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 help reduce global warming.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
While DESNZ leads across Government on net zero, Defra is responsible for reducing emissions from agriculture, land use (including peat), F-gases and waste (including wastewater), whilst simultaneously increasing England's carbon saving potential through our forestry policies. DESNZ will deliver an updated plan that sets out the policy package out to the end of Carbon Budget 6 in 2037 for all sectors by October 2025. This will outline the policies and proposals needed to deliver Carbon Budgets 4-6 and our Nationally Determined Contribution commitments on a pathway to net zero.
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, pursuant to the Answer of 2 September 2024 to Question 2087 on Horse: Smuggling, what estimate his Department has made of the number of horses smuggled from the United Kingdom at (a) Dover and (b) other ports for which the latest data is available.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
APHA defines a smuggled animal as one that is illegally exported: it is one that is not travelling on appropriate paperwork, has not been declared and/or is concealed. This means that robust data on the numbers of horses and ponies illegally smuggled out of the United Kingdom in the last 5 years is not readily available, as APHA can only report on inspected animals; those that are presented or intercepted.
APHA holds data for the period September 2023 to date for Dover only. We have previously provided the data from September 2023 to 30 July 2024.
See PQ 45796 for the most recent data on recorded exports.
Between 31 July 2024 to present, APHA Dover inspected 197 horses/ponies being exported into mainland Europe, including those originating from Ireland and transiting through Great Britain. Of these, 65 were found to be non-compliant due to contraventions of official controls related to animal health and the welfare of animals in transport.
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
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
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
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
The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues.