Baroness McIntosh of Pickering Portrait

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

Conservative - Life peer

Became Member: 6th October 2015


EU Environment Sub-Committee
23rd Apr 2020 - 31st Mar 2021
EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee
2nd Jul 2019 - 23rd Apr 2020
Licensing Act 2003 Committee
25th May 2016 - 4th Apr 2017
Liaison Committee (Commons)
19th Jul 2010 - 30th Mar 2015
Panel of Chairs
21st Jun 2010 - 30th Mar 2015
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
18th Dec 2007 - 30th Mar 2015
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
10th Jun 2010 - 30th Mar 2015
Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
3rd Jul 2007 - 6th May 2010
Shadow Minister (Children, Young People and Families)
8th Nov 2006 - 3rd Jul 2007
Shadow Minister (Work and Pensions)
8th Dec 2005 - 8th Nov 2006
Shadow Minister (Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs)
10th May 2005 - 8th Dec 2005
Transport Committee
15th Dec 2003 - 12th Jul 2005
Shadow Minister (Transport)
1st Jul 2002 - 1st Jul 2005
Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
1st Jul 2003 - 1st Jul 2005
European Scrutiny Committee
20th Nov 2000 - 15th Sep 2003
Transport, Local Government & The Regions
16th Jul 2001 - 22nd Jul 2002
Shadow Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport)
1st Jul 2001 - 1st Jul 2002
Environment, Transport & Regional Affairs
5th Jul 1999 - 1st Jun 2001


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Baroness McIntosh of Pickering has voted in 49 divisions, and never against the majority of their Party.
View All Baroness McIntosh of Pickering Division Votes

Debates during the 2024 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour)
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
(44 debate interactions)
Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (Labour)
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
(12 debate interactions)
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour)
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
(8 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
Department Debates
Department for Transport
(11 debate contributions)
HM Treasury
(6 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
View all Baroness McIntosh of Pickering's debates

Lords initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.


6 Bills introduced by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering


A bill to make provision for the accreditation of child contact centres; and for connected purposes.

Lords - 40%

Last Event - 2nd Reading : House Of Lords
Friday 3rd February 2017
(Read Debate)

A bill to amend the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 to create criminal offences relating to dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling and cycling without compulsory insurance, in particular applying to pedal cycles, electrically assisted pedal cycles and electric scooters; to publish an annual report on cycling offences; and to require a review of the impact of the dangerous use of electric scooters on other road users.

Lords - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Tuesday 17th December 2024
(Read Debate)

A Bill to amend the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 to create criminal offences relating to dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling, in particular applying to pedal cycles, electrically assisted pedal cycles and electric scooters; and to require a review of the impact of the dangerous use of electric scooters on other road users.

Lords - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Tuesday 20th February 2024
(Read Debate)

A Bill to amend the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 to create criminal offences relating to dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling, in particular applying to a pedal cycle, an electrically assisted pedal cycle, and an electric scooter

Lords - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Thursday 7th July 2022
(Read Debate)

A Bill Amend the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 to create criminal offences relating to dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling, in particular applying to a pedal cycle, an electrically assisted pedal cycle, and an electric scooter

Lords - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Wednesday 1st December 2021
(Read Debate)

A bill to amend the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 to create criminal offences relating to dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling, in particular applying to a pedal cycle, an electrically assisted pedal cycle, and an electric scooter

Commons - 20%

Last Event - 1st Reading
Tuesday 14th January 2020
(Read Debate)

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting


Latest 50 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
13th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government when they last assessed the risks to UK critical infrastructure, and what steps they took as a result of that assessment.

The UK Government uses a Lead Government Department model for the oversight of Critical National Infrastructure security and resilience policy. Each Lead Government Department is responsible for routinely undertaking risk assessments for their sector, including assessing Critical National Infrastructure risks within the internal, classified National Security Risk Assessment.

The National Risk Register is the external version of the National Security Risk Assessment. It was most recently updated in January. All risks in the National Risk Register, including those related to Critical National Infrastructure, are kept under review to ensure that they are the most appropriate scenarios to inform emergency preparedness and resilience activity. A number of risks will be subject to reassessment over the next few months. An updated risk will be subsequently published to reflect these changes.

