First elected: 4th July 2024
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Anna Gelderd, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Anna Gelderd has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Anna Gelderd has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
A Bill to make provision about the teaching and promotion of the Cornish language in educational institutions; to make provision about the recognition of the Cornish language and Cornish heritage; and for connected purposes.
Marine Protected Areas (Bottom Trawling) (England) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Katie White (Lab)
Royal Fleet Auxiliary (Report on Commissioner) Bill 2024-26
Sponsor - Jayne Kirkham (LAB)
The UK Government has a clear position that Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are illegal under international law. Goods originating in these settlements are not entitled to benefit from preferential tariff treatment under the UK's current trade agreements with the Palestinian Authority and Israel.
There are clear risks related to economic and financial activities in the settlements, and we do not encourage or offer support to such activity. UK Government guidance equips individuals and businesses to make their own informed choices regarding such commercial activities.
Trading Standards are provided by local authorities who operate independently from central government and make enforcement decisions according to local need.
Trading Standards act in the collective interest of consumers rather than resolving individual matters. In most cases, Trading Standards will not need to contact a complainant directly but will use information provided to prioritise intervention or enforcement action against rogue traders causing the most harm.
Citizens Advice consumer service received over 827,000 contacts in 2023-24. Every contact received by Citizens Advice is logged on a national database, which is accessible by consumer enforcement agencies, including local Trading Standards, to analyse trends and inform their enforcement activities.
Trading Standards are provided by local authorities who operate independently from central government and make enforcement decisions according to local need.
Trading Standards act in the collective interest of consumers rather than resolving individual matters. In most cases, Trading Standards will not need to contact a complainant directly but will use information provided to prioritise intervention or enforcement action against rogue traders causing the most harm.
Citizens Advice consumer service received over 827,000 contacts in 2023-24. Every contact received by Citizens Advice is logged on a national database, which is accessible by consumer enforcement agencies, including local Trading Standards, to analyse trends and inform their enforcement activities.
Trading Standards are provided by local authorities who operate independently from central government and make enforcement decisions according to local need.
Trading Standards act in the collective interest of consumers rather than resolving individual matters. In most cases, Trading Standards will not need to contact a complainant directly but will use information provided to prioritise intervention or enforcement action against rogue traders causing the most harm.
Citizens Advice consumer service received over 827,000 contacts in 2023-24. Every contact received by Citizens Advice is logged on a national database, which is accessible by consumer enforcement agencies, including local Trading Standards, to analyse trends and inform their enforcement activities.
Trading Standards are provided by local authorities who operate independently from central government and make enforcement decisions according to local need.
Trading Standards act in the collective interest of consumers rather than resolving individual matters. In most cases, Trading Standards will not need to contact a complainant directly but will use information provided to prioritise intervention or enforcement action against rogue traders causing the most harm.
Citizens Advice consumer service received over 827,000 contacts in 2023-24. Every contact received by Citizens Advice is logged on a national database, which is accessible by consumer enforcement agencies, including local Trading Standards, to analyse trends and inform their enforcement activities.
A secure supply of critical minerals is vital for the UK's economic growth and security, industrial strategy, and clean energy transition. We recognise the importance of recycling critical minerals and as we work with DEFRA to develop the Circular Economy Strategy for England, we will consider the evidence for action and evaluate what interventions may be needed.
The South West of England is home to significant deposits of tin, tungsten and lithium, and the new Critical Minerals Strategy, which will be published this year, will set out how we will enhance the UK’s domestic capabilities, including mining, processing and recycling. The National Wealth Fund’s recent investment of £28.6m into the South Crofty tin mine will support our endeavour to onshore more of the value chain for critical minerals.
The Department for Business and Trade recognises the challenges that junior mining companies face when fundraising for mineral exploration projects. A secure supply of critical minerals is vital for the UK's economic growth and security, industrial strategy ambitions, and clean energy transition. As we work through our industrial and critical mineral strategies, we will further explore funding mechanisms which will encourage UK companies to play a role in securing our supplies and capitalise on economic opportunities, as the demand for resilient and responsible sources of critical minerals grows. UK junior mining companies have already benefitted from HMG funding including grants available through the Automotive Transformation Fund.
