Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Environment Agency on trends in the level of (a) dredging and (b) desilting as a means of flood prevention.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Ministers and Defra officials regularly meet with the Environment Agency to discuss flood and water management issues, including dredging.
The Environment Agency assesses each situation individually and dredge when it is the right solution, and it provides long-term value for money. Understanding where it will, and will not, reduce flood risk is key.
Where there is evidence that dredging will reduce flood risk to local properties or agricultural land without increasing flooding downstream, it meets government criteria, and is cost effective, the Environment Agency will do it.
Dredging can contribute to reducing flooding in some locations, but in others dredging would be an extremely inefficient and ineffective way to manage flood risk, as the natural processes in many rivers can cause the silt to return and accumulate in the same places very quickly. We also know from historic records and modelling that dredging in some locations can increase erosion and flood risk for communities downstream.
In extreme flooding events, the relatively small increases in width and depth achievable by dredging the channel do not provide anywhere near enough capacity to contain the excess flood water, since the channel may already be full of water, and therefore does not prevent flooding.
Any structures encroaching in the river such as bridges, weirs and natural features need to be considered, as these could be damaged or may be pinch points with hard foundations which can make dredging ineffective. Deepening can in some instances also cause destabilising of natural riverbanks leading to soil erosion and damage to riverside flood defences.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Second Report of the House of Lords Conduct Committee of Session 2023-2024 on The conduct of Lord Mann, HL95, published on 27 March 2024, what discussions he has had with the Antisemitism Policy Trust on the use of staff funded by his Department for non-Departmental work.
Answered by Lee Rowley
Government regularly engages with the Trust among a range of other stakeholders to understand and respond to antisemitism.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of plastic pyrolysis plants on the environment in (a) residential and (b) other areas.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Plastic pyrolysis plants in England will be regulated under the Environmental Permitting Regulations, either by the Environment Agency or the relevant local authority, depending on the size and configuration of the plant.
Before issuing an environmental permit, the EA will carry out an environmental risk assessment of the process, including emissions to air, odour and noise. This will be done irrespective of the location of the plant, but a plant in a residential area may require more sensitive receptors to be assessed and tighter controls compared to one in a less densely populated area.
The EA will not issue a permit if the proposed plant could have a significant impact on the environment, including if it could have an unacceptable impact on air quality or cause pollution via odour or noise. If a permit is issued, the EA will carry out regular audits and inspections of the plant to ensure compliance.
The EA is not responsible for deciding where plastic pyrolysis plants should be located, whether they are the right solution for dealing with waste plastics, or for any vehicle movements to and from the plants. Instead, such matters are considered under planning by the relevant authority.
If the local authority is the regulator of the plant, the EA will have no control over the permitting or regulatory process, but it will be able to provide advice and guidance via its Local Authority Unit Team if the local authority requests it. Local authorities would be expected to have similar permitting and regulatory processes to those of the EA.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to support the Environment Agency to produce a flood prevention business plan for Bassetlaw constituency.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Under the Flood and Water Management Act (2010) Nottinghamshire County Council (as the designated Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) for Bassetlaw District Council are required to produce a Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (LFRMS).
This includes a comprehensive Action Plan detailing the activities that will be undertaken to manage flood risk in the county. Following events such as Storm Babet and Henk, the LLFA is required to undertake investigations (referred to as Flood and Water Management Act (2010) Section 19 Investigations) into the causes and consequences of flooding and these should then be used to update the Nottinghamshire LFRMS with agreed actions which need to be undertaken to effectively manage the flood risk.
The Environment Agency is working closely with the County Council and other Risk Management Authority’s to ensure that the evidence of flooding which we have recently experienced is fully reflected in the Plan and the action Plan is revised accordingly. This, coupled with the National 6-Year Capital Programme of works approved by the Regional Flood and Coastal Committee and the Flood Response Planning of the Local Resilience Forum is the framework we use to deliver more resilient communities, as is required by the National Flood Risk Management Strategy.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what remediation and flood prevention work his Department has carried out in (a) Worksop, (b) Retford and (c) the district of Bassetlaw in each of the last three years.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency are committed to better protecting Bassetlaw and the area remains a high priority for them.
Environment Agency representatives will be meeting with the MP on 19 January 2024 to discuss flooding in his constituency and community drop-in events for constituents in Retford and Worksop are being planned for February. Updates will be sent to the MP once venues and dates have been decided.
Worksop
Since 2021 The Environment Agency have spent a total of £468,000 in Worksop on remediation and flood prevention work.
£257,000 has been spent on routine & intermittent maintenance, consisting of grass cutting, weed cutting & spraying, maintenance of outfalls & penstocks, clearance of debris screens, tree and bush clearance and desilting at Ryton Place and Bracebridge to improve conveyance.
Between 2023-2027, there is no current planned investment in capital schemes in Worksop itself.
Retford
Since 2021 The Environment Agency have spent a total of £603,000 in Retford on remediation and flood prevention work.
£368,000 has been spent on routine & intermittent maintenance in Retford consisting of grass cutting, weed cutting & spraying, maintenance of outfalls & penstocks, clearance of debris screens, tree and bush clearance and Intermittent Works to improve Retford Beck Debris Screen.
Between 2023-2027, £3.2m of Government Investment is currently planned for Retford.
Bassetlaw
Since 2021 The Environment Agency have spent a total of £1.6m in Bassetlaw (including the above figures) not including the routine & intermittent maintenance figures above.
Between 2023-2027, £13m of Government Investment is planned to be invested in schemes in Bassetlaw.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the environmental impact of pulverised fuel ash extraction.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
The Environment Agency regulates the excavation of previously landfilled wastes under waste controls (under an environmental permit). Site operators need to apply for a permit to cover the correct treatment, recovery or disposal of any excavated material. Excavating pulverised fuel ash may be a change of land use that may require planning controls. This would be for the local planning authority. An application to the local planning authority may require an environmental impact assessment.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support British citizens who live in North of Cyprus, in the context of the prohibition of direct flights between the UK and the North of Cyprus.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government recognises the inconvenience caused to passengers, including British citizens, by the situation regarding air travel between the north of Cyprus and the UK. Under the Chicago Convention, only the Republic of Cyprus may designate Ercan (in the north of Cyprus) as an international customs airport and grant permission for flights to operate from within its territory. The Republic of Cyprus has not designated Ercan.
This means that no direct air services between the north of Cyprus and the UK can take place. Ultimately, a just and lasting settlement on the island is the best chance of resolving these complex issues. The UK’s commitment to helping all parties to achieve this remains unwavering.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on authorising direct flights to North Cyprus; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The UK Government has no plans to authorise direct flights between the UK and the north of Cyprus. In accordance with the rest of the international community, with the sole exception of Turkey, the UK does not recognise the self-declared 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus' as an independent state. The United Kingdom recognises the Republic of Cyprus as the sovereign authority for the island of Cyprus. As a result, the UK Government cannot negotiate an Air Services Agreement with the administration in the north of Cyprus.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to (a) mitigate the costs to (i) local councils and (ii) landowners of internal drainage boards and (b) ensure (A) Bassetlaw and (B) surrounding areas are protected from flooding.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
The Government is investing a record £5.2 billion between 2021 to 2027, in around 2,000 flood defences to better protect communities across England. Within the Bassetlaw area, from 2021/22 to the end of 2022/23 the Environment Agency will have spent over £2m of Government Grant in Aid. The Environment Agency works with internal drainage boards (IDBs), including the IDB facing the Bassetlaw District, to help ensure the Environment Agency spends both its flood asset maintenance funding allocation and the precept (raised from IDBs) in areas that provide the greatest flood risk benefit.
IDBs are independent locally funded and operated, statutory public bodies. They are mainly funded by the beneficiaries of their work receiving drainage rates from farmers/landowners and special levies from local authorities.
The Government recognises the ongoing pressure the public sector is experiencing due to high energy prices and has extended energy support for a further 12 months through the Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) which will succeed the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) on 1st April and for which IDBs and all other public bodies are eligible.
The Government has also written to Ofgem regarding unfair practice in the energy sector, including increases in standing charges, and Ofgem will continue to monitor this situation.
Defra will continue to work with the Environment Agency, IDBs and across Government to identify how collectively we can minimise the risks and continue to provide protection and resilience to our communities through this period.
Asked by: Brendan Clarke-Smith (Conservative - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Georgian counterpart on the reported attempted assassination of an Israeli-Georgian businessman by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK is committed to working with the international community to ensure Iran abides by international laws and norms and is held to account for its destabilising activity. We have been clear about our concerns over the malign activity of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is sanctioned in its entirety. We regularly discuss our approach to Iran with regional and international partners.