Policy interventions, to address Critical National Infrastructure risks, are sector specific and led by the relevant Lead Government Department.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
13th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what the role of the Emergency Planning College is in assessing risks to critical infrastructure.

The primary focus of the Emergency Planning College (EPC) is to build resilience through training and exercising. It helps organisations to build capabilities to manage emergency and crises situations. All learning material is regularly reviewed to ensure alignment with the latest government direction, policy and legislation. The EPC does not have a role in assessing risks to Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) but uses the National Risk Register (NRR) in the development of its training materials and courses.The NRR is the external version of the government’s internal, classified National Security Risk Assessment. All risks in the NRR, including those related to CNI, are kept under review to ensure that they are the most appropriate scenarios to inform emergency preparedness and resilience activity.

The UK Resilience Academy (UKRA) will be established in April 2025 to ensure that all those who work on resilience have the capability, knowledge and skills they need to play their part in making resilience a ‘whole of society’ endeavour.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
6th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the trade data for (1) exports, and (2) imports, with (a) the United States of America, (b) the EU, and (c) European countries including those outside of the EU, in each of the last three years.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

Please see the letter attached from the National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.

Professor Sir Ian Diamond | National Statistician

The Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

11 March 2025

Dear Lady McIntosh of Pickering,

As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking what are the trade data on (1) exports, and (2) imports, with (a) the United States of America, (b) the EU, and (c) European countries including those outside of the EU, in each of the last three years (HL5557).

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publish UK trade data at country level in our UK total trade, all countries release[1] which is published on a quarterly basis. These data are available up to Quarter 3 (July to Sept) 2024. The latest full year of data available is 2023.

Data on UK trade with the United States, the European Union and Europe can be found in Tables 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Please note that all data are in current prices and, as such, include the effect of inflation.

Yours sincerely,

Professor Sir Ian Diamond

Table 1: UK total trade, trade in goods and trade in services with the United States, exports and imports, 2021-2023[2].

£ billion, current prices

Year

Total Trade

Trade in Goods

Trade in Services

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

2021

142.3

80.2

49.7

39.2

92.6

41.0

2022

176.5

113.5

60.0

61.9

116.5

51.7

2023

179.4

112.1

60.4

57.9

118.9

54.2

Source: Office for National Statistics


Table 2: UK total trade, trade in goods and trade in services with the European Union, exports and imports, 2021-20232.

£ billion, current prices

Year

Total Trade

Trade in Goods

Trade in Services

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

2021

276.9

313.1

158.4

237.4

118.5

75.6

2022

352.2

419.7

207.1

306.6

145.1

113.1

2023

348.0

446.6

186.8

318.2

161.2

128.4

Source: Office for National Statistics

Table 3: UK total trade, trade in goods and trade in services with Europe, exports and imports, 2021-20232,[3].

£ billion, current prices

Year

Total Trade

Trade in Goods

Trade in Services

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

2021

333.4

393.7

184.7

298.5

148.6

95.2

2022

422.2

520.1

241.8

382.1

180.5

138.0

2023

415.5

525.0

215.2

368.1

200.3

156.9

Source: Office for National Statistics

[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/datasets/uktotaltradeallcountriesseasonallyadjusted

[2]Data may not sum due to rounding.

[3]These data include all countries in Europe as set out in Appendix 5 of the Balance of Payments (BoP) Vademecum: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/39118/18471074/vademecum-balance-payment-november-2023-january-2024.pdf. This total includes European Union countries.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
26th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many times have the specialised committees created by the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement met, and how many of these meetings have been attended by ministers.

Under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement there are 19 Specialised Committees. These are co-chaired by a UK and EU senior official, and have met 67 times since 2021. The Specialised Committees report into the Partnership Council, which is the ministerial body set up by the TCA. It has met three times since 2021 and is currently chaired by Minster for the Cabinet Office Nick Thomas-Symonds and Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič. Further information is provided on GOV.UK.

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will undertake a review of the services available at rural post office branches, and what steps they will take to ensure the long-term viability of rural post offices.

