Oral Answers to Questions

Caroline Spelman Excerpts

Thursday 13th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Alec Shelbrooke (Elmet and Rothwell) (Con)]

2. What steps the Environment Agency is taking that will contribute to growth and employment in the recycling sector.

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mrs Caroline Spelman)]

I, too, want to add my welcome to the new members of the shadow DEFRA team. The hon. Member for Ogmore (Huw Irranca-Davies) is remembered fondly by officials at DEFRA and I should send their regards.

The UK’s waste and recycling sector is valued at more than £12 billion a year and is projected to grow between 3% and 5% a year for the next seven years, making a valuable contribution to the greening of our economy. The Environment Agency will implement part of the Government’s waste review to ensure that regulation is effective in protecting human health and the environment while making compliance as easy as possible for legitimate business.

[Alec Shelbrooke]

My right hon. Friend will be interested to learn of a potassic lime fertiliser produced by 4Recycling, a company on the periphery of my constituency of Elmet and Rothwell. The product is made from recycled material but the company is being hindered by the bureaucracy of the Environment Agency. Will my right hon. Friend meet me to discuss the issues that are restricting growth in this industry?

[Mrs Spelman]

My hon. Friend has been vigilant in writing to me about this product, produced by 4Recycling Ltd. I must set straight for the record that the product, potassic lime, is a mixture of water treatment work sludge and cement kiln dust. A current analysis of the product shows that it contains contaminated products, such as lead. The caution that the Environment Agency has exercised is therefore something that I am sure all Members of the House would understand, but I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss it further.

[Gavin Shuker (Luton South) (Lab/Co-op)]

If the Environment Secretary had followed Scotland and Wales and adopted an ambitious 70% recycling target in her waste review, she could have created 50,000 new green jobs, yet she has been silent as the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government splurged £250 million on weekly bin collections, directly undermining her own waste strategy. Is saving her own job really more important than creating 50,000 jobs in the real economy?

[Mrs Spelman]

First, we ought to record with gratitude the effort that the public make to help with recycling rates. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman would accept that it is not right to take a one-size-fits-all approach and that it is up to local authorities to decide the best collection service for their area. I fully support the scheme being introduced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government because it is conditional on environmental benefits as well as giving increased value for money for the taxpayer.

[Dr Thérèse Coffey (Suffolk Coastal) (Con)]

3. What steps she is taking to encourage young people to take up learning and vocational training opportunities in the countryside and farming sector.

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[Sajid Javid (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

12. What steps she is taking to encourage young people to take up learning and vocational training opportunities in the countryside and farming sector.

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mrs Caroline Spelman)]

I am delighted that so many colleagues are keen to ask about this important issue. Improving skills and creating learning opportunities is an essential part of delivering growth in farming, rural areas and food businesses. To that end, earlier in the summer, my right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, announced 50,000 new apprenticeships, mainly associated with agriculture and the food industry. In addition, we are working closely with colleagues at the Departments for Education and for Business, Innovation and Skills to make sure that rural areas benefit from the additional £250 million that the Government are investing in adult apprenticeships.

[Dr Coffey]

I thank my right hon. Friend for that answer. Will she encourage her Ministers to work with people such as those at the Suffolk Agricultural Association, who hold annual school days for children, to ensure that they are involved in encouraging the take-up of apprenticeships when people leave school?

[Mrs Spelman]

I have absolutely no hesitation in endorsing that scheme in Suffolk. Obviously, we would like to see that example of best practice replicated elsewhere.

[Andrew Stephenson]

With the rising price of lamb making upland sheep farming a promising and viable business now and for the future, what is the Minister going to do to ensure that more young people are attracted to remain in this sector of farming after generations of farmers’ sons and daughters have left it?

[Mrs Spelman]

I well remember, when we launched our upland support package, which brought £26 million of new money to help support farmers and their communities in the uplands, sheep farmers saying to me that this problem of succession is a serious one. So I was delighted to hear that Northumberland national park, in partnership with Lantra, is encouraging a programme with the local college in that national park for upland farming skills. A similar scheme called Dartmoor skills has also been introduced. I think that young people will increasingly be attracted to the tradition of sheep farming, which has a bright future.

[George Eustice]

Last year, the Welsh Assembly Government launched the young entrants support scheme—an innovative project that offers grant funding and business mentoring to new entrants and young farmers. Will the Secretary of State look at replicating something similar in the UK? We have a real problem in that around a third of farmers are over the age of 65. We must try to get some new people in.

[Mrs Spelman]

Yes, I think that that scheme has merit. As I announced earlier this month, we will have a rural strand as part of the growth review. I am sure that all Members want to see part of the economic recovery of our country vested in rural areas, which have often been neglected. A huge opportunity exists to help young people to enter land-based employment and to encourage rural enterprise.

