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Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Friday 17th June 2022

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the enquiry from the hon. Member for High Peak of 3 May 2022, referenced RL37157.

Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 16 June 2022.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Wednesday 18th May 2022

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he will respond to the correspondence of 7 March 2022 from the hon. Member for High Peak, , referenced RL35918.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

A reply to the hon. Member is being prepared and will be issued very shortly. I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Tuesday 15th March 2022

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he intends to respond to the enquiry of the hon Member for High Peak, dated 17 December 2021, reference RL31913.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 8 March 2022. I apologise for the delay in replying. Defra is currently dealing with high volumes of correspondence.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Friday 28th January 2022

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for High Peak of 23 November 2021, reference RL30138.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member. A reply is being prepared and will be issued very shortly.


Written Question
Agriculture: Carbon Emissions
Tuesday 21st December 2021

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) farmers in the transition to net zero and (b) sustainable land management practices.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

We are introducing three schemes that reward the delivery of environmental benefits: the Sustainable Farming Incentive, the Local Nature Recovery scheme and the Landscape Recovery scheme. Our approach to environmental land management is the cornerstone of our new agricultural policy and will be realised through a combination of schemes using public money to reward farmers and land managers for delivering environmentally sustainable actions. The schemes are intended to provide a powerful vehicle for achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero emissions by 2050, while supporting our rural economy.

The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) will pay farmers for actions they take (going beyond regulatory requirements) to manage their land in an environmentally sustainable way. Actions will be grouped into simple packages set out as standards, to make it as easy as possible for farmers to identify the actions that are best suited to their land and their business. From 2022, the initial SFI offer will consist of a soils standard, a moorland and rough grazing standard and an animal health and welfare review. The SFI 2022 offer will contribute to our efforts to reach Net Zero – assuming by 2028 the soil standards cover 50% to 70% of eligible agricultural soil in England, this could save approximately 330 to 460 thousand tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2028. Then, we will gradually expand the scheme until all elements are available from 2024/25 onwards.

The Local Nature Recovery scheme will reward farmers and other land managers for producing environmental benefits. It will empower land managers to build tailored agreements that help deliver our national environmental priorities in a locally responsive way.

The Landscape Recovery scheme will support the delivery of landscape and ecosystem recovery through long-term, large-scale projects, including projects to restore wilder landscapes in places where that is appropriate, large-scale tree planting and peatland restoration projects. These projects can deliver a wide variety of environmental outcomes and support local environmental priorities while making an important contribution to national targets.


Written Question
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Senior Civil Servants
Wednesday 1st December 2021

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many senior civil servants employed by his Department were based in each of the 12 NUTS1 regions of the UK on (a) 1 March 2019, (b) 1 March 2020, (c) 1 March 2021 and (d) 1 September 2021.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

The number of SCS staff employed by the department by NUTS1 region is shown below:

31 Mar 2019

31 Mar 2020

31 Mar 2021

30 Sept 2021

London

124

120

128

140

South East

8

8

8

7

East of England

1

1

1

1

East Midlands

0

0

0

0

West Midlands

6

6

8

9

Yorkshire & Humber

5

5

6

5

North East

5

5

4

5

North West

3

3

5

8

South West

10

17

15

14

Wales

0

0

0

0

Scotland

0

0

0

0

Home

3

3

5

6

Grand Total

165

168

180

195

This data aligns with the data published under the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey (ACSES) which all government departments provide. This annual data is as at 31 March each year and provides the official headline National Statistics on the size, shape and structure of the Civil Service. The data for 30 September also aligns to ACSES.

We have also shown in the above table the number of home-based SCS staff.

ACSES data is available from Gov.UK and the links for each year are shown below:

2019 – https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2019

2020 – https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2020

2021 - https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2021


Written Question
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Staff
Monday 29th November 2021

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many civil servants employed by his Department were based in each of the 12 NUTS1 UK regions on (a) 1 March 2021, (b) 1 June 2021 and (c) 1 September 2021.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

Along with all other Government departments, Defra publishes annual data as at 31 March. The Annual Civil Service Employment Survey (ACSES) provides the official headline National Statistics on the size, shape and structure of the Civil