Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 a (a) grassland policy group and (b) person responsible for grassland policy.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There is no single group responsible for grassland policy, as policies affecting grasslands cut across several Defra policy areas. These include Environmental Land Management Schemes (ELMs), National Biodiversity, Protected Sites and Protected Landscapes. There are also a range of habitat and species specialists in Natural England, including for grasslands.
This Government is committed to delivering our legally binding biodiversity targets which includes our habitat target to restore or create 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat outside of protected sites by 2042. We are delivering this target over a wide range of habitats, including wildlife-rich grasslands.
Protected Landscapes (National Landscapes, National Trails and National Parks) work together through the Big Chalk partnership, which seeks to protect and restore our nature-rich chalk grasslands.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 ensure farmers receive payments from the Rural Payments Agency on time.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) understands the importance of cashflow for farmers and rural businesses. It makes payments for schemes and grants against published performance indicators and continues to look at opportunities to issue payments as promptly as possible.
Performance in relation to the financial year (1 April to 31 March) is reported each year within the RPA Annual Report and Accounts and will be published next month.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 ensure that tenant farmers are protected from eviction when landowners choose not to renew existing tenancies.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to ensuring agricultural tenancies are fair and collaborative. Agricultural tenancy agreements grant tenant farmers statutory protections. In cases of a tenancy ending all parties are encouraged to employ the Agricultural Landlord and Tenant Code of Practice, which sets out expected standards for constructive tenancy negotiations.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 promote (a) shorter and (b) more sustainable food supply networks in rural areas.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to improving the quality of life for people living and working in rural areas, so that we can realise the full potential of rural business and communities. The United Kingdom Food Security Report 2024 shows that people living in rural areas are more likely to have to travel further to access facilities such as food stores.
The food strategy will articulate the outcomes we want from the food system, enabling government, civil society, and the food supply chain to work towards a healthier, fairer, more sustainable and more resilient 21st century food system. We will be considering the role of place-based initiatives, including Local Food Partnerships, as we develop the food strategy.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many times his Department has met with the Joint Air Quality Unit and the Department for Transport to discuss the implementation of the NO2 programme in the last eight months.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Joint Air Quality Unit (JAQU) is a joint Defra/DfT division. Members of JAQU attend meetings with officials across both Departments regularly.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 provide funding to help support low carbon farming.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is committed to our net zero ambitions and boosting nature’s recovery, which are the foundations of a productive and profitable farming sector.
Our Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMs) pay farmers to take up land management practices that contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The farming budget will be £2.4 billion in 2025/26, which includes the largest ever budget directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history: £1.8 billion for ELMs to boost Britain’s food security and accelerate the transition to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector.
The Government has spent £51.8 million through the Farming Innovation Programme (FIP), with a further £98 million committed to ongoing projects in support of Agri-technology research and innovation. Many FIP projects support low carbon farming practices. FIP competitions for 2025/26 will include up to £12.5 million for the Net Zero Farming thematic competition.
Since 2021, Defra’s Farming Investment Fund awarded more than 11,000 grants worth over £130 million to farmers, growers and foresters to invest in technology, equipment and infrastructure, much of which supports low carbon farming practices. Of this, £107 million was through the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF). The next window of FETF will launch in Spring 2025.
Asked by: John Whitby (Labour - Derbyshire Dales)
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 help reduce air pollution levels in Ashbourne, in the context of the establishment of an air quality management area following elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide on Buxton Road in 2021.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
When an Air quality management area (AGMA) is declared, local authorities are required to produce an Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP) to bring air pollution down to within statutory limits. Defra has been engaging with Derbyshire Dales District Council to ensure they have an AQAP that will achieve this.
Air pollution has been reducing in Derbyshire Dales, but they have a localised area of exceedance in Buxton Road partly caused by HGV’s using this stretch of road. Improving air quality will require localised action by councils and national measures. The Government is supporting the transition to electric vehicles and is turbocharging the rollout of EV infrastructure which will help reduce NO2 emissions UK wide.