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Written Question
Food
Monday 23rd May 2022

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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 Answer of 31 March 2022 to Question 146628 on Free School Meals: North East, when he plans to publish the national food strategy white paper.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

The forthcoming Government Food Strategy will set out the Government’s ambition and priorities for the food system, considering the evidence set out in Henry Dimbleby’s independent review and building on additional topics.

We are actively collaborating across Government to cover the entire food system and consider the unforeseen challenges that the agri-food sector has faced this last year since the independent review was published.

We expect to publish the Government Food Strategy shortly.


Written Question
Peat
Wednesday 4th November 2020

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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 he has had with garden centres and other retailers selling horticultural items on phasing out the sale of peat-based compost.

Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

My officials met with retailers, and other interested parties, at a roundtable on 24 August 2020 to consider the use of peat in the horticultural sector. The roundtable was part of a series of roundtables to discuss the England Peat Strategy. The Government continues to be committed to phasing out the use of peat in horticulture in England, and we will set out plans to speed this up in the England Peat Strategy. We plan on publishing the strategy later this year.

Data on the quantity of peat sold in the UK is only available for 2018 and 2019. The total volume of peat sold in 2018 was 2.11 million m3, and 2.06 million m3 in 2019.


Written Question
Peat
Wednesday 4th November 2020

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the quantity of peat-based compost sold in garden centres and by other retailers in each of the last three years.

Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

My officials met with retailers, and other interested parties, at a roundtable on 24 August 2020 to consider the use of peat in the horticultural sector. The roundtable was part of a series of roundtables to discuss the England Peat Strategy. The Government continues to be committed to phasing out the use of peat in horticulture in England, and we will set out plans to speed this up in the England Peat Strategy. We plan on publishing the strategy later this year.

Data on the quantity of peat sold in the UK is only available for 2018 and 2019. The total volume of peat sold in 2018 was 2.11 million m3, and 2.06 million m3 in 2019.


Written Question
Plastic Bags
Monday 29th April 2019

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the contribution that banning the production, sale and use of single-use plastic carrier bags could make towards achieving his Department's target of eliminating all avoidable plastic waste.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

The Government’s priority is preventing plastic from entering the environment in the first place, be it the marine or terrestrial environment. The Resources and Waste Strategy, published in December last year, sets out our plans to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste. This encompasses all types of plastic and we are already taking action. The 5p charge on single use carrier bags has been highly effective in reducing the amount of plastic we use in our everyday lives, whilst also raising money for local, national and environmental charities.

Defra commissioned an independent study in 2018 to explore the possible impacts of a ban on the supply of single use plastic bags in England. The Government is not currently considering an outright ban. We recognise the role that a single use carrier bag can play in spontaneous unplanned purchasing, and that alternative bag types can potentially have a significantly higher carbon impact than single use carrier bags.

Defra published a consultation in December 2018 on plans to extend the existing carrier bag charge to small and medium sized enterprises and to increase the charge to 10p. The Government response will be published in due course.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Thursday 26th April 2018

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Environment plans to respond to the letter of 29 January 2018 from the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North on the Food Insecurity Bill.

Answered by George Eustice

We received the mentioned letter on 7 February 2018 and a reply was sent on the 17 April 2018. We have forwarded an additional copy to your office for your records.


Written Question
Environment Protection
Monday 23rd April 2018

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect on the environment of the UK leaving the EU.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

As the Prime Minister has said, “Brexit will not mean a lowering of environmental standards”. We constantly assess our policies against this objective. The EU (Withdrawal) Bill will ensure that the whole body of existing EU environmental law continues to have effect in UK law.


Written Question
ClientEarth
Tuesday 12th December 2017

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 29 June 2017 to Question 1033 on Nitrous Oxide: EU Law, how much the Government has spent on legal fees to defend litigation brought by ClientEarth in respect of air quality compliance.

Answered by Thérèse Coffey

Defra released details of our legal costs since 2015 on 20 October in response to a Freedom of Information request, which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/653544/RFI_9313__AQ_legalcosts_20102017.pdf.

Costs prior to 2015 were around £74,000.

A further challenge is ongoing and so further costs are likely to be incurred.


Written Question
Countryside Stewardship Scheme
Wednesday 14th October 2015

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many farmers are in (a) Entry Level and (b) Higher Level Stewardship agreements in the Countryside Stewardship scheme.

Answered by George Eustice

a) There are 40,589 live Environmental Stewardship scheme agreements of which 26,399 are Entry Level Stewardship agreements (including organic and uplands variants).

b) There are 12,572 combined Entry Level Stewardship/Higher Level Stewardship agreements and 1,618 Higher Level Stewardship-only agreements (which do not have an underpinning Entry Level Stewardship agreement).

Countryside Stewardship agreements do not start until 1 January 2016.


Written Question
Countryside Stewardship Scheme
Wednesday 14th October 2015

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) Entry Level and (b) Higher Level Stewardship agreements in the Countryside Stewardship scheme (i) have expired and (ii) will expire in 2015.

Answered by George Eustice

Countryside Stewardship agreements do not start until 1 January 2016.

a) As at 30 September, 7,824 Entry Level Stewardship agreements in the Environmental Stewardship scheme had expired in 2015, with a further 4,060 Entry Level Stewardship agreements due to expire by 31 December 2015.

b) No Higher Level Stewardship agreements in the Environmental Stewardship scheme have expired or are due to expire in 2015.


Written Question
Countryside Stewardship Scheme
Wednesday 14th October 2015

Asked by: Catherine McKinnell (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne North)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many expressions of interest have been received for the (a) Mid Tier and (b) Higher Tier of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme.

Answered by George Eustice

Expressions of interest were not invited for the Mid-Tier of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme, however:

a) 5,640 requests for Mid-Tier application packs were received, resulting in 2,314 agreement applications; and

b) 1,025 expressions of interest were received for the Higher Tier of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme, together with 257 applications for forestry agreements.