Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the remedies available to people who are experiencing noise disturbances.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Local authorities are responsible for investigating noise disturbances brought to their attention under Section 79 of the Environmental Protection Act, 1990. If they agree that a statutory nuisance is happening, has happened or will happen in the future, councils must serve an abatement notice.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he expects the sanitary and phytosanitary agreement referred to in the joint UK-EU statement of 19 May 2025 to come into effect.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As announced at the UK-EU Leaders' Summit on May 19, 2025, the UK and EU have agreed to work towards a common Sanitary and Phytosanitary Area. Our aim is to start talks straight away and we want to remove barriers as soon as possible.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will review the regulatory framework applied to small, local abattoirs to ensure that (a) food safety is maintained, (b) animal welfare standards are supported and (c) local food supply chains are supported.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra continues to recognise the vital contribution a thriving abattoir network plays in supporting local livestock producers and maintaining a resilient food supply chain.
The Government encourages the highest standards of meat hygiene and animal welfare at slaughter.
Legislation sets out strict requirements for meat hygiene and to protect the welfare of animals when slaughtered and Official Veterinarians of the Food Standards Agency are present in all approved slaughterhouses during slaughter operations to monitor and enforce these requirements.
We remain committed to working with abattoirs of all sizes across the UK’s meat processing sector, in tackling the challenges and opportunities they face.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 support the retention and replacement of small abattoirs in Sussex.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra recognises the vital contribution a thriving abattoir network plays in supporting local livestock producers and maintaining a resilient and competitive food supply chain.
Defra works closely with the smaller abattoir sector including through its Small Abattoirs Working Group and Small Abattoirs Task and Finish Group. In doing so, we seek to identify and promote opportunities available to the sector and to collaborate with them on addressing any challenges and concerns it may be facing.
While the Department recognises the disruption and challenges that the closure of smaller abattoirs can have on the farming community, the retention and replacement of individual abattoirs is ultimately a matter for the owners of these businesses.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason the Rural England Prosperity Fund has been reduced for the year 2025-2026.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra announced on 4 March that it would be providing an additional £33 million for the Rural England Prosperity Fund in financial year 2025-26. This announcement continues funding beyond the lifetime of the original scheme providing new money for new projects in rural areas.
The Autumn Statement on 30 October confirmed Defra’s budgets for 2024-25 and 2025-26. Funding allocations for individual programmes have been determined through the departments business planning exercise. Future funding decisions remain subject to the Government spending review.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 plans to take steps to reduce the amount of per- and polyflouroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Drinking Water Inspectorate’s (DWI) current guideline limit on individual types of PFAS of 100 nanograms per litre for treated drinking water was set in 2021 based on an assessment of existing scientific knowledge. These limits were agreed with the UK Health Security Agency to be robust levels with an appropriate margin to ensure our drinking water is not a danger to human health. Work now continues across Government to assess levels of PFAS to safeguard current high drinking water quality and ensure our regulations remain fit for purpose.
More widely, as we look to improve and maintain our water quality standards, this Government has been clear that vital infrastructure investment is ringfenced and can only be spent on upgrades benefiting customers and the environment. When money for investment is not spent, companies must refund customers, with money never allowed to be diverted for bonuses, dividends or salary increases.
The Water (Special Measures) Bill will also deliver on the Government’s manifesto commitment to put water companies under special measures to clean up our water. Through the Bill, we will drive meaningful improvements in the performance and culture of the water industry.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 plans to introduce a ban on the import of foie gras.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government shares the British public’s high regard for animal welfare. Foie gras production using force feeding has been banned in the UK for 17 years and it is not compatible with our animal welfare legislation.
This Labour Government will introduce the most ambitious programme for animal welfare in a generation.
Ministers are reviewing policies, which will be announced in due course.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 plans to ban the practice of fox trail hunting.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter with regard to Scotland and NI; hunting with dogs is a reserved matter with respect to Wales and therefore, the information provided relates to England and Wales.
The Government is committed to enacting a ban on Trail Hunting, and work to determine the best approach for doing so is ongoing. Further announcements will be made in due course.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 plans to introduce a ban on the import of animal fur.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the Honourable Member to the reply I gave to PQ 958.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to take steps to ban the use of snares to trap animals.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
The Government will introduce the most ambitious programme for animal welfare in a generation. As outlined in our manifesto, we will bring an end to the use of snare traps. We are considering the most effective way to deliver this commitment and will be setting out next steps in due course