Post Offices play an important role in communities across the country, and particularly in rural areas where some branches act as a community hub. We are listening carefully to stakeholders to ensure the whole network, including these important rural branches, is sustainable.

The Government-set Access Criteria ensures that however the network changes, services remain within local reach of all citizens. Government's minimum access criteria for Post Offices mean that 99% of the UK population must be within three miles of their nearest post office outlet and 90% must be within one mile of their nearest post office outlet.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the remit of the Groceries Code Adjudicator particularly in relation (1) to permitting them to open an inquiry on their own initiative, and (2) to extending its remit to the dairy sector.

The report on the last statutory review of the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA), which was published in July 2023 concluded that a decision by the GCA to launch an investigation should be based upon some evidence or intelligence of non-compliance. The government will conduct the next statutory review of the GCA next year and all interested parties will have an opportunity to contribute their views.

‘Fair Dealings’ Regulations under the Agriculture Act 2020, including those which have already been introduced to cover the UK dairy sector, will be enforced by the Agricultural Supply Chain Adjudicator.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
27th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to make an announcement on the future of the Community Energy Fund.

The Government recognises the important role community groups play in our efforts to tackle climate change and the sector’s asks around future funding. Great British Energy will build on existing support for community energy by partnering with, and providing funding and support to community energy groups, to roll out up to 8GW of cleaner power. Further details will be set out in due course.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
25th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the level of the Warm Homes Discount.

There are currently no plans to review the Warm Home Discount rebate value, and this will remain at £150 for the remainder of the scheme.

We have recently published a consultation on expanding the Warm Home Discount Scheme for next winter, where we propose to remove the high cost to heat threshold, making all those on means tested benefits eligible for the scheme. 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.

We are exploring options to improve the design of the scheme beyond the current regulations which expire in 2026.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to publish Great British Energy’s framework document; and what parliamentary scrutiny the framework document will be subject to.

The creation of the Framework Document is linked to the set-up of Great British Energy (GBE) and the document itself will be published in 2025, following Royal Assent, to ensure it reflects the final form of the legislation.

Regarding progress and parliamentary scrutiny, following the requirements of Managing Public Money, the Framework Document will be agreed between the Secretary of State and GBE itself, as well as HM Treasury and Cabinet Office. It will then be published on both the Department and GBE’s website.

Once published, the relevant select committees will be free to scrutinise GBE’s governance arrangements alongside any other matters they consider appropriate.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
24th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure their plans for clean energy (1) meet sustainable development targets, and (2) protect the environment; and how they plan to make their plans and progress transparent to the public.

As set out in the Clean Power Action Plan, we are committed to nature restoration and to ensuring joined up delivery of our climate and nature targets. We are considering how to use clean energy development to fund nature recovery unlocking a win-win outcome for the economy and for nature. We will be launching an engagement exercise this year to invite communities, civil society and wider stakeholders to submit their ideas on how government can best encourage nature‑positive best practice into energy infrastructure planning and development.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
28th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to achieve their ambitions for clean energy while meeting the environmental targets set out on the Environment Act 2021.

Our Government’s Clean Energy Superpower Mission is to accelerate to net zero and deliver Clean Power by 2030 alongside our commitment to restoring nature. This includes through delivering the Environment Act targets in England and honouring our international commitments under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD). In making Britain a clean energy superpower, we will ensure that a reformed planning system works for nature through measures such as the new Nature Restoration Fund and the Marine Recovery Fund (MRF) for Offshore Wind.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
25th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase the rate of the warm home discount.

The Warm Home Discount provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate off their winter energy bill and is expected to support over three million households this winter. There are currently no plans to increase the rate of the Warm Home Discount.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
10th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect there to be 100 per cent fast speed broadband coverage in rural areas.

Superfast broadband (>=30Mbps) is now available to 98% of UK premises, with Project Gigabit delivering gigabit-capable broadband (>=1000 Mbps) to those not included in suppliers' commercial plans.

Over 86% of UK premises can now access gigabit-capable broadband, according to the independent website Thinkbroadband.com. Our goal is that at least 99% of UK premises will be able to access gigabit coverage by 2030.