In addition to its critical minerals supply finance facility, which guarantees a commercial loan to an overseas project which has an offtake agreement in place with a UK exporter, UK Export Finance (UKEF) can support UK-based critical minerals producers in a variety of ways. These include through its Export Development Guarantee and General Export Facility if the company is an exporter, and also in certain circumstances where the producer in question supplies UK exporters.
Through these two products, UKEF can provide guarantees to commercial loans for working capital, which can be used to pay suppliers or staffing costs, invest in research and development or support bids for higher value contracts.
The Government provides an annual £50m Network Subsidy funding to support the delivery of a minimum number of branches, including Liskeard and other rural & urban communities and to provide a geographical spread of branches in line with published access criteria. The access criteria ensure that however the network changes, Post Office delivers essential services, including banking and cash services, across the UK via its network of 11,500 branches.
The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and high streets, and is committed to championing sufficient access for all. We have committed to work closely with banks to roll out at least 350 banking hubs, which will provide individuals and businesses up and down the country with critical cash and banking services.
The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) will treat blue carbon stores, such as seagrass beds, saltmarshes and subtidal/intertidal biogenic reefs, as environmental constraints in its spatial evaluation framework. It will draw on datasets such as NIRAS’s MPA Risk Layers and The Crown Estate’s Marine Irreplaceable Habitats. The SSEP will be updated every 3 years, and as more data becomes available on blue carbon stores it will be considered in future iterations of the SSEP.
The Government is committed to accelerating to net zero, delivering clean power by 2030, and to restoring nature.
Through the cross-government Marine Spatial Prioritisation Programme (MSPri), the Department is engaging across government and with marine users to improve its understanding of future demands and identify opportunities for greater co-location.
The Department is working with Defra to bring together its ministerial colleagues, who share responsibilities for marine sectors, to discuss how best to consider wider demands on the seabed as we develop future offshore wind.
The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently, including those who are not on the gas grid. This, combined with our Warm Homes Plan to upgrade millions of homes to make them warmer and cheaper to run is how we will drive down energy bills and make cold homes a thing of the past.
We recognise that we need to support households struggling with bills whilst we transition to clean power by 2030. This is why we are delivering the Warm Home Discount to around 3 million eligible low-income households this winter. In February, we published a consultation on the expansion of the Warm Home Discount, giving more eligible households £150 off their energy bills. These proposals would bring around 2.7 million households into the scheme – pushing the total number of households that would receive the discount next winter up to around 6 million. The consultation has now closed and the Department is evaluating the responses.
I have been clear with suppliers that they should do all they can to support their customers who are struggling with their bills. I recommend that any consumers who are struggling with their bills should contact their supplier, local authority, or Citizens Advice to see what support they may be able to receive.
As the world’s largest rainforest country, Brazil is an important partner to the UK on driving action to tackle deforestation. My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero engages regularly with Brazilian counterparts. He was fortunate enough to visit the Brazilian Amazon last summer, to see how the UK has worked in partnership with Brazil to support local communities in combating climate change and securing sustainable livelihoods. Securing a sustainable future for rainforests will help to protect British citizens from climate change and to maintain secure supply chains for food and other essentials.
The recent visit by the Secretary of State gave the opportunity to discuss issues that matter to the UK with senior levels of the Chinese government, including areas such as forests, NDCs and multilateral negotiations.
The UK and China have agreed to hold a UK-China Climate Dialogue and a UK-China Environment Dialogue later this year to accelerate action to tackle the global climate and biodiversity crises. The details of the Dialogues will be confirmed in due course. The UK remains committed to working with all international partners to halt and reverse deforestation and forest degradation.
