Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps is he taking to help tackle the theft and trade of wild falcons captured in the UK.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Bird of prey persecution is a national wildlife crime priority and there are strong penalties in place for offences committed against them. Restrictions on the commercial use or trade of birds of prey are in place under the UK Wildlife Trade Regulations. Where any wild falcon is taken and traded illegally the full force of the law should apply to proven perpetrators of the crime.
Defra is a principal funder of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU), which helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations. It has played a key role in securing the convictions of criminals found to have been illegally taking peregrine falcon eggs and chicks from the wild. Defra is providing 494,000 for the NWCU in 2025-2026.
Defra also provides funding to Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture to develop DNA forensic analysis for the police and other organisations investigating crimes against peregrine falcons. DNA profiling of peregrines is a critical element in deterring wild take and illegal export, and convicting criminals.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
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 plans to take steps towards introducing a mandatory food labelling scheme for animal welfare.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As set out in the Government’s animal welfare strategy, we are committed to ensuring that consumers have access to clear information on how their food was produced. To support this, the Government will continue working with relevant stakeholders, including the farming and food industry, scientists and NGOs to explore how improved animal welfare food labelling could provide greater consumer transparency, support farmers and promote better animal welfare. The Government will set out next steps in due course.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether all species of Zebra will be included in the proposed ban on hunting trophies.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is continuing to engage with relevant stakeholders to help determine the most appropriate scope for a ban on the import of hunting trophies from species of conservation concern. Timeframes for introducing legislation and details of its scope will be provided once the Parliamentary timetable for future sessions is determined.
Species of conservation concern are listed primarily on Appendices I and II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) based on the level of threat that international trade poses to their conservation status.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
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 will take steps to (a) review and (b) increase the powers available to (i) the RSPCA and (ii) other animal welfare organisations to intervene in cases of suspected neglect.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There are no current plans to review or increase the powers the RSPCA or other animal welfare organisations have. The RSPCA has strong working relationships with the Police and Local Authorities who support them in protecting animals where needed.
The Government recognises the valuable work the RSPCA and other animal welfare organisations do to improve the welfare of animals. The Government remains committed to working with the RSPCA, and other animal welfare organisations, so that our high animal welfare standards are maintained and offenders are subject to appropriate penalties.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
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 take steps to extend the ban on water company bonuses to cover payments from offshore companies.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government has been clear about our expectations - and those of the public - regarding unwarranted water company bonuses.
Companies should be transparent over the entire remuneration package for executives, so Ofwat can robustly monitor and enforce against its new rule on executive remuneration and assess the rule’s effectiveness ahead of the planned review in 2027.
Should Ofwat find any rule breaches, companies will face enforcement action which can include financial penalties.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the benefits of establishing a National Nature Service to oversee nature recovery work.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
No.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will set out the Government’s priorities for the 2024 Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 16).
Answered by Rebecca Pow
The UK played a leading role at COP15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity in securing agreement to a historic package of measures to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. Our priority for COP16 and beyond is to drive global delivery of these agreements both at home and abroad, by working closely with our international partners.
We have a number of priorities for COP16. These include supporting a global review of those National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans which will have been published by the time of the COP, in order to assess the extent to which the world is on track to meet the commitments made at COP15; finalising the details of the global mechanism for the sharing of benefits arising from the use of Digital Sequence Information (DSI) on genetic resources; and increasing the mobilisation of resources from all sources to halt and reverse biodiversity loss globally, including through the newly-established Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, to which the UK has already made an initial contribution of £10million.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which Ministers will attend COP16 to the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
The UK’s delegation to COP15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity was led by the Environment Secretary, who attended along with Ministers from two other Departments. The details of the delegation for COP16, including Ministerial representation, will be determined closer to the time but will be led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in other countries on COP16 to the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
Ministers and senior officials across Government, led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, are in close and ongoing contact with their global counterparts about preparation for COP16. In addition, the Environment Secretary and Lord Benyon spoke to a number of their international opposites at the COP28 meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield Hallam)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the implications of the Stannington gas flood in Sheffield Hallam constituency for his policies on the level of investment in maintaining and upgrading water infrastructure.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As set in the Plan for Water, the Government recognises the need for additional investment in water infrastructure. Ofwat set out a £51 billion five-year investment package in its 2019 Price Review, including requirements for water companies to cut leaks by 16% and reduce mains bursts by 12% between 2020 and 2025. We have also set a statutory water demand target, where leakage will need to reduce by 37% by 2038, this is part of the trajectory to achieving a 50% reduction by 2050. Ofwat will hold water companies to account for delivering leakage reduction targets, with financial penalties if they fail to meet them.
In the specific case of the Stannington gas flood, a high-pressure water main rupture led to water ingress into the gas distribution network, impacting around 35 properties. Yorkshire Water responded by replacing the water main away from the gas network and providing a £60 goodwill initial automatic payment to affected customers and compensating for any property and appliance damage.