Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the volume of seed imported into the UK via online marketplaces in each year since 2020.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Seed import applications do not capture data on how these imports are sourced.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the amount of seeds imported into the UK from non-EU countries was by weight in each year since 2020.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is the volume (kgs) of notifiable seed from non-EU countries declared to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) based on risk categorisation:
There are known data quality issues with the weights on the import of products, animals, food and feed system (IPAFFS) notification. For example, the commodity net weight on the application may not be the total weight of the consignment but could be the weight per package.
The information provided is a true reflection of the information which APHA has access to. APHA relies on the information that is entered on the systems by a third party. APHA completes checks on accuracy as part of identity checks.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the amount of seeds imported into the UK from EU countries was by weight in each year since 2020.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is the volume (kgs) of notifiable seed from EU countries declared to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) based on risk categorisation:
There are known data quality issues with the weights on the import of products, animals, food and feed system (IPAFFS) notification. For example, the commodity net weight on the application may not be the total weight of the consignment but could be the weight per package.
The information provided is a true reflection of the information which APHA has access to. APHA relies on the information that is entered on the systems by a third party. APHA completes checks on accuracy as part of identity checks.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking with international partners to help secure the release of Hannah Schafer.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to my statement to the House on 21 May, and to the answer provided on 1 June in response to Question 2817.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what proportion of mobile phone mast sites servicing rural areas have alternative power generation or a battery back-up that can be accessed during an unplanned power outage.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Government does not hold this level of detailed information. Mobile network operators have legal obligations to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure the resilience of their networks and services. This is overseen by the independent regulator Ofcom, who have powers to monitor compliance, conduct investigations, issue penalties and enforce remedial actions.
Residents in all areas of the country, rightly expect to have reliable mobile connectivity to participate in the modern digital economy. The Government recognises that events like storms and power outages can have a particular impact on rural communities. That is why, with support from the Government Ofcom have completed a public consultation on power back-up for mobile services across the UK, which identified a particular impact on rural communities. They published an update on their work in February 2025 and announced they are completing further analysis to determine the appropriate and proportionate measures required to ensure adequate resilience for consumers. Government looks forward to Ofcom concluding this work as soon as possible.
Government is also supporting collaboration between the electricity and telecommunications sectors to deliver measures so that when power cuts occur the likelihood of disruption to telecommunications services is as low as possible, and where disruption does occur it should affect as few people for the shortest possible time. This will include all areas of the country and will help strengthen resilience of mobile networks.