The UK and China have agreed to hold a UK-China Climate Dialogue and a UK-China Environment Dialogue later this year to accelerate action to tackle the global climate and biodiversity crises. The details of the Dialogues will be confirmed in due course. The UK remains committed to working with all international partners to halt and reverse deforestation and forest degradation.
The Government’s Clean Energy Superpower and Growth missions will be enabled by a significant reinforcement of our electricity network, at all levels across the high voltage transmission and lower-voltage distribution networks. The network companies are responsible for owning and operating the grid, and Government is working with them, Ofgem and the National Energy System Operator to accelerate the delivery of network infrastructure and enable the connection of new renewable generation.
For homes, we have kickstarted delivery of the Government’s ambitious Warm Homes Plan, which will transform homes across the country, including those in South East Cornwall, by making them cleaner and cheaper to run. This includes grant support through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), and targeted support for low income and fuel poor households, namely GBIS, ECO. The Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, and Warm Homes: Local Grant will also begin delivery this year.
The Government is also committed to making electric vehicle charging infrastructure more affordable and accessible, particularly for those without off-street parking, and is offering grants to support the installation of private chargepoints in residential and commercial properties.
All Government energy efficiency schemes, including the Great British Insulation Scheme, must comply with construction standards as set out by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs.
The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December 2024 included several changes designed to enhance and protect the environment. For example, it expects developments to provide net gains for biodiversity, including through incorporating features which support priority or threatened species such as swifts, bats and hedgehogs.
The Online Safety Act requires providers to protect users’ right to privacy when implementing age assurance. UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act requires data to be processed fairly, lawfully, and transparently. Where Ofcom is concerned that a provider has not complied it may refer the matter to the ICO.
Under the Act, regulated services that are likely to be accessed by children must implement highly effective age assurance to prevent exposure to harmful content. There are cost-effective compliant methods available.
Highly effective age assurance must be robust, and services must take appropriate steps to mitigate against circumvention.
Digital infrastructure underpins all aspects of modern life, including access to GP, educational and banking services.
Through Project Gigabit and the Shared Rural Network, we are continuing to deliver improvements in broadband and mobile connectivity to areas with limited coverage, including in rural villages.
The Government remains committed to ensuring at least 99% of UK premises receive gigabit coverage by 2032. Over 88% of UK premises can already access gigabit capable broadband.
4G coverage from at least one mobile operator has now reached over 95% of the UK landmass as a result of the Shared Rural Network, while 4G is also available inside almost 100% of UK premises from one operator. Our ambition is to go further and for all populated areas to benefit from higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030.
Many animal testing regulations are backed by international agreements and the Government works to ensure regulatory alignment where appropriate. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) represent the UK at the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use, on accelerating acceptance of data from non-animal methods for drug safety decision making. Officials engage with international partners such as the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) and attend international meetings to share best practice and consider approaches that reduce reliance on animal testing.
The Government published its Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, which outlines the first five actions we are taking over the next year to boost digital inclusion in every corner of the UK, including rural areas. We recognise the financial impact digital exclusion can have on many different groups including women and men living in rural areas.
These will be targeted at local initiatives for boosting digital skills and confidence, widening access to devices and connectivity, and getting support to people in their own communities so everyone can reap the benefits of technology.
More widely, HM Treasury is developing a Financial Inclusion Strategy to address the barriers consumers can face in accessing the products they need. This includes a focus on digital inclusion and access to banking and the Digital Inclusion and Skills Unit in DSIT is working closely with HM Treasury to ensure appropriate coordination.
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring everyone has access to the banking services they need and is working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK which will provide cash access and a range of face-to-face banking services.
Digital infrastructure is a powerful driver of economic growth and development. The telecoms services industry contributed around 2.5% to UK real GVA in 2023, up from 0.3% in 2010.
Evidence from the Government’s Superfast programme showed that for every £1 spent on connections to premises left behind by the market, up to £4.57 was generated in economic and social benefits. We expect Project Gigabit to continue to drive local economic growth and development in areas which stand to benefit from the programme.