Some rural and remote premises will remain too expensive to build a gigabit-capable connection to. The government is considering what policy measures may be required to help provide them with ultrafast (>=100Mbps) connections.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
10th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to retain copper landlines in rural areas to ensure continuous telephone access during extreme weather events.

The copper landline network, also known as the Public Switched Telephone Network, is a privately-owned network and the decision to upgrade it has been taken by the telecoms industry. The industry’s decision to upgrade the PSTN is due to necessity, as the network is increasingly unreliable and prone to failure. In 2024, Ofcom (the independent telecoms regulator) recorded a 45% increase in PSTN resilience incidents. The PSTN is not being retained anywhere.

In the event of a power cut caused by extreme weather events, telecoms companies have a regulatory obligation to ensure that customers have access to emergency services for a minimum of one hour, for example by providing them with battery back-ups that power telephones during a power outage. In practice, many are offering solutions which exceed these minimum standards.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
20th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of withdrawing telephone landlines on elderly and vulnerable customers, and whether they have made representations to telecommunications companies in this regard.

This is a very important issue which the government has been closely engaged with since it took office. It is important to note that landlines are not being withdrawn, but their underlying technology is being moved from Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

The switchover is an industry led programme. The Government is determined to ensure that any and all risks of the industry-led migration from PSTN to VoIP are mitigated. Communication providers and network operators signed voluntary charters in December 2023 and March 2024, ensuring their commitment to protect vulnerable consumers during the PSTN migration. On 18 November 2024, the major communication providers agreed to adhere to further safeguards set out in the non-voluntary migrations checklist before restarting non-voluntary migration of customers from PSTN to VoIP.

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
4th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they propose to take to stop illegal gambling on the black market (1) domestically, and (2) from offshore sites.

We are committed to working closely with the Gambling Commission to ensure that illegal gambling, in all its forms, is addressed. The Gambling Commission assesses information gathered from multiple sources and works closely with partner agencies to prevent access to illegal websites by consumers in Great Britain, regardless of where the website itself is based.

In the past year, the Commission has significantly increased its disruption activity and has a renewed focus on finding innovative ways to tackle the illegal market. The Crime and Policing Bill, introduced in Parliament on 25 February 2025, will also grant the Gambling Commission with new powers to more quickly and effectively take down illegal gambling websites.

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
20th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to improve foreign language teaching in schools and colleges, in particular the practical experience of speaking a foreign language in the host country, following the decision not to continue the UK's participation in the Erasmus Programme.

Having the opportunity to study a modern foreign language should be part of the broad and rich education that every child in this country deserves.

Languages provide an insight into other cultures and can open the door to travel and employment opportunities. They also broaden pupils’ horizons, helping them flourish in new environments.

The government is committed to providing enriching opportunities for students and young people to experience other countries and cultures, including through school trips and exchanges. We also recognise the difficulties that schools have faced in recent years when it comes to organising visits. The UK has agreed measures with France which make school trip travel between the UK and France easier.

The Turing Scheme is the UK government’s global programme for students to study and work abroad. Students can develop new skills, including language skills, gain international experience and boost their employability. The scheme has been helping tens of thousands of UK students to study and work abroad for four years and we have recently announced that the scheme will be running for a fifth year.

The UK has a bilateral student exchange programme with Germany, the UK German Connection (UKGC), which provides opportunities for children, young people, and a limited number of language teachers in the UK and Germany to engage in a range of activities, including seminars, exchanges, visits and study courses. UKGC seeks to support current German learners in the UK and encourage more to learn the language.

The department also has a long-standing Language Assistants Programme, delivered by the British Council, to improve modern foreign language skills through direct interaction with native speakers from around the world. This includes arranging placements in the UK for non-UK residents to assist with teaching French, Spanish, Mandarin, German and Italian (as Modern Language Assistants). In the 2024/25 academic year, there are 700 Modern Language Assistants allocated to UK schools.

Baroness Smith of Malvern
Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
19th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the closure of applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive on upland farmers.

We fully recognise the importance of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) for upland farmers – and we strongly want the scheme to be available to them as we move forward.

We have closed SFI for new applications because the current SFI budget has been successfully allocated, with large-scale uptake of the scheme and 37,000 live SFI agreements delivering towards our environmental targets.

