Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the National Audit Office report Ensuring food safety and standards published 12 June 2019, what steps is he taking to bring forward new regulations on imported products in preparation for the UK leaving the EU on 31st October 2019; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Food Standards Agency has welcomed the NAO report ‘Ensuring food safety and standards’. The FSA is already taking steps to address the proposals and is committed to working closely with other parts of government to ensure that a high level of food safety standards is maintained.
When we leave the European Union, we will maintain our current standards. We will keep our existing UK legislation, and the EU Withdrawal Act will convert EU law into UK law as it applies at the moment of departure.
We are committed to maintaining our rigorous standards on animal welfare and food safety after the UK’s withdrawal from the EU - high standards and high quality are what our domestic and global customers demand, and that is what we will provide.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Special Areas of Conservation in England and pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2019 to Question 221626, how many consents or permissions to burn blanket bog Natural England has successfully (a) revoked and (b) modified.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
To date, Natural England has revoked or modified 180 consents or permissions to rotationally burn on protected sites, by developing Long Term Plans or equivalent remedies (Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) Revisions, HLS Extensions or voluntary surrender).
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Environment Agency will take to ensure the control of water borne disease and infestations within farmed salmon populations.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) is the organisation responsible for the control of serious diseases of fish and shellfish in aquaculture establishments, including salmon farms and wild populations in England and Wales.
It acts under the Aquatic Animal Health (England and Wales) Regulations 2009 to prevent the introduction and spread of serious fish and shellfish disease. The FHI undertakes its responsibilities through compliance inspections of aquaculture establishments and advice to the industry. It also imposes trade controls on imports of fish and shellfish, investigates disease problems and when a serious disease is detected, implementations of movement controls and other preventative measures.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
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 (a) take steps through the Agriculture Bill to increase animal health standards and (b) make an assessment of the merits of a resilient approach to disease management to reduce productivity losses and subsequent food shortages.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Government is highly supportive of a resilient and preventative approach to livestock disease which supports higher productivity in farming and enables wider benefits. The approach was endorsed in responses to our consultation paper Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a Green Brexit. The potential was set out, for example, in ‘Study to Model the Impact of Controlling Endemic Cattle Diseases and Conditions on National Cattle Productivity, Agricultural Performance and Greenhouse Gas Emissions’.
We are now working with industry and veterinary representatives to develop practical plans to further this approach and the Agriculture Bill is drafted to give the Secretary of State powers to make payments to protect and improve the health of livestock and to collect and share data relating to livestock health and traceability.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
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 merits of a preventative approach to animal health in improving the productivity of agriculture; and what steps he will take to reward farmers that take such an approach.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Government is highly supportive of a resilient and preventative approach to livestock disease which supports higher productivity in farming and enables wider benefits. The approach was endorsed in responses to our consultation paper Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a Green Brexit. The potential was set out, for example, in ‘Study to Model the Impact of Controlling Endemic Cattle Diseases and Conditions on National Cattle Productivity, Agricultural Performance and Greenhouse Gas Emissions’.
We are now working with industry and veterinary representatives to develop practical plans to further this approach and the Agriculture Bill is drafted to give the Secretary of State powers to make payments to protect and improve the health of livestock and to collect and share data relating to livestock health and traceability.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
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 took to alert (a) children, (b) older people, (c) people with health conditions and (d) other vulnerable groups to the pollution episodes that occurred across England between 4-26 April 2019.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
During episodes of elevated air pollution (including the episodes between 4-26 April 2019), Defra works closely with Public Health England and a network of health charities to ensure that key health messages are communicated to those who are vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, in addition to communicating through our normal digital channels.
Defra’s Daily Air Quality Index (https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/air-pollution/daqi) assists in understanding air pollution levels and suggests recommended actions and health advice. Such advice applies to anyone experiencing symptoms.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Import of Products, Animals, Food and Feed System will enable horses to be traced post import.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Import of Products, Animals, Food and Feed System has been designed, for a scenario where the UK no longer has access to the Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES), to enable notifications of imports coming into this country, so that appropriate border controls can be carried out and recorded. The notifications reveal the origin of the consignments just as TRACES does now and so can be used to trace a consignment back to its country of origin. It does not itself provide for traceability of movements afterwards, however, once in the UK, horses and other equines must be identified in accordance with UK law and recorded on the UK Central Equine Database (CED). This records the identification details of the equine, including the name and address of the owner. An exception is made for equines from other EU Member States that are only in the UK for a short stay for specific purposes such as competition, racing or breeding, on the basis that they are already fully identified in accordance with EU law. This will include a record having been made in the CED of their Member State of origin.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
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 Environment Agency ability to carry out all its statutory duties in relation to fisheries; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The EA continues to fulfil its statutory duties in relation to fisheries.
Freshwater fisheries regulation is a core role and unique activity that only the EA can fulfil. The EA makes resources available to deliver current regulations, including the rod and net licensing system; scheduled reviews of Net Limitation Orders; reviewing and consolidating fishery byelaws; making new byelaws where this is necessary to protect stocks; and determining fishery management permit applications.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
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 Environment Agency’s ability to carry out the management of salmon stocks as a result of recent reductions in funding levels.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Environment Agency (EA), like the rest of the public sector, is playing its part in reducing the national deficit and delivering more with less. Both Defra and the EA recognise the challenges that reduced funding bring and the EA is adapting its approach accordingly.
In 2015/16, the EA launched a new approach to partnership working to help it deliver more effectively and efficiently. Its 5 Point Approach to Salmon management (published in 2016), is a good example of how it is working with like-minded organisations to deliver shared priorities.
Asked by: Angela Smith (Liberal Democrat - Penistone and Stocksbridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what checks will be carried out on the documentation required by equines entering the UK once the UK has left the EU.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
No new animal health checks at the point of entry will be introduced as a result of the UK leaving the EU. Equines entering the UK from the EU will be required to pre-notify APHA (or DAERA in Northern Ireland) if they are travelling using a UK Health Certificate or from France using a commercial document (UK DOCOM). The UK Health Certificate is a replacement for the existing Intra Trade Animal Health Certificate used for EU trade. The UK DOCOM is a replacement for this existing DOCOM used for the movement of high health status horses from France to the UK.
Equines entering the UK directly from the EU will not be required to do so via a border inspection post. Risk based checks will continue to be undertaken at the point of destination on these equines. Equines entering the UK from third countries will follow the same processes as they do now, with checks undertaken at an approved UK BIP.