Building Digital UK also publishes independent evaluations of its programmes at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/building-digital-uk-research-portal
The Government is committed to the development of non-animal alternatives. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has a diverse portfolio of investments that support research which can lead to alternatives, such as organ on a chip and computer modelling. They invest £10m annually to the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs). UKRI also supports ‘human-specific’ research, for example a £15m call on Novel human in vitro models of disease with NC3Rs and Wellcome.
The government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year.
Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services, regardless of their size, must prevent all users from encountering illegal suicide content, and children from harmful suicide content. On 9 April, Ofcom launched an investigation into whether the provider of a pro-suicide forum failed to comply with its duties under the Act. This first enforcement action taken by Ofcom demonstrates that harmful suicide forums are a high priority for enforcement.
Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services, regardless of their size, must prevent all users from encountering illegal suicide content, and children from harmful suicide content. On 9 April, Ofcom launched an investigation into whether the provider of a pro-suicide forum failed to comply with its duties under the Act. This first enforcement action taken by Ofcom demonstrates that harmful suicide forums are a high priority for enforcement.
This government recognises the importance of respecting and recognising cultural and national differences and ensuring that the heritage that reflects this is celebrated.
Historic England, as the government's advisor, partners closely with Cornwall Council. They are part of Bord Ertach Kernow, helping shape and deliver Cornwall's Historic Environment Strategy, and part-funded the Distinctiveness Study highlighting Cornish culture's role in local heritage. They are also actively involved in groups promoting Cornish language use and cultural engagement.
Since 1994, the National Lottery Heritage Fund has invested over £134 million in 848 Cornish projects, including the £2.4 million Tamar Landscape Partnership. These projects celebrate Cornwall's unique culture and history, and the Heritage Fund specifically supports the use and translation of Cornish language in project materials.
English Heritage Trust actively incorporates the Cornish language at its sites in Cornwall, following Council guidance for signage, interpretation, and educational resources, thereby supporting the language's preservation and awareness.
As announced in the spending review, the department is making over £1.2 billion of additional investment per year in skills by 2028/29.
This will support and grow the wide range of technical routes and work-based training available for people of all ages, across the country, including South-East Cornwall. This includes:
There are a number of post-16 education and training providers in Cornwall delivering further education and skills provision. The largest of these is Cornwall College, judged as overall Outstanding in their latest Ofsted inspection, and which has campuses throughout Cornwall.
We have also strengthened legislation to ensure all secondary pupils have multiple opportunities for meaningful encounters with providers of technical education and apprenticeships.
Qualified teacher status (QTS) is the professional qualification for teachers in primary and secondary schools. Having a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) is not required to become a qualified teacher but many Initial Teacher Training (ITT) courses also offer an academic award such as a PGCE.
QTS is usually achieved following successful completion of an ITT Course. All ITT courses leading to QTS must incorporate the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework in full. This framework is underpinned by the best independently verified evidence about what makes great teaching.
To achieve QTS, individuals must demonstrate all Teachers’ Standards. Subject expertise is a critical part of great teaching, but teachers also need to understand how children learn; how to plan a curriculum and structure lessons; how to adapt their teaching to the needs of the children in their classes, including those with special educational needs; and how to manage behaviour effectively.
Evidence shows that high-quality teaching is the most important in-school factor that improves outcomes for children, which is why we think it is right that only teachers who have met the Teachers’ Standards are awarded QTS.
Higher education providers are independent bodies responsible for designing their own journalism qualifications. However, the quality of courses is regulated by the independent regulator the Office for Students (OfS). Courses must be up-to-date and teach students skills relevant to the subject and level of the course. Relevant skills could include, but not be limited to, cognitive skills, practical skills, transferable skills and professional competences.
A course designed to lead to a particular profession should require students to demonstrate the skills necessary for success in that profession, including where specific skills are required for accreditation by a professional body.
