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Written Question
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Brexit
Thursday 31st January 2019

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by David Rutley

The Government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 30 January, my department has laid 92 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.


Written Question
Sheep Meat: Northumbria
Thursday 17th January 2019

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to support the Northumbrian lamb industry in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal and tariffs on its products are imposed.

Answered by George Eustice

It is in everyone’s interests to secure a good deal with the EU and that is exactly what we are committed to. Whilst preparing for all outcomes, as any responsible government would, we are also preparing for the possibility of no deal.

We are in close contact with the sheep sector across the UK working to understand and anticipate the effects on the sector of the UK leaving the EU without a trade deal. Significant work is already underway to ensure that UK exporters can maintain access to EU markets after March 2019.


Written Question
Hen Harriers: Conservation
Monday 7th January 2019

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many hen harrier nests there were on (a) RSPB and (b) non-RSPB reserves in each of the last six years; how many of those nests failed to have any chicks fledge; and what the causes of each of those nest failures were.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has primary control over access to two known hen harrier breeding sites: the RSPB reserve at Geltsdale and United Utilities landholding in the Bowland Fells, a special protection area.

Table 1. Breeding data from sites primarily controlled by RSPB

Year

Area

Outcome

Likely reason for failure

2014

Bowland

5 chicks fledged

2014

Bowland

4 chicks fledged

2015

Bowland

Nest failed

Unknown - chicks dead in nest

2015

Bowland

1 chick fledged

2015

Bowland

Nest failed

Male missing

2015

Bowland

Nest failed

Male missing

2015

Bowland

Nest failed

Male missing

2015

Bowland

Nest failed

Predation

2015

Geltsdale

Nest failed

Male missing

2016

Geltsdale

1 chick fledged

2018

Bowland

4 chicks fledged

2018

Bowland

4 chicks fledged

2018

Bowland

5 chicks fledged

Table 2. Breeding data from sites primarily controlled by other bodies

Year

Area

Outcome

Likely Reason for failure

2013

County Durham

Nest failed

Female disappeared/deserted

2013

Northumberland

Nest failed

Abnormal eggs

2014

Cumbria

2 chicks fledged

2014

Peak District

4 chicks fledged

2015

Cumbria

2 chicks fledged

2015

Cumbria

3 chicks fledged

2015

Cumbria

3 chicks fledged

2015

Northumberland

4 chicks fledged

2015

Northumberland

5 chicks fledged

2016

Northumberland

2 chicks fledged

2016

Northumberland

5 chicks fledged

2017

Northumberland

4 chicks fledged

2017

Northumberland

3 chicks fledged

2017

Northumberland

Nest failed

Suspected predation

2017

Northumberland

3 chicks fledged

2017

Northumberland

Nest failed

Likely bad weather - chicks dead in wet nest

2017

Yorkshire Dales

Nest failed

Suspected predation

2017

Yorkshire Dales

Nest failed

Suspected predation

2018

Yorkshire Dales

Nest failed

Desertion

2018

Yorkshire Dales

Nest failed

Desertion

2018

Northumberland

Nest failed

Predation

2018

Northumberland

Nest failed

Predation or deserted

2018

Northumberland

Nest failed

Predated

2018

Northumberland

4 chicks fledged

2018

Northumberland

5 chicks fledged

2018

Northumberland

2 chicks fledged

2018

Cumbria

2 chicks fledged

2018

Cumbria

4 chicks fledged

2018

Yorkshire

4 chicks fledged


Written Question
Peat Bogs
Wednesday 19th December 2018

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Government plans to publish its Peat Strategy.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

The England Peat Strategy will be published in 2019.


Written Question
Potatoes: Imports
Wednesday 28th November 2018

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

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 made an assessment of the level of risk of diseased potato importation into the UK as a result of the UK leaving the EU.

Answered by David Rutley

Our plant health biosecurity arrangements currently protect UK businesses and the environment from pests and diseases, including those related to potatoes, and we will continue to protect the nation’s plant health biosecurity during and after our departure from the EU. Our work to prepare for leaving the EU will ensure that our high biosecurity standards will continue to be met in ways that support trade and the smooth flow of goods.


Written Question
Potatoes: Sales
Wednesday 28th November 2018

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

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 Farmers' Guardian article Major seed potato market could be killed off with no-deal Brexit, published on 13 August 2018, what information his Department holds on the legality of selling sell seed potatoes to EU countries after March 2019 in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Answered by George Eustice

The Government is committed to pursuing a negotiated outcome which maintains our ability to export all seed to the EU and recognises that this issue is of particular concern for the seed potato industry. However, it is our duty as a responsible Government to prepare for all eventualities, including no deal, until we can be certain of the outcome of those negotiations.

The EU has stated in its Preparedness Notice for plant reproductive material that, in a no deal scenario, UK seed of all species will be subject to its equivalence requirements for third countries. This means that UK seed will not be marketable in the EU until the EU recognises UK processes as equivalent. Defra, with input from the devolved administrations, has made an initial application to the EU Commission for third country equivalence. More detailed information is being prepared in anticipation of discussion with the EU shortly. If approved, this would allow UK exports of seed potatoes to continue as they do now.


Written Question
Moorland: Fire Prevention
Wednesday 11th July 2018

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

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 Government is taking to ensure the responsible management of heather moorland to minimise the risk of uncontrollable wild fires; and if he will make it his policy to include controlled burning in accordance with the Heather and Grass Burning Code as part of that management.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

The Government and its agencies are working with moorland owners, land managers and their representatives to put in place long term management plans and stewardship agreements to restore the hydrology and vegetation on degraded blanket bogs. Raising water tables and increasing the coverage of sphagnum moss allows the processes of recovery that store carbon and reduce the risk of ignition of these habitats by wildfire. The risk of severe damage by wildfire on a wet, well functioning blanket bog is relatively low. In accordance with the Heather and Grass Burning Code, managed one-off burning or cutting firebreaks may help to reduce the risk of fires starting on other habitats such as dry heath, and reduce the spread of fire around likely ignition points.


Written Question
Environment Protection
Wednesday 31st January 2018

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

What progress has been made on implementing his Department's 25 Year Environment Plan.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

The Government is already implementing commitments in the plan. We recently consulted on proposals to ban UK sales of ivory, are bringing into force rules to reduce water pollution from agriculture and are legislating to set limits on air pollutants emitted from medium sized combustion plants. Since the plan’s publication, several supermarkets and restaurants have pledged to tackle plastic packaging and single-use plastics.


Written Question
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds: Grants
Tuesday 31st October 2017

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what taxpayer funded grants including EU funds have been received by the RSPB in the last five years.

Answered by George Eustice

The department publishes details of all expenditure over £25,000, including grants, at https://data.gov.uk/dataset/financial-transactions-data-defra.

The majority of grants are made under the Darwin/Official Development Assistance (ODA) initiative. The RSPB also receives funding under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Details of specific grants made under CAP in the 2015 and 2016 European Community financial years (16 October – 15 October) can be found via http://cap-payments.defra.gov.uk.


Written Question
Birds: Conservation
Wednesday 18th October 2017

Asked by: Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Conservative - Berwick-upon-Tweed)

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 page 11 of the RSPB's Reserves 2012 report, what information his Department holds on the population of priority bird species on RSPB reserves since 2012.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

Defra does not hold information on the population of priority bird species on RSPB reserves.