We will be reforming the SFI offer to direct funding towards SFI actions which are most appropriate for the least productive land and have the strongest case for enduring public investment.

We expect to publish more information about the reformed SFI offer in summer 2025. This will include an indication of when we expect to re-open SFI for applications.

In the meantime, as announced on 25th February, we’re increasing HLS payment rates. We believe this uplift better reflects the contributions made by those with HLS agreements and will support the continued protection and management of these sites.

We will also open the rolling application window for Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier this summer and have published information that sets out what upland farmers can do now to prepare to apply for CSHT.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
19th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the time allowed between the agreement of criteria for applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive from upland farmers and the date the scheme was closed.

Defra announced details of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) 2024 offer on 21 May 2024, at GOV.UK. This included details of the criteria for applications made by upland famers.

Defra has now closed SFI for the submission of new applications, but existing agreements will continue. We now have over 37,000 live SFI agreements. Every penny in all existing SFI agreements will be paid to farmers, and outstanding eligible applications that have been submitted will be processed.

We will provide further details about the reformed SFI offer once the Spending Review has been completed.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made to reduce barriers to and facilitate cross-border travel without physical checks for thoroughbred horses since 6 February.

There have been no changes to the rules for importing thoroughbred horses into Great Britain since 6 February 2025. Imports of thoroughbred horses from the European Union (EU) do not currently need to enter Great Britain via a Border Control Post and are not subject to physical checks at the border. Guidance on importing horses into Great Britain is available on GOV.UK.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what measures they are taking to ensure there is no repeat of the 2013 horsemeat scandal; and what measures they are taking to improve the traceability of horses in the UK.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is the national authority responsible for food safety and food hygiene across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The FSA ensures that official controls and legislation for meat safety and traceability are met by deploying staff in every slaughterhouse. The FSA also conducts risk-based, intelligence driven surveillance to monitor food safety and authenticity. It also has a National Food Crime Unit to prevent, detect and investigate food crime. This was established following the 2013 horsemeat incident.

The Government recognises the importance of improving equine traceability. Defra is engaging with industry to consider improvements to this.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
10th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to progress the implementation of a national digital equine identification system to ensure the traceability of all horses.

This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

The Government recognises the importance of the equine sector to the UK economy and of improving equine identification and traceability. We have no current plans to implement mandatory digital identification, but we remain in close touch with the industry to look at potential improvements.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
10th Mar 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the potential closure of the Border Inspection Post at Stansted Airport on the British horseracing industry; and what plans they have to ensure that horses are able to continue travelling to and from the UK by air.

Defra is aware that Stansted has signalled an intention to relocate its Border Inspection Post to another site and that the timing of this remains uncertain. This is a commercial decision for the airport’s owners. No application to de-designate the existing site or designate a new site has been received. The Department stands ready to help progress such applications when received.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
26th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in negotiating a sanitary and phytosanitary agreement with the EU, and when they expect such an agreement to be concluded.

The Government is committed to resetting our EU relationship, including by seeking to negotiate a SPS agreement. We have been clear that an SPS agreement could boost trade and deliver significant benefits on both sides. We will not be providing a running commentary on discussions with the EU. We cannot provide further information at this stage whilst negotiations are continuing.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
25th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the proportion of food procured by state-owned establishments that is locally sourced; and what plans they have to encourage this.

We do not have an estimate for the proportion of public sector food which is locally sourced. However, as announced at the Oxford Farming Conference, the government wants to back British produce where possible. Over the next year, the government will review food currently bought in the public sector and where it is bought from. This work will start right away and be a significant first step in understanding how to capitalise on the Government’s purchasing power: informing any changes to public sector food procurement policies in due course.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
13th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that the border control post at Stansted Airport which facilitates the movement of animals for breeding purposes and horse racing will not be at risk of closure.

Defra is confident that existing and new BCP infrastructure has sufficient capacity and capability to handle the volume of expected checks outlined in the Border Target Operating Model, with robust, dynamic, and effective operational measures ready to call upon if needed. Defra will continue to work with existing BCP operators to ensure they remain operational

It is worth noting that commercial ports are responsible for determining and setting their own rates for recovering costs at their facilities.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
13th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what border control posts are available across the UK for the movement of animals for breeding purposes and horse racing.

