Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 she has made of the risk of contracting E. coli from Lytham St Annes beach.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 classification results are expected to be released on 25 November 2025.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 she has made of the adequacy of the water quality at Lytham St Annes beach.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 classification results are expected to be released on 25 November 2025.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 help tackle water pollution at beaches in the North West.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 classification results are expected to be released on 25 November 2025.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 risk to children of developing (a) E. coli and (b) other serious diseases from water sources in the North West.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 classification results are expected to be released on 25 November 2025.
Companies use tight process controls including filtration, coagulation, chlorine disinfection, and UV/ozone treatment where appropriate, with operational responses when raw water quality deteriorates. Both raw water sources and final water are frequently monitored and tested to ensure compliance with the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016. The acceptable concentration of E.coli is 0/100ml at customers' taps, treatment works, or reservoirs.
The Inspectorate oversees company performance through monitoring results, risk assessments, and event notifications, which drive necessary actions and investment. Our risk assessment team actively reviews water safety planning and operational measures, explicitly considering vulnerable populations including children when assessing and responding to microbial incidents.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to reduce the prevalence of E. coli in water sources in the North West.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The 2025 classification results are expected to be released on 25 November 2025.
Companies use tight process controls including filtration, coagulation, chlorine disinfection, and UV/ozone treatment where appropriate, with operational responses when raw water quality deteriorates. Both raw water sources and final water are frequently monitored and tested to ensure compliance with the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016. The acceptable concentration of E.coli is 0/100ml at customers' taps, treatment works, or reservoirs.
The Inspectorate oversees company performance through monitoring results, risk assessments, and event notifications, which drive necessary actions and investment. Our risk assessment team actively reviews water safety planning and operational measures, explicitly considering vulnerable populations including children when assessing and responding to microbial incidents.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 effectiveness of the monitoring of orders requiring dogs to be muzzled in public.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. This includes consideration of enforcement. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 effectiveness of the enforcement of orders requiring dogs to be muzzled in public.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. This includes consideration of enforcement. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 penalties in place for dog-on-dog attacks involving service dogs.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
It is an offence under section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to allow a dog to attack an assistance dog. The maximum penalty for such an offence is three years imprisonment or an unlimited fine, or both.
Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to explore measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership. We have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce and look forward to receiving their findings and recommendations in due course.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 protections in place to prevent service dogs from attacks by other dogs.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
It is an offence under section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to allow a dog to attack an assistance dog. The maximum penalty for such an offence is three years imprisonment or an unlimited fine, or both.
Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to explore measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership. We have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce and look forward to receiving their findings and recommendations in due course.
Asked by: Kirith Entwistle (Labour - Bolton North East)
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 protect service dogs from attacks by other dogs.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
It is an offence under section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to allow a dog to attack an assistance dog. The maximum penalty for such an offence is three years imprisonment or an unlimited fine, or both.
Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to explore measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership. We have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce and look forward to receiving their findings and recommendations in due course.