For example, the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and the Broadcast Journalism Training Council accredit courses delivered by providers in the UK. In addition, the NCTJ offers its own popular journalism diploma, which is also delivered in some further education colleges as well as other level 3 provision. It is for employers, providers and sector bodies to ensure that content meets learner and employer needs.
The government provides funding through the Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) on an annual basis to support teaching and students in higher education (HE). We are prioritising support for high-cost subjects that are essential to the delivery of our Industrial Strategy and for access to HE for disadvantaged groups. The removal of SPG funding for journalism courses aligns with this.
We are prioritising investment in science, engineering and technology subjects. Media studies, journalism, publishing and information services are all important and valued subjects, and the government acknowledges their importance, alongside numerous other subjects that do not attract SPG high-cost subject funding, such as history, languages, economics, mathematics and law.
Funding for all subjects, including journalism, will benefit from the increase in tuition fee limits in line with inflation. The maximum fee for a standard full-time undergraduate course in the 2025/26 academic year will increase by 3.1%, from £9,250 to £9,535.
HE providers are autonomous bodies, independent from government, and are responsible for deciding which courses to offer.
The government provides funding through the Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) on an annual basis to support teaching and students in higher education (HE). We are prioritising support for high-cost subjects that are essential to the delivery of our Industrial Strategy and for access to HE for disadvantaged groups. The removal of SPG funding for journalism courses aligns with this.
We are prioritising investment in science, engineering and technology subjects. Media studies, journalism, publishing and information services are all important and valued subjects, and the government acknowledges their importance, alongside numerous other subjects that do not attract SPG high-cost subject funding, such as history, languages, economics, mathematics and law.
Funding for all subjects, including journalism, will benefit from the increase in tuition fee limits in line with inflation. The maximum fee for a standard full-time undergraduate course in the 2025/26 academic year will increase by 3.1%, from £9,250 to £9,535.
HE providers are autonomous bodies, independent from government, and are responsible for deciding which courses to offer.
On 12 December 2024, the government published the review of level 3 qualifications reform which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-level-3-qualifications-reform-provisional-outcomes. The review aimed to ensure that qualifications reform supports the government’s missions of spreading opportunity and delivering economic growth, and considered all qualifications that were due to have funding removed in either 2024 or 2025.
The routes in scope of this review were:
Qualifications at level 3 in other subjects, such as music and the arts, will continue to be funded as before. No decisions have been made to defund these qualifications. When we published the results of this review, we were clear this provided certainty on which qualifications will remain funded up to 2027.
We will consider the future of level 3 qualifications following the recommendations from the Curriculum and Assessment Review, due later in 2025.
The department wants to ensure that every child and young person can achieve and thrive in education, work and life, regardless of their gender or background. Work to tackle the impacts of disadvantage is embedded throughout the Opportunity Mission. Ensuring all children, including boys, experience the best start in life is the foundation of the Mission, recognising that children’s earliest years are crucial to their health, development and future life chances.
High standards across education are the key to unlocking stronger outcomes and a better future for all children and young people. The department will drive high and rising standards in every school, delivered though excellent teaching, a high-quality curriculum and a school system which removes the barriers to learning that hold too many children back.
We are determined to break down barriers to opportunity for all our young people. One in eight 16 to 24-year-olds are not in education, employment or training and as the Lost Boys report highlights, the majority of these are young men. This number is too high, and we are taking the action needed to tackle it by investing in skills training and opening up access to apprenticeships.
This government’s focus on ‘Getting Britain Working’ is critical to growing the economy and aims to support young people through the new Youth Guarantee. This will ensure all young people aged 18-21 will have access to education, training or help to find a job or an apprenticeship.
All education and training providers, as with other related service providers, have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities, so they are not disadvantaged compared to non-disabled students. This includes people with a learning difficulty. This duty is set out under section 20 of the Equality Act 2010, which is available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/20.