Border Control Post (BCP) facilities and suitability for receiving any given commodity are

dependent on designation and facilities. The following ports are currently listed as LA-E designated (suitable for equine movements):

  • Heathrow Animal Reception Centre, Prestwick Airport, Stansted Airport,

To check the details of available BCPs for any commodity, details can be found at GOV.UK (see attachments).

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
28th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report from the Office for Environmental Protection, Progress in improving the natural environment in England 2023/2024, published on 16 January, that they may not meet environmental standards for maritime areas.

My department welcomes the Office for Environmental Protection’s report reviewing “Progress in improving the natural environment in England 2023/2024”. We will respond in full to this report in due course.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
15th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Hayman of Ullock on 10 December 2024 (HL3098), whether their policy on energy from waste has changed; and if so how, following the publication of the Residual waste infrastructure capacity note on 30 December 2024.

The Residual Waste Infrastructure Capacity Note assesses our residual waste treatment capacity need to 2035, as well as giving consideration to the long-term residual waste reduction target. The Capacity Note shows that, as of 2022-23, there were certain areas in England where significant volumes of non-recyclable household waste are sent to landfill. There is also a need to divert non-household wastes away from landfill.

The Capacity Note was published which set out that the Government will only back new energy from waste projects that meet strict conditions. Proposals for new facilities will have to demonstrate a clearly defined domestic residual waste treatment capacity need to facilitate the diversion of residual waste away from landfill, or enable the replacement of older, less-efficient facilities. Additionally, new facilities will have to maximise efficiency and support the delivery of economic growth, net zero and the move to a circular economy.

The Government encourages those developing energy from waste facilities (at all stages in the process) to consider forecast changes to future capacity, demand, and the Government’s circular economy opportunities, in light of the evidence published in the Capacity Note.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
9th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current level of bad debt in the water sector and what plans they have to reduce that debt.

The occupier of a property has a legal responsibility to pay the water bill of that property. Water sector bad debt is money owed to water companies which customers are failing to pay off.

This Government expects all water companies to proactively engage with supporting their customers and to put robust support in place to help customers make payments on any outstanding debt.

Between 2019 and 2024 bad debt cost the sector £2.205 billion. Under Ofwat’s PR24 Final Determinations, companies have committed to contributing £197 million of funding to reduce the number of households in debt.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government how many miles of maintenance and dredging of minor watercourses will be achieved this year.

The Environment Agency plan to carry out dredging on 147 miles (236km) of watercourses for which they are responsible in 2024/25. Figures can be subject to change based on in-year inspections and the potential to have a requirement to redistribute resources to incident response and recovery.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will consider a single budget for the maintenance and dredging of watercourses, rather than two separate ones as at present for capital and operational maintenance.

Currently, dredging is part of the Environment Agency’s routine maintenance programme on its watercourses.

To ensure we protect the country from the devastating impacts of flooding, we will invest £2.4 billion in 2024/25 and 2025/26 to improve flood resilience, by maintaining, repairing and building flood defences. Longer term funding decisions will be made at the next Spending Review.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase self-sufficiency in food; and what are the latest figures for self-sufficiency in (1) fruit, and (2) vegetables.

The UK’s self-sufficiency ratio has been stable for several decades, currently producing 62% of all the food we need, and 75% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year. UK food security is built on supply from diverse sources: strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes.

UK food security is high and strengthening it by supporting our farmers and food producers is a top priority for this Government. This government will protect farmers from being undercut in trade deals; lower energy bills; use the Government purchasing power to back British produce; introduce a land-use framework, the first ever Cross-Government Rural Crime Strategy; and set up a new British Infrastructure Council.

The latest figures for 2023, as set out in the government’s official statistics, show that the UK is 53% self-sufficient for fresh vegetables and 16% self-sufficient for fruit.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of household waste was (1) recycled, (2) reused, (3) sent to landfill, and (4) used as resource in 'Energy from Waste', in each of the past 3 years.

