to do that.

The noble Baroness Coffey talked about the environmental principles policy statement, and I can confirm that the Bill must have regard to that statement, in line with the Environment Act 2021. With all those comments, I hope that noble Lords will not press their amendments.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Cromwell (CB)]

I will speak very briefly in support of Amendment 293 on the annual report. Put simply, if the department is not required to produce an annual report, will it do so and, if not, how is Parliament to be made aware of progress or difficulties, unless, perhaps by chance, a Select Committee calls in Natural England to tell it?

[Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank noble Lords for introducing their amendments and for the wider debate. I will speak first to Amendment 293, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Roborough. That requires Natural England to produce annual reports on EDPs rather than just at the mid- and endpoint of an EDP’s lifespan. We think that our Amendment 325C, on the new reporting requirements, partly speaks to this issue. Our concern is that Amendment 293 would bring a disproportionate burden, given the strengthened reporting requirements that we have introduced in government Amendment 295A.

The noble Lord asked whether we were happy with these levels of reporting. It is important that the frequency of reporting strikes the right balance. Natural England will still be carrying out appropriate monitoring throughout the EDP’s life cycle and will retain the power to publish a report at any time. Similarly, requiring EDPs to include an assessment of their impact on the local economy and community in the relevant area, as is proposed by the noble Lord’s Amendment 295, would add a significant burden to the reporting requirements for EDPs. Of course, communities will be involved during the consultation process; I wonder whether it might be an idea to circulate the consultation guidelines to noble Lords, because obviously the consultation process is an important part of what we are proposing.

On Amendment 285A, I hope I can satisfy the noble Lord, Lord Randall, that requiring a biodiversity survey of an EDP area is already accommodated in the existing drafting to an extent that such a survey is not necessary. I was pleased to hear about his love of birds. He may be interested to know that I am a member of the RSPB, so perhaps I could be described as a minor “birdo” alongside him. Clause 57 already requires an EDP to describe the conservation status of each identified environmental feature at the EDP start date, setting out the relevant baseline. In doing so, as is the case for all duties carried out in relation to Part 3, Natural England will be required to take account of the best available scientific evidence. It is also important to remember that these are targeted plans to address the impact of development on a specific environmental feature. Requiring a full survey of all the biodiversity in an EDP area risks adding cost and burden that go far beyond what is required to consider the impact of development on the environmental feature.

Amendment 258C, tabled by my noble friend Lady Young, would add a series of additional requirements for Natural England when preparing an EDP. I know from discussions with my noble friend that she wishes to ensure that the NRF is as rigorous as possible while ensuring that it is an effective tool to support development to come forward. Specifically in respect of the supporting evidence base for EDPs and the consideration of the environmental principles, I assure my noble friend that these matters are already captured through the drafting and amplified by the Government’s amendments to Part 3.

My noble friend also asked about further evidence collection. Where it is necessary to gather additional ecological evidence to prepare and monitor an EDP, the associated costs may be recovered through developer contributions. Clause 57 already requires an EDP to set out why conservation measures are considered appropriate, and new Clause 87A(2) requires the Secretary of State and Natural England to take account of the best available scientific evidence when exercising functions in relation to EDPs. Clause 57 also requires an EDP to describe the conservation status of each identified environmental feature, again with regard to the best available scientific evidence. This means that there is already a requirement for Natural England to ensure that there is a solid base of scientific evidence, including adequate baseline data, to inform the preparation of the EDP. My noble friend asked why Natural England is required to have regard to environmental principles as it refers to Ministers. I reiterate that the Environment Act requires the Secretary of State to take them into account when making their decision to approve or make an EDP.

I recognise the desire to ensure that EDPs deliver as much for the environment as possible, but we must also ensure that we are not asking developers to address more than is reasonable or that we are allowing EDPs to replace the important wider programme of work which is under way to protect important sites and species as part of our ambitions in the overall environmental improvement plan. We have to get that balance right. We have to make sure that the environment supports development and at the same time does not stop important development where we need it.

The noble Lord, Lord Lucas, asked quite a lot of questions about the baseline and other things. It is probably helpful if I put my answers in writing to the noble Lord. I hope that with these explanations and assurances, noble Lords will not press their amendments. I beg to move.