Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
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 conduct a review of the Heather and Grass Management Code 2025 and assess the impact of a) grazing, b) mowing, and c) controlled winter burns on i) the prevalence and ii) the severity of wildfires on moorland.
Answered by Mary Creagh
This Government is committed to protecting moorlands. In September 2025, we amended the Heather and Grass Burning (England) Regulations 2021 to improve the resilience of our moorlands. The regulations are supported by the Heather and Grass Management Code 2025, which reflects the latest available evidence to guide sustainable land management. The Government's focus is on supporting the effective implementation of the Code.
Defra invest in and review emerging research and evidence to inform Government policy and practice relating to wildfire. As part of its delivery of the Third National Adaptation Programme, Defra has commissioned a wildfire and peatland study, which includes looking at the effectiveness of a range of peatland land management systems and practices in creating wildfire resilience including practices such as grazing, mowing and controlled burning as well as peat restoration. Defra will continue to monitor developments in the evidence base and engage with key stakeholders.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to tackle rural crime.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to tackling rural crime and safeguarding rural communities. That is why Defra has worked closely with the Home Office and the National Police Chiefs’ Council to deliver the 2025-28 Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy which was published in November 2025.
The strategy sets out operational and organisational policing priorities in respect of tackling crimes that predominantly affect rural communities. The strategy, lasting until 2028, will ensure efforts to reduce crime benefit every community no matter where they live, including rural communities.
To tackle waste crimes specifically, including those taking place in rural areas, Defra published the Waste Crime Action Plan in March. It sets out the decisive measures that we are taking in England to prevent harm, disrupt and prosecute offenders and clean up the damage that they leave behind.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of derogations from proposals to restrict the use of ammunition containing lead for commercial purposes on levels of domestic demand.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In developing its UK REACH restriction proposal for lead in ammunition, the HSE assessed the risks posed by lead ammunition to the environment and human health, as well as the socio-economic impacts of their proposal and the availability of alternatives. This included an assessment of the effectiveness, enforceability and monitorability of any decision. Where appropriate, the HSE recommended derogations to the restriction, but only where it was possible to ensure that these key criteria can continue to be met.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to reduce wildfires.
Answered by Mary Creagh
Defra with its executive agencies, ALBs and through the Protected Landscapes, encourage landscape scale land management to help increase wildfire resilience, including through the adoption of good quality wildfire management plans.
We are also working closely with MHCLG, other government departments and stakeholders, including Met Office and Fire and Rescue Services, to coordinate pro-active public communications during periods of high wildfire risk.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
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 an assessment of the potential impact of the introduction of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on the availability of fertiliser.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government remains committed to implementing CBAM from 1 January 2027. This will support UK decarbonisation efforts to lead to a true reduction in global emissions and give industry confidence to invest in the UK knowing their decarbonisation efforts will not be undermined.
The Government expects that initial liabilities arising from the CBAM on fertiliser goods will be modest.
CBAM, like all taxes, will be kept under review by the Chancellor.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to encourage greater transparency for farmers on the price of fertiliser and red diesel.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Food security is a priority for the Government, and Defra are taking the impacts from the Middle East conflict seriously.
The Government has increased the frequency of official fertiliser price reporting, now published by the AHDB on a weekly basis. This will give farmers more timely and transparent information to support decision-making.
The Government asked the Competition and Markets Authority to consider industry concerns about red diesel, including transparency, and has taken further decisive action to support farmers by cutting red diesel duty to its lowest rate in over 20 years, reducing the rates by a third.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
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 an assessment of the potential impact of the transition away from direct payment schemes for farmers on a) food production and b) business viability.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Delinked payments are not linked to any action taken by farmers and do not support the environment or food production.
This government is backing farmers with the largest nature-friendly budget in history to support farmers and land managers to help restore nature and boost farm productivity. This entails continuing the transition away from area-based payments, and towards increasing funding in Environmental Land Management schemes, from £1.8 billion in 2025/26 to more than £2 billion a year by 2028/29.
This will invest in the foundations of long-term food security – including healthy soils, clean water and thriving ecosystems.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure an integrated approach to agricultural payment scheme timelines and application windows.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In the recently published Farming Roadmap, this Government committed to transforming how farming services are designed and delivered, bringing them together into a single, coherent service that reflects how farmers manage their land and businesses, and providing clearer information, payments and support.
Defra’s ambition over time is to move towards this more integrated, user‑centred approach to service delivery.
This will include working towards creating a new service with the ambition to bring together Defra farming services in one place, including livestock records, grants, environmental schemes, compliance information and advice, making it easier for farmers and land managers to manage responsibilities, access support and plan.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure the availability of nitrogen fertilisers.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK supply is sufficient for this season. The UK sources fertiliser both domestically and through diverse imports, helping to keep supply chains flexible and maintain a diverse nutrient supply. Fertiliser prices have stabilised and slightly reduced in the last weeks. Defra is working closely with industry and the sector to understand risks and issues, and options for action where needed.
Asked by: Julian Smith (Conservative - Skipton and Ripon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has had discussions with a) the Ministry of Defence, and b) the Home Office, on plans to restrict the use of ammunition containing lead for commercial purposes at a time after the EU's decision to exclude bullets from its own regulations.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra officials have engaged with the Home Office and the Ministry of Defence on the restriction of lead in ammunition under UK REACH.