Figures for England have been taken from published statistics and also calculated from data held in the WasteDataFlow web portal. The information is provided in the table below:

Table 1: Percentage of household waste by main disposal route for the past 3 years in England

Percentage of Household waste sent for Reuse, Recycling or Composting

Percentage of Household Waste sent to Landfill

Percentage of Household Waste sent for Energy Recovery

2020/21

42.3%

7.7%

47.9%

2021/22

42.5%

8.1%

47.4%

2022/23

41.7%

7.3%

48.9%

Source: WasteDataFlow

The percentages above will not sum to 100% as some household waste is sent to ‘Other' treatments or to non-energy from waste (EFW) incineration. Other treatment refers to input to mechanical biological treatment (MBT), residual material recovery facilities (MRFs), refuse-derived fuel (RDF) and other plants prior to treatment and disposal.

A separate figure for reuse is not available. Household waste sent for energy recovery does not include waste sent for non EfW incineration.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their policy on developing energy from waste.

The Government is committed to transitioning to a circular economy, a future where we keep our resources in use for longer, waste is reduced, we accelerate the path to net zero, we see investment in critical infrastructure and green jobs, our economy prospers, and nature thrives. As part of this we will consider the role of Energy from Waste, including waste incineration, in the context of circularity, economic growth, and reaching net zero.

As we move towards a circular economy there will still be a need for the safe and sanitary management of residual waste. In accordance with the Waste Hierarchy, sending residual waste that cannot currently be prevented, prepared for reuse, or recycled to Energy from Waste plants is preferable to disposal in landfill.

Defra will publish an analysis of municipal residual waste treatment infrastructure capacity including exports, against expected future residual waste arisings in England, so we can understand what future capacity may be required following implementation of the packaging reforms. This analysis will support decision making relating to planning for new residual waste treatment infrastructure.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
25th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Hayman of Ullock on 28 October (HL Deb col 1009) and 20 November (HL Deb col 259), what are the cumulative effects and regulatory burdens they have identified in relation to flood prevention measures such as sustainable drainage systems.

There are many requirements that developers must comply with when designing and building new developments. For example, developers must provide funding for schools, hospitals, and other local infrastructure projects among other things.

The cumulative impact of these requirements could render some developments unviable for developers, if unchecked. The Government must be mindful of these concerns at this time, during one of the most acute housing crises in living memory.

The Government is considering how to achieve our ambitions on sustainable drainage while being mindful of the impact on developers and to ensure that we are achieving environmental protections whilst also deliver much-needed housing.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
25th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Hayman of Ullock on 20 November (HL Deb col 257), when they plan to introduce mandatory sustainable drains for new developments as required under Schedule 3 of the Water and Flood Management Act 2010.

This Government is strongly committed to requiring standardised SuDS (sustainable drainage systems) in new developments.

We must see SuDS in more developments; to designs that cope with changing climatic conditions as well as delivering wider water infrastructure benefits and helping to improve water quality. It is also important to ensure that appropriate adoption and maintenance arrangements are in place.

We believe that these outcomes can be achieved through either improving the current planning led approach using powers now available or commencing Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

A final decision on the way forward will be made in the coming months.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
2nd Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current threat of blue tongue in livestock; and what steps they are taking to prevent the spread of the disease.

Following the initial findings of cases of bluetongue serotype 3 (BTV-3) virus in Norfolk in August 2024, Defra implemented a Temporary Control Zone (TCZ) around the affected premises and humanely culled infected animals to prevent potential spread. Our risk assessments had indicated the risk of incursion was high given the circulating disease in Europe and warmer weather.

After confirmation of BTV-3 on further premises and evidence of local transmission of bluetongue virus, in accordance with the bluetongue disease control framework we replaced the TCZ with a Restricted Zone and are no longer culling animals in this zone. This Restricted Zone prevents all ruminants, camelids and their germinal products moving outside the zone and potentially spreading disease. The Restricted Zone initially covered Norfolk and Suffolk and was subsequently extended to Essex.

Following suspicion of disease in cattle at a premises near Withersea, East Riding of Yorkshire, a case of BTV-3 was confirmed on 4 September. This is in an area previously free of bluetongue. A Temporary Control Zone (TCZ) has been implemented and the affected animal will be culled to minimise the risk of onward transmission.

