Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
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 proportion of roadside litter due to littering from vehicles; and what consideration her Department has given to (a) the level of fines for littering offences committed from vehicles, (b) the adequacy of funding available to councils and National Highways for addressing roadside litter, and (c) the adequacy of public awareness initiatives relating to the environmental and social impacts of littering.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 18 March 2026 to PQ UIN 119681.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment the Department has made of the contribution of littering from vehicles to roadside litter; and what consideration her Department has given to the adequacy of (a) the level of fines for littering offences committed from vehicles, (b) funding available to councils and National Highways for addressing roadside litter, and (c) public awareness initiatives relating to the environmental and social impacts of littering.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
No assessment has been made of the contribution of littering from vehicles to roadside litter.
Local councils have legal powers to take enforcement action against offenders who litter from vehicles. Anyone caught littering from a vehicle may be prosecuted in a magistrates’ court, which can lead to a criminal record and a fine of up to £2,500 on conviction. Instead of prosecuting, councils may decide to issue a fixed penalty (on-the-spot fine) of up to £500. District councils outside of London have powers to issue a civil penalty to the registered keeper of a vehicle from which litter is thrown.
To support local councils to make good use of their fixed penalty powers for littering and related offences I have laid new Statutory Guidance, “Litter enforcement powers: when and how to use them” in Parliament. Local authorities will need to have regard to this guidance when using their powers. The guidance is available here: Litter enforcement powers: when and how to use them - GOV.UK.
Funding for roadside litter removal is provided through retained penalty receipts and enforcement. National Highways funds maintenance from existing budgets, more information can be found on: Highways maintenance block: formula allocations 2026 to 2030 - GOV.UK Designated Funds - National Highways
We have been proud to support and endorse national clean-up initiatives such as the Great British Spring Clean, and the Great British Beach Clean, and we will continue to use our influence to encourage as many people and businesses as possible to participate in these types of events again.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the she is taking to help support the rescue and rehoming of mutilated animals.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the essential service that rescue and rehoming centres provide, often on a voluntary basis, to animals, including those that have suffered from mutilation.
Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is illegal to carry out a non-exempted mutilation such as the cropping of a dog’s ears in England and Wales unless specifically exempted for medical reasons. While these practices are illegal in the UK, we recognise that the current legislative framework can be abused by traders who import these dogs from abroad.
The Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Act 2025 Act will give the Government powers to prohibit dogs and cats being brought into Great Britain with non-exempted mutilations, such as docked tails and cropped ears.
Any appropriate exemptions to these prohibitions will be delivered via secondary legislation at a later date. In the meantime, the Government will continue to work with stakeholders including rescue organisations and consider their feedback.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate the Environment Agency has made of the annual funding required to maintain all flood defence assets at their target condition grade, and what the actual expenditure has been on a) routine maintenance and b) capital repair of existing flood defence assets in each of the last five financial years.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency’s (EA) Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) assets play a critical role protecting communities from the impacts of flooding. The EA has an annual programme of around 110,000 asset inspections, which can increase in-year to 165,000. The EA’s asset register is updated daily, meaning the baseline is in flux, preventing a meaningful comparison of figures between years. The EA therefore reports the percentage of assets at or below target condition. During quarter 2 of the 2025/26 financial year, 92.9% of the EA’s assets were currently at or above target condition.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Environment Agency flood defence assets recorded a change in condition grade between consecutive inspections in each of the last five financial years, broken down by whether condition improved or deteriorated.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency’s (EA) Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) assets play a critical role protecting communities from the impacts of flooding. The EA has an annual programme of around 110,000 asset inspections, which can increase in-year to 165,000. The EA’s asset register is updated daily, meaning the baseline is in flux, preventing a meaningful comparison of figures between years. The EA therefore reports the percentage of assets at or below target condition. During quarter 2 of the 2025/26 financial year, 92.9% of the EA’s assets were currently at or above target condition.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many flood defence asset inspections the Environment Agency carried out in each of the last five financial years; and what proportion of flood defence assets have been inspected at least once in the last three years.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency’s (EA) Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) assets play a critical role protecting communities from the impacts of flooding. The EA has an annual programme of around 110,000 asset inspections, which can increase in-year to 165,000. The EA’s asset register is updated daily, meaning the baseline is in flux, preventing a meaningful comparison of figures between years. The EA therefore reports the percentage of assets at or below target condition. During quarter 2 of the 2025/26 financial year, 92.9% of the EA’s assets were currently at or above target condition.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Environment Agency flood defence assets were at each condition grade (1 to 5) in each of the last five financial years.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency’s (EA) Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) assets play a critical role protecting communities from the impacts of flooding. The EA has an annual programme of around 110,000 asset inspections, which can increase in-year to 165,000. The EA’s asset register is updated daily, meaning the baseline is in flux, preventing a meaningful comparison of figures between years. The EA therefore reports the percentage of assets at or below target condition. During quarter 2 of the 2025/26 financial year, 92.9% of the EA’s assets were currently at or above target condition.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment the Environment Agency has made of the potential impact of the reformed flood funding rules announced in October 2025 on the prioritisation of asset maintenance relative to new construction.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency is delivering the Government’s Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) Investment Programme of flood and coastal defences, investing £2.65 billion over 2024/5 and 2025/6 with a target of 52,000 properties better protected.
A new three-year £4.2 billion FCRM Investment Programme starts in April 2026. New projects will align with the strategic objectives set out within the Government’s funding rules announced in October 2025. It is expected to result in more eligible capital asset maintenance projects. These projects will either refurbish or replace existing assets that already provide protection to communities. The prioritisation of projects for investment will follow the approach set out in Defra’s flood funding policy published in 2025.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many completed flood and coastal erosion risk management capital schemes have undergone formal post-project appraisal in each of the last five financial years; and what proportion of all completed schemes this represents.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Every individual project is managed following the Gateway process set out in the Government Functional Standard for Project Delivery. As a project nears completion, Project Managers are required to test the readiness for service (Gateway 4) and then check that the required benefits have been delivered (Gateway 5). This allows for contracts with suppliers to be formally closed and for lessons to be learned and shared.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy that Core Reform 3 of the Bathing Water (Amendment) (England and Wales) Regulations 2025 will not be used for (a) the purposes of cost cutting and (b) to change the classification of a bathing water.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Core Reform 3 introduces discretion to set more locally tailored bathing seasons and monitoring periods that better reflect bathing water usage.
To amend a site’s bathing season, there would need to be a robust evidence base to support this action including that due account had been taken of all public comments and suggestions.
Details of implementation will be worked through in partnership with the Environment Agency through a small-scale pre-implementation research project. Following this analysis, we will publish guidance and expand stakeholder engagement to further develop this reform.