Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department are taking to reduce the use of single-use plastics in packaging; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
As set out in our manifesto, we will introduce Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (EPR) in 2024, which will move the full cost of dealing with packaging waste produced by households to the packaging producers (applying the 'polluter-pays principle'). This places responsibility on producers for the cost of managing their packaging once it reaches its end of life and will encourage businesses to reduce how much packaging they use, to design and use packaging that is easily recyclable, and encourage use of reusable and refillable packaging, as a large proportion of plastic packaging is single use.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether businesses may import birds of prey under (a) The Import of and Trade in Animals and Animal Products (Miscellaneous Amendments) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 and (b) The Official Controls (Animals, Feed and Food, Plant Health etc.) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 until the end of March 2021.
Answered by Victoria Prentis
Businesses may import birds of prey into Great Britain under The Import of, and Trade in, Animals and Animal Products (Miscellaneous Amendments) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (Statutory Instrument 2020/1462).
The Official Controls (Animals, Feed and Food, Plant Health etc.) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (Statutory Instrument 2020/1481) regulates official controls that are carried out on third country imports subject to sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, including birds of prey.
These regulations came into force on 1 January 2021.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
What discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the creation of green jobs.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
Green jobs form a key element of the Government’s approach to our economic recovery, in which this department is closely involved. The Government’s Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution will support up to 250,000 jobs. As part of this, Defra will support thousands of nature jobs through the £80 million Green Recovery Challenge Fund; and deliver up to 20,000 jobs through our investment in flood defences to support 2,000 flood schemes across England.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
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 plans to take to protect against potential increases in prices on (a) baby food, (b) infant formula and (c) specialist medical nutrition products in the event that the UK has reached the end of the transition period without a deal on its future relationship with the EU.
Answered by Victoria Prentis
We have now successfully negotiated a Free Trade Agreement with the EU and we will therefore not see tariff-based increases to food prices for consumers for agri-food imports from the EU which meet the Rules of Origin. Non-tariff measures could result in limited impacts. The factors which will continue to affect consumer food prices include agri-food import prices, domestic manufacturing costs and currency exchange rates.
Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
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 make funding available to support the restoration of the Tree Tops Walk at Salcey Forest.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
This is an operational matter for Forestry England. Forestry England is making plans to restore the Tree Tops Walk at Salcey Forest once the financial impact of Covid-19 restrictions has been mitigated and subject to obtaining any necessary local planning consents.