Defra and APHA continue surveillance of susceptible animals and epidemiological assessments. Defra has also permitted the use of vaccines for BTV-3, under certain circumstances, in the high-risk counties of south east England.

The Government continues to monitor the outbreak closely.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
24th Jul 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to ensure that food labelling provisions do not necessitate that exporters keep two different stocks of products, namely (1) those labelled “Not for EU” for sale in the UK, and (2) all other stock.

This Government is committed to implementing the Windsor Framework in good faith, including commitments on the use of 'Not for EU’ labels, as well as taking all steps necessary to protect the UK internal market.

We are committed to working closely with industry on the rollout of ‘Not for EU’ labelling requirements for goods for sale in NI moving through the Northern Ireland Retail Movement Scheme. We will carefully consider the views of business on this issue, including those in response to the public consultation undertaken by the previous Government on extending that requirement GB-wide.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
17th Jul 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will implement Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

The government is considering how best to implement its ambitions on sustainable drainage.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
13th Feb 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to regulate the use of automated robots used for supermarket deliveries to ensure their safety, particularly regarding (1) pedestrians, (2) motorists, and (3) other road users.

The Government has no current plans to legislate in this space. However, we are determined to seize the opportunities of emerging micromobility and tackle any negative impacts which may arise. We are actively monitoring the industry, new vehicle types, and new business models, and we will keep under review the case for legislative change.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
7th Jan 2025
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the results of the pilot schemes for renting e-scooters.

The Department monitors how the e-scooter trials are running on a continuing basis to ensure they are operating safely and developing the evidence base that will inform our future decisions on e-scooters.

A second national evaluation of e-scooter trials will start early this year. This will look to understand what journeys are being replaced by e-scooter journeys and how they integrate with public transport; their safety for users and for others; and examine accessibility impacts of e-scooters. It will also explore changing travel patterns since the coronavirus pandemic, when the trials were initially set up, and as e-scooters have become more embedded in public life.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
19th Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to put road traffic offences for bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters on an equivalent basis to other vehicles.

This Government takes road safety seriously, and we are committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. We are currently considering policy options in this area.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
19th Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have (1) to regulate the operation of privately owned e-scooters in public spaces, and (2) to introduce mandatory insurance for them.

The Government understands the need to resolve the longstanding question of regulating micromobility devices such as e-scooters. We are carefully considering next steps on this.

As part of policy development, we are working with local authorities and industry through our e-scooter trials to inform options for future regulation. Any option requiring users of private e-scooters to have insurance will require careful consideration. No decisions have been made on the future regulation of e-scooters and the Government will consult before any regulations come into force.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
31st Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what support under Railway 200 there will be for Heritage Rail.

Railway 200 is a partner led initiative to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the modern railway. Network Rail are leading the initiative in partnership with industry, Government and a wide range of other partners including the Heritage Railway Association. Many heritage railways are playing an active part with events planned throughout the year and advertised on the Railway 200 website under the Railway 200 banner.

The programme is encouraging all heritage railways across the country to join the celebrations with a ‘whistle off’ at midday on 1 January 2025 and Visit Britain are a key partner, encouraging more tourists to visit events throughout the year.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
13th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made on the impact on the Motor Insurers' Bureau of accidents caused by pedal bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters in the absence of any insurance cover.

We have made no assessment of the impact on the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) of incidents involving e-bikes and e-scooters. However, pedal cycles and Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycles (EAPCs) do not require insurance, so they have no impact on the MIB.

The Government regularly meets with the Motor Insurers’ Bureau to discuss issues around micromobility insurance.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)
13th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) serious injuries, and (2) deaths, of pedestrians occurred as a result of dangerous or careless cycling on pedal bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters in each of the past three years.

The information requested is not held by the Department.

Statistics on road casualties reported to police, including where pedestrians are injured in collisions with pedal cycles or e-scooters, are published annually.

However, this data does not attribute causation to collisions which means that it is not possible to determine in how many cases deaths or injuries to pedestrians were the result of dangerous or careless cycling.

Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill
Minister of State (Department for Transport)