Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the extent of the rise of professional misconduct claims against veterinary practices in the UK.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Department has made no assessment of the rise in professional misconduct claims made against veterinary practices in the UK. The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) is the regulatory body for the veterinary profession in the UK and at present can only hear cases against individual veterinary surgeons amounting to gross professional misconduct.
The RCVS has submitted proposals to Defra for reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, including amendments to the disciplinary system including statutory regulation of veterinary practices, not just individual vets. These proposed changes are currently being considered.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to ban woodcock shooting.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The reasons for the declines in woodcock populations are likely to include disturbance and habitat loss because of land drainage and changes in woodland management. The Government is not currently persuaded that hunting has a significant detrimental impact on the woodcock, and there are no current plans for a ban. We continue to keep evidence regarding the impacts on species under review to inform policy decisions.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which (a) country and (b) location in that country each boat in the service of Marine Management Organisation was procured from.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Marine Management Organisation currently charters two vessels under a framework agreement with Atlantic Services, a UK company based in Aberdeen.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, from which country and location in that country each boat in the service of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science was procured from.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science owns one vessel, the RV Cefas Endeavour, which was constructed by and purchased from Ferguson Shipbuilders Ltd in Glasgow, Scotland.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, from each country and location in that country each boat in the service of the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency was procured from.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency does not own any vessels.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, from which country and location in that country each boat in the service of Environment Agency was procured from.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency owns five vessels which were built in Pembroke, South Wales.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Environment Agency concluded its investigation into Niramax on the potential systematic abuse of the landfill tax system by that company prior to the inauguration of the Joint Unit for Waste Crime; and whether the Environment Agency passed over its investigation of that company to the Joint Unit for Waste Crime.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The investigation into Niramax and abuse of the landfill tax system was conducted by HM Revenue & Customs. The Environment Agency and the Joint Unit for Waste Crime only provided support to their investigation.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Environment Agency's surveillance powers in respect of tackling waste crime.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
No recent assessment has been made of the adequacy of the Environment Agency's surveillance powers in respect of tackling waste crime, nor is one planned. The Environment Agency considers its existing authority to conduct directed surveillance adequate.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Serious and organised waste crime: 2018 review published by his Department on 14 November 2018, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the recommendation on the mandatory electronic tracking of waste.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government addressed the recommendations set out in the review into serious and organised waste crime through the Resources and Waste Strategy. This committed to mandating the electronic tracking of waste, subject to consultation. The Environment Bill includes powers to introduce mandatory waste tracking and a consultation is planned for later this year.
In parallel we asked five organisations to explore and develop ideas for waste tracking using the Government’s GovTech Catalyst Challenge Fund. The feasibility projects included research into tracking waste through electronic chips and sensors, the use of blockchain, and open data standards, as well as new data analytics and the use of artificial intelligence, to help users decide what to do with the waste they produce. We also conducted further user research to improve our understanding of the reporting requirements of businesses, local authorities, regulators and Government. This information has helped inform the development of the consultation and define the functionality of a future digital service.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether Government agencies in addition to the Joint Unit for Waste Crime conduct separate investigations into waste crime.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In England the Environment Agency is responsible for the regulation of the waste management sector. This includes the investigation of, and enforcement against, criminal activity in the sector.
Waste crime includes a broad spectrum of illegal activity, including large-scale illegal dumping of waste, avoidance of Landfill Tax, deliberate misdescription of waste, and fly-tipping. Bodies other than the Environment Agency may take responsibility for investigating and taking action against criminal activity as well. For example, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) undertakes investigations into illegal activity regarding Landfill Tax, while local authorities also have powers to tackle certain types of waste crime, such as fly-tipping.
The Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC) brings agencies together in partnership, including HMRC, to investigate and take enforcement action against criminal activity in the waste management sector. The JUWC has developed intelligence links and sharing arrangements with a wide range of organisations in the public and private sectors including law enforcement agencies, infrastructure providers and the financial services sector.