Local authorities are also responsible for commissioning education for young people who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan and have high needs. Cornwall Council’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) offer is developed in partnership with parents, carers and stakeholders, which includes the two colleges in Cornwall. The Together for Family’s SEND strategy sets out Cornwall Council’s considerations for post-16 young people. Schools and colleges in Cornwall help young people prepare for adulthood and there are specific programmes of education to support young people in moving on to further education, independent living, training and/or employment.
The council provides further support for young people at risk of becoming not in employment, education or training (NEET) through the Cornwall Opportunities Initiative and the Youth Engagement Project for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, aimed at disadvantaged young people, which has received £2 million from the UK government through the Shared Prosperity Fund. The latter programme works with young people aged 16 to 24, with a specific focus on 16 to 18 year-olds who are NEET or are at risk of NEET, have special educational needs, or are in other vulnerable groupings.
Areas right across the UK are benefitting from the transition to low carbon energy. The government’s investments in the skills system are promoting education and training that creates meaningful opportunities for all, including in areas such as renewable energy for South East Cornwall.
The department funds a range of programmes that develop green skills, including:
Moreover, green energy will be eligible for the first round of shortened apprenticeships that we recently announced as part of our skills reforms.
The recently created Skills England is working with partners to map out and address skills needs linked to clean energy.
Addressing local renewable energy and green skills needs are a priority set out in Local Skills Improvement Plans, including the plan covering South East Cornwall. With support from the department, local colleges are actively addressing green skills needs through various initiatives and programmes in key areas such as green construction, heat pump technologies and electric vehicles.
The government recognises the vital role that kinship carers play in caring for some of the most vulnerable children. The government’s manifesto committed to working with local government to support children in care, including through kinship arrangements. The department is considering how to most effectively transform the children’s social care system to deliver better outcomes for children and families, including how best to support kinship children and families.
This government is extending the delivery of over 140 peer support groups across England, which are available for all kinship carers to access, where they can come together to share stories, exchange advice and support each other. The department is also delivering a package of training and support that all kinship carers across England can access.
The government recognises the challenge that many kinship carers face in continuing to work, alongside the pressures of taking in and raising a child. We are also prioritising implementing kinship leave within the department in the next financial year, subject to pay negotiations.
From September 2024, the role of virtual school heads has been expanded to include championing the education, attendance and attainment of children in kinship care, ensuring that more children in kinship care receive the help they need to thrive at school.
The £45 million Families First for Children pathfinder and Family Network Pilot aim to make greater use of family networks by involving them in decision-making at an earlier stage and providing practical and financial support via family network support packages to help keep children safe at home.
The Department currently has no plans to amend the Commons Act 2006 or related legislation.
A requirement for formal public consultation on proposals to carry out works on common land is already in place. Under section 38 of the Commons Act 2006, consent is required for any works that would impede access or alter the character of common land. Applicants are expected to consult interested parties—including landowners, commoners, parish and district councils, Natural England, and the Open Spaces Society—and to publish notices both locally and on site. The requirement to provide equivalent exchange land when common land is deregistered is also well established. Section 16 of the Commons Act 2006 requires applicants to offer suitable exchange land where the deregistered area exceeds 200 square metres.
We have no plans to review the restrictions introduced by section 16 of the Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013.
Further information on carrying out works on common land is available here on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/carrying-out-works-on-common-land.
Natural England works with Defra to highlight any gaps in the regulatory and enforcement regime for protected sites.
Natural England has a suite of regulatory remedies and enforcement sanctions (including civil and criminal) to address issues on protected sites. The aim is always to seek the prevention or remedy of harm and to ensure future compliance. This means that Natural England often seeks to achieve a voluntary agreement but where that cannot be achieved, or where the harm is very significant, Natural England acts swiftly using its regulatory or enforcement powers to remedy the situation.
The Corry Review of Defra’s regulatory landscape (April 2025) identified challenges in the effectiveness and consistency of environmental enforcement. Defra has committed to a programme of reforms to strengthen compliance and improve outcomes on the ground.
