Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of bird flu.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 17 December 2024 to question UIN 19297.
An updated outbreak assessment for highly pathogenic avian influenza in Great Britain and Europe was published by the Animal and Plant Health Agency on 18 March 2025, and an updated veterinary risk assessment for notifiable avian influenza incursion into poultry in Northern Ireland was published by the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute in December 2024.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve the mental health of farmers.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to supporting the mental health of those working in farming and agriculture.
Following engagement with agricultural mental health charities, Defra established a team dedicated to addressing the particular set of issues driving poorer mental health outcomes in the agricultural industry.
We are also continuing to fund the Farmer Welfare Grant. This funds four charities to deliver projects which will support mental health and build resilience in local farming communities.
As promised in our manifesto, the Government is building a national network of Young Futures hubs which will be present in every community and will deliver support for young people facing mental health challenges.
Finally, the Government is giving mental health the same attention and focus as physical health through measures such as employing 8,500 new mental health support workers. This will reduce delays and provide faster treatment closer to people’s homes.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the condition of the water in the River Thames.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Cleaning up England’s rivers, lakes and seas is a priority for the Government. The Government has taken immediate and substantial action to address the performance of water companies who are not delivering for the environment or their customers.
Significant steps are being taken to address pollution through the Water (Special Measures) Act and record investment in PR24 to enhance infrastructure, and ensure clean and sustainable water resources for future generations.
As part of Price Review 24 (PR24), Thames Water will undertake a significant investment programme to improve the environment over the 2025-30 period. These investments include: £784 million to reduce the use of storm overflows and £1.2 billion to prevent nutrient pollution.
At the beginning of February, the Thames Tideway Tunnel (TTT) was fully activated and is now diverting sewage flows away from the river. The TTT was the final part of the London Tideway Tunnel system which will help reduce the volume of discharges by around 95%, leaving behind a cleaner, healthier Thames.
On 13 March, the Mayor of London announced plans for investment to clean up London’s rivers. The Mayor, Transport for London, Thames Tideway, London Wildlife Trust, and Thames Water announced an injection of over £1.8 billion across the next five years to protect and improve river health in London. The plans include £7 million to prevent road run-off pollution from entering waterways and help reduce flood risk.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his counterpart in Northern Ireland on changes to farming subsidies.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Agriculture is a devolved policy area. Defra and devolved Government officials meet routinely to share experiences and insight regarding our respective agricultural policies.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage recycling at beaches.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has introduced Simpler Recycling, which from 31 March 2025 will require small, medium and large workplaces in England to recycle the core waste streams (plastic, metal, glass, paper and card) and food waste. This will include cafés, shops, and other establishments that are located across England’s seafronts and beaches.
We have been proud to support and endorse national clean-up initiatives such as the Great British Spring Clean, and the Great British Beach Clean, and we will continue to use our influence to encourage as many people and businesses as possible to participate in these types of events.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps he is taking to help increase the freshwater pearl mussel population.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is supporting the recovery of freshwater pearl mussel by working collaboratively with environmental organisations to restore rivers and watercourses, raising awareness about the importance of freshwater pearl mussels and encouraging community participation in their conservation. Enforcement agencies are also ensuring compliance with the nature conservation laws to protect freshwater pearl mussels from illegal harvesting and environmental damage.
As well as habitat-based actions the Environment Agency has established a captive breeding programme in Kielder, Northumberland to boost existing populations by providing a safe start to their lifecycle before they are returned to the wild at carefully chosen locations.
Finally, we are exploring opportunities to reintroduce the species to river systems from where they have been lost; Natural England and partners are planning a freshwater pearl mussel reintroduction, the “R4ever Kent Life project”, which will also help inform other reintroductions across the country.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of wind turbines on avian mortality.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government does not have estimates of the number of birds killed by wind turbines. Wind developments have the potential to cause environmental damage, including impacts to birds from collisions, displacement, and foraging pressures.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will have discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on reversing the changes to inheritance tax for family farmers.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of Sate for Northern Ireland on the preservation of biodiversity in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK’s National Biodiversity Strategy & Action Plan (NBSAP) was discussed with Minister Muir, as well as other devolved government ministers, at the Inter-Ministerial Group for EFRA held on 16 September. The UK has published the full NBSAP during the resumed COP16 that commits us to achieving all 23 targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework at home. The four governments, and relevant Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies have worked collaboratively to develop the NBSAP and now we need to work together to deliver it.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support the dairy farming industry in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Dairy farming policy is a devolved matter and is therefore the responsibility of the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in Northern Ireland. However, the UK Government is committed to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists and works with DAERA to ensure there is a coordinated approach and farmers receive a fair price for their products.
Central to this is the Government’s commitment to improving contractual practices across the agriculture industry, using the Fair Dealings powers in the Agriculture Act 2020 to increase transparency and protect farmers from unfair practices.
The Fair Dealing Obligations (Milk) Regulations 2024, which came into force last year, introduced key reforms. These include mandatory written contracts outlining key terms such as termination conditions and agreed supply volumes. They also require greater transparency in milk pricing and establish robust dispute resolution procedures, strengthening trust and cooperation between buyers and sellers.
The regulations are enforced by the Agricultural Supply Chain Adjudicator, who can investigate complaints from farmers who believe they have not been provided with a contract that is compliant with the Regulations, on behalf of the Secretary of State.
We will continue to work with DAERA in monitoring the dairy industry to ensure these reforms deliver their intended impact, including through a future review of the effectiveness of the dairy regulations.