[Brandon Lewis]

Does the Secretary of State agree that national park authorities such as the Broads Authority in my constituency do some great work with disadvantaged youngsters in their outreach programmes and that all national park authorities should prioritise that kind of outreach work?

[Mrs Spelman]

Yes, the Broads Authority sets a very good example in helping young people, particularly vulnerable and disadvantaged young people, to gain access to the countryside. I am delighted to tell the House that the Health and Safety Executive has, at the request of the Government, simplified its guidance for farm visits, thereby removing one of the significant barriers to helping schoolchildren access the countryside. Through the rural development programme for England, we make it possible for 1,000 farms to be visited by our young people; access to nature for young people is a very important part of investing in their future.

[Sajid Javid]

I recently met a farmer in my constituency who told me that more than 80% of his 50 employees are hard-working eastern Europeans. He finds it very difficult to attract young British people to take on those jobs. Is there anything that the Secretary of State’s Department can do to make this work more attractive to them?

[Mrs Spelman]

I am sure that the same complaint has been made to other hon. Members. On Open Farm Sunday, I visited a farm in Worcestershire where exactly the same point was made to me. It is important to stress, for the record, that although manual work on the farm is hard work, it can be very well paid—up to £10 an hour on average—so that seems not to be the impediment. By working with the Department for Work and Pensions, we are very keen to make sure that work does pay for our young people.

[Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North and Leith) (Lab/Co-op)]

Will not a lot of young people be discouraged from going into agriculture by the Government’s plans to scrap the Agricultural Wages Board, as that will drive down wages and conditions, particularly for young people and casual workers? Should the Secretary of State not listen to her coalition friend the hon. Member for St Ives (Andrew George), who, speaking on behalf of the Liberal Democrats, I believe, has said that he is against the abolition of the Agricultural Wages Board? Listening to him is something that she could do to help workers and young workers in particular.

[Mrs Spelman]

This is becoming something of an obsession for the Labour party, but Labour Members refuse to accept or acknowledge that, when in government, they were certainly considering scrapping the Agricultural Wages Board, and only the Warwick agreement and pressure from the unions—their paymasters—caused them to change their minds. Employment legislation has moved on tremendously since 1948, when the Agricultural Wages Board was set up. They are supporting an analogue solution in a digital age.

[Andrew George (St Ives) (LD)]

Notwithstanding the previous question, does my right hon. Friend not agree that potential new, young entrants will be looking closely at the common agricultural policy reform proposals published by the Commission yesterday? Although there are welcome proposals with regard to payments to young farmers, does she not agree that many of the other proposals would undermine the competitiveness of the future of British and, indeed, European agriculture?

[Mrs Spelman]

Yes. I thank my hon. Friend for that. The House will be aware that the Commission has just published its proposals to reform the CAP, and I am afraid that they are disappointing. We will do all we can to improve them. We need agriculture that is competitive, market oriented and successful, to attract new entrants, but at first sight—we need to do more analysis—the Commission’s proposals seem extremely bureaucratic and do not move us in the right direction.

[Tony Baldry (Banbury) (Con)]

4. What recent discussions she has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport and (b) Natural England on the effects of bats on churches and other listed buildings.

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[George Freeman (Mid Norfolk) (Con)]

8. What recent assessment she has made of the role agricultural science can play in promoting growth.

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mrs Caroline Spelman)]

New science and innovation is essential to enhancing the competitiveness and resilience of the UK and wider EU agricultural sectors. As the House will know, Lord Taylor of Holbeach recently joined the ministerial team of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Lord Taylor is, of course, the architect of the Taylor review, which explored the role of science in agriculture, and which the Government are taking forward.

[George Freeman]

I thank the Secretary of State for that answer and congratulate her Department on everything that it is doing to drive a sustainable recovery and unlock growth in our agricultural sector. I am sure that she, like me, will have seen the news last week from the world-class John Innes Centre and the Institute of Food Research about the launch of the new glucoraphanin-enhanced broccoli with the potential to reduce heart disease and some cancers. Does she agree that our often overlooked agricultural research base has huge potential to unlock new markets around the world, and will she meet representatives of the sector and me to see what more we can do to help?

[Mrs Spelman]

I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend. Not only did I read about the new variety of broccoli, but my right hon. Friend the Minister for Universities and Science actively referred to the benefits that it can bring. It is a very good example of the benefits of investing in research on agriculture and agri-food. The Government spend £400 million on agri-food research and development, and DEFRA spends £65 million per annum on agri-food R and D, including on animal health and welfare.

[Roger Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire) (LD)]

The proposals announced yesterday for the reform of the agricultural policy include sums of money for promoting agricultural science. Will the Secretary of State please ensure that that is carried forward into the final proposals, and that Britain has its fair share of that money?

[Mrs Spelman]

I have no hesitation at all in agreeing with that and welcoming that part of the CAP reform proposals. It is very important that European agriculture is innovative and that the industry becomes more competitive and market orientated. That must be done with the support of research and development in agriculture. That is an element of the proposals that we warmly welcome.

[Graeme Morrice (Livingston) (Lab)]

9. What representations she has received from the scientific community on her plans to pilot the free shooting of badgers.

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[Mrs Linda Riordan (Halifax) (Lab/Co-op)]

T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mrs Caroline Spelman)]

My Department takes responsibility for safeguarding the environment, supporting farmers, and strengthening the green economy. In line with that, I have just returned from the Rio+20 preparations in Delhi, where good progress was made in identifying areas of common ground on sustainable agriculture and energy, resource efficiency and inclusive growth for what I hope will prove to be a successful summit next year.

I have referred to the CAP reform proposals published yesterday. We are currently scrutinising the full document for its impact on all parts of the United Kingdom, and it will of course come before the European Committees in due course.

[Mrs Riordan]

The Forestry Commission’s current consultation proposes to reduce educational visits to public forests in England from 43,000 per year to just 15,000 per year. Will the Minister commit to consult teachers, parents and Forestry Commission staff over this shocking attack on children’s outdoor education?

[Mrs Spelman]

Obviously, the Forestry Commission is responsible for taking decisions in relation to its own budget, but this is a consultation and I will certainly look into the matter. In response to an earlier question, I said how important it is that young people are able to engage with nature, including with our woodlands and forests. Through the Rural Development Programme for England, we make it possible for young people to do that, and we would actively encourage the Forestry Commission to consider this as well.

[Caroline Dinenage (Gosport) (Con)]

T7. The Minister will be aware that the Fishery Protection Squadron is the oldest squadron in the Royal Navy. Does DEFRA see an enduring role for fishery protection within the Royal Navy once the current arrangements finish in 2013?

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[Tony Baldry (Banbury) (Con)]

T8. Can my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State confirm when she expects to receive the final report of the Independent Panel on Forestry?

[Mrs Spelman]

I am pleased to say that the chairman of the panel, the Bishop of Liverpool, James Jones, has recovered well from his operation and is back at work. That has not in any way affected the timetable for the publication of the final report, which will still happen next spring. When speaking to Bishop James Jones last week, he assured me that the interim report will be received by the Department in November.

[Jessica Morden (Newport East) (Lab)]

T3. The Labour-led Welsh Assembly Government this month made Wales the first part of the UK to introduce a carrier bag charge. That was done not to raise money but to encourage reuse and avoid waste. Is the Secretary of State willing to take the lead from Wales, in view of the Department’s recent back-tracking on recycling?

[Mrs Spelman]

I do not accept the accusation of back-tracking. My Department has the first waste review policy for 20 years. We are certainly looking at the Welsh proposal and we should consider everything that might deal with elements of litter that are part of our waste prevention strategy. At a European level, the European Commission is looking at the Italian Government’s proposal to ban plastic bags. That has to be considered in a single market context.

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[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

T6. Food prices have risen by 6% in the last year, costing a family with two young children an extra £350 a year. When will the Secretary of State do something positive to tackle speculation in food prices and its impact on families?

[Mrs Spelman]

The underlying cause of rising food prices is, of course, rising global prices of food commodities. The market fundamentals are the driver of that. Supply and demand is tight. We have to feed a hungry world, which will possibly have 9 billion people by 2050, as the Government’s own Foresight report says. That is why this Government and my Department have set a priority of producing more food sustainably.

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[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

I am frequently advised by potential investors in my constituency that they lack confidence in the planning process due to delays caused by Natural England. Can the Secretary of State assure me that she will look into that and ensure that Natural England is mindful of the commercial pressures on investors?

[Mrs Spelman]

Natural England is a statutory consultee in the planning process, but I certainly give my hon. Friend an undertaking that I will look into the case in question. There is, of course, a balancing act, and Natural England is responsible for ensuring that directives that the previous Government and their predecessors signed up to are complied with correctly, but I will look into that specific case with urgency.

[Ian Paisley (North Antrim) (DUP)]

In light of the meeting that is to take place on 25 October between the Secretary of State and the Ministers from the devolved Assemblies across the United Kingdom, will she set out what the agenda for that meeting is going to be? Will she assure us that CAP reform will be on the agenda, and that she will listen carefully to the needs of representatives of the rural regions across the UK and of the 40,000 farmers in Northern Ireland who rely on the CAP as it currently stands?

[Mrs Spelman]

I give the hon. Gentleman that assurance. We are due to meet devolved Administration Ministers on 25 October, and agricultural reform is on the agenda. I expect that they will attend the Agriculture Council meeting next week, as I have encouraged them to, and we will work very closely with them. I hope the hon. Gentleman noticed that when I referred to how the Government were looking at CAP reform, I said that we would examine its impact on all parts of the United Kingdom.

The hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, was asked—