Food security is national security. The Good Food Cycle, the UK government food strategy for England, published on 15 July, sets out the government's plans to transform the food system. A UK government food strategy for England - GOV.UK.
A resilient and healthy food system requires a whole-of-society approach – one that is centered on people and community and that addresses food insecurity and resilience in both rural and urban areas, so everyone has access to more healthy and sustainable food.
The food strategy will also explore where we can go further, including community led food production and distribution, to create and promote a vibrant food culture at national, regional and local level. We will set out more detail as the work progresses.
Natural England does not carry out ‘inspections’ on SSSIs but undertakes condition assessments on SSSIs. These allow NE to identify changes in the condition of site features and identify any concerns about site management.
The Rural Payments Agency undertakes compliance inspections for agri-environment schemes including those covering SSSIs and will alert Natural England of any issues identified by their inspections.
Investigation response times vary depending on the risk and significance of the negative impact on the SSSI. For example, in a case of damage to a SSSI grassland caused by overgrazing Natural England will contact the land manager immediately and seek a voluntary solution. If a voluntary solution cannot be agreed Natural England will look to serve a stop notice to prevent further damage and allow further investigation.
There are a range of heritage and conservation site designations in England affording high levels of protection. Guidance for these designations is continually reviewed to ensure it balances priorities for food production, nature recovery and access to nature.
The UK is a committed member of the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO), which seeks to reverse the decline of wild Atlantic salmon and recover populations to healthy and resilient levels across their range. The UK hosted NASCO’s 2025 annual meeting in Cardiff, earlier this year, at which parties agreed to develop ambitious new salmon action plans to contribute to the recovery of salmon populations. In the first half of 2026 NASCO will host negotiations to develop a new regulatory measure for the West Greenland land fishery, which the UK will participate in. In 2024 NASCO published new guidelines for stocking Atlantic salmon. In England, all stocking activity is regulated by the Environment Agency, who take a case-by-case approach, with reference to the NASCO guidelines.
The Environment Agency (EA) manages salmon fisheries in England. They use a combination of local and national Byelaws and Net Limitation Orders to prevent commercial salmon fishing and to minimise recreational pressures on salmon. For the South West, this includes protections on 13 principal salmon rivers; the Hampshire Avon, Frome, Exe, Teign, Dart, Tavy, Tamar, Lynher, Fowey, Camel, Taw, Torridge, and Lyn and on 20 recovering salmon rivers; the Allen, Avill, Blakeney Brook, Bristol Avon, Brit, Doniford, Fal, Harbourne, Heddon, Lerryn, Looe, Meon, Otter, Par, Parrett, Porth, Seaton, Sid, Valency and Washford. In 2023, anglers reported releasing 95% of salmon caught, across England and Wales. Additionally, the EA works collaboratively with many local organisations to implement other environmental improvement actions that benefit salmon within the River Lynher and neighbouring catchments. Defra is working with the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO) to better understand the risk of salmon bycatch in commercial pelagic fisheries, including mackerel fisheries.
Defra does not plan to issue specific guidance on sorting requirements for Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs).
Simpler Recycling requires the following recyclable waste streams from all households and workplaces in England: glass, metal, plastic, paper and card, food waste (and garden waste from households only). These measures will increase the quantity of dry recyclable material collected for sorting at MRFS and will apply from 31st March 2025 from workplaces, 31st March 2026 from households and 31st March 2027 from micro-firms (with less than 10 FTEs.
Defra is working with WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) and waste industry representatives to support Material Recovery Facility (MRF) readiness for the Simpler Recycling requirements.
We have engaged with MRF operators and local authorities through WRAP’s MRF Forum to identify challenges with MRF capacity, investment, upgrade timelines, and to work with the sector to identify interventions to support MRFs as they prepare for Simpler Recycling. WRAP is developing interventions to support Local Authorities setting up new MRF contracts or procurement of other resources associated with implementation of Simpler Recycling requirements. An assessment is being undertaken of the potential future composition of dry mixed recyclable waste streams and the associated financial implications resulting from this.