Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote in-ovo gender identification techniques in the poultry industry in the UK.
Answered by George Eustice
Alternatives to culling chicks at one-day old are currently being explored. The University of Leipzig in Germany is developing a new method for in-ovo gender identification, so that eggs identified as male can be sorted and used for purposes other than hatching. This issue was the subject of discussion at a G7 meeting of Farming Ministers in Japan in 2016, where I supported the work and offered UK assistance to build on any results. We will look carefully at the results of this work and how it can be applied to the UK’s poultry industry.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prohibit the third party sale of puppies and kittens.
Answered by George Eustice
We have no plans for a ban on third party sellers. We are taking steps to ensure more robust licensing of pet sellers. To that end, new regulations on animal activity licensing will set statutory minimum welfare standards for all commercial pet sellers in England that the local authority must apply when considering whether to issue a licence.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what timetable the Government has set for introducing legislation to increase the maximum sentence for animal cruelty offences to five years' imprisonment.
Answered by George Eustice
As announced on 30 September, a bill to increase the maximum penalty for animal cruelty offences to five years imprisonment will be published for consultation around the turn of the year. We will welcome comments from animal welfare charities who have campaigned for this change.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of organic farms in the UK which use permaculture or sustainable intensification techniques.
Answered by George Eustice
In 2016, there were 3,559 organic farms (producers) in the United Kingdom. Through the Sustainable Intensification Research Platform we know that some of these farms practice sustainable intensification but we do not keep a record of the numbers.
We do not keep a record of the number of farms that practice permaculture.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many areas in the UK outside London reported illegal levels of air pollution in 2016.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
In 2016 the South Wales zone was the only area outside London that exceeded the 1-hour limit value for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentration (200 µgm-3). The remaining 41 zones and agglomerations were compliant. Six zones outside of London had locations with measured or modelled annual mean NO2 concentrations lower than the limit value for annual mean NO2 concentration (40 µgm-3). These compliant zones and agglomerations were: Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton Urban Area, Blackpool Urban Area, Preston Urban Area, Highland, Scottish Borders, and Northern Ireland. The remaining 36 zones and agglomerations were non-compliant.
All zones and agglomerations within the UK were compliant with the limit values specified in the Air Quality Directive (2008/50/EC) for pollutants other than NO2 in 2016. Details of the UK’s assessment of compliance with the Air Quality Directive (2008/50/EC) for the year 2016 is published in the Air Pollution in the UK 2016 report at:
https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/assets/documents/annualreport/air_pollution_uk_2016_issue_1.pdf
The UK Government and its counterparts in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have policy responsibility for air quality in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland respectively.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to prohibit the sale of brachycephalic dogs.
Answered by George Eustice
We are tightening the laws on the breeding and sale of dogs. We will propose that dog breeders licensed by local authorities should not breed from dogs where it can reasonably be expected that this will be detrimental to the health or welfare of the dog or its offspring. This should stem from consideration of the dog’s genotype, phenotype or state of health. This should reduce the number of dogs suffering from conditions affecting their welfare.
Anyone knowingly selecting and breeding animals with genetics leading to extreme conformations that cause pain, suffering or distress could be committing an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effects of permaculture and sustainable intensification techniques on long-term economic growth in the agricultural industry.
Answered by George Eustice
Defra has not undertaken specific research into the effectiveness of permaculture techniques but the principles of permaculture are reflected in our current research programme. We are investing £4 million over three years in research through the Sustainable Intensification Research Platform to improve the environmental and economic performance of farming. The platform is due to conclude in November and its findings will be used to inform policy development.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to increase food production and food self-sufficiency in the UK, after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
The UK’s current production to supply ratio is 76% for indigenous-type foods and 60% for all foods. This has remained steady over the last decade and is not low in the context of the last 150 years. Self-sufficiency is not in itself an indicator of food security. The UK sources food from a diverse range of countries, in addition to a strong domestic production base. This will not change after leaving the EU.
The Government wants to see an efficient, productive and competitive domestic farming industry able to grow more, sell more and export more of our fantastic British food. As we leave the EU, we have the chance to design a new approach to agricultural policy which supports increased productivity on-farm through innovation, technology and skills.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve soil regulation in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
Soil health and regulation is closely linked to the development and delivery of our 25 Year Environment Plan and in the development of future farming policy. The Government’s ambition for soils is that by 2030 soils will be managed sustainably and degradation threats tackled through changes to the management of agricultural soil.
Asked by: Chris Evans (Labour (Co-op) - Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Pet Travel Scheme in preventing the illegal smuggling of puppies into the UK.
Answered by George Eustice
The purpose of the Pet Travel Scheme (PTS) is to facilitate the travel into the EU and between Member States of owners with their pets, whilst protecting the country from risks to animal and public health.
Some commercial operators have abused the PTS to traffic underage puppies into Great Britain, using falsified pet passports to conceal the animals’ true ages.
The UK carries out more checks of pets at the border than most other EU Member States and penalties are in place where people are found to be breaking the rules.
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is working in partnership with Dogs Trust, enforcement bodies and transport carriers to identify non-compliant animals destined for Dover and Folkestone ports. This partnership began in December 2015 resulting in 649 puppies being seized and placed into quarantine.
Puppy buyers are sometimes misled into purchasing an illegally imported puppy they believe to be domestically bred. Defra has published guidance for owners on buying a pet. This contains guidelines such as buying from a reputable supplier and viewing the animal and its documentation, and also highlights the trade in illegal imports. Defra also works closely with the Pet Advertising Advisory Group to drive up standards for online advertisements and make potential pet owners and website operators more aware of rogue dealers.