Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
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 her Department has made of the effectiveness of water companies in reducing storm overflow discharges.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government published a report on 11 December which highlights that while progress has been made to reduce spills from storm overflows, the amount of sewage entering our waterways is still unacceptable. This government is committed to transparency around the scale of this challenge and we’re taking decisive action to tackle it.
Over £10 billion will be spent in the next five years to upgrade 2,500 overflows in England, alongside more monitoring and inspections than ever before.
Our landmark Water (Special Measures) Act will introduce independent monitoring of every sewerage outlet, with water companies required to publish real-time data for all emergency overflows, in addition to storm overflows. Discharges will have to be reported within an hour of the initial spill. This will create an unprecedented level of transparency, enabling the public and regulators to see where, and how often, overflows are discharging, and hold water companies to account.
Our Water White Paper will set out long-term reforms to strengthen regulation, tackle pollution, and accelerate the delivery of vital infrastructure.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Department is taking to expand access to nature-based carbon sequestration schemes for landowners.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Nature-based solutions are essential for tackling the climate and biodiversity crises together. Ecosystems such as forests, saltmarshes and grasslands actively absorb carbon and enhance climate resilience, while England’s peatlands, our largest terrestrial carbon store, play a critical role in preventing emissions when kept in good condition. Protecting and restoring these systems is indispensable for the Government’s net zero pathway and for safeguarding habitats that support native species.
The Government is investing significantly in nature’s recovery, including £1 billion in tree planting and support for the forestry sector over this Parliament, alongside funding to improve and restore peatlands to protect and enhance natural carbon stores and sinks. This will make a significant contribution to the Environment Act targets, including improving the quality of water and spaces for wildlife so biodiversity can thrive.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the availability of specialist disability employment advisers within Jobcentres.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Every Jobcentre has access to a Disability Employment Adviser (DEA). We have over 700 FTE DEAs across our Jobcentre network.
We regularly monitor the number of staff allocated to this role.
DEAs are trained as Work Coaches, followed by additional role specific learning designed to support their role. This learning enables DEAs to treat each claimant as an individual, understand the impact of different disabilities and health conditions, and provide tailored support to help overcome barriers to employment. Our other Jobcentre staff will make referrals to our DEAs for this specialist support where appropriate.
We have a range of specialist support to help individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems. DEAs work with the local community to advocate for customers, collaborate with local partners such as employers, voluntary organisations, the NHS and local government services to facilitate support that meets local needs and promote other programmes such as Disability Confident and Work Well.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the number of waste-processing facilities currently operating with expired permits.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Environmental Permitting Regulations require operators of industrial/waste facilities to get permits from regulators to control pollution to air, land, and water, ensuring compliance with set conditions, and protecting public health through legal frameworks. Waste management site permits do not expire; they have to be surrendered by the permit holder. Therefore, there are no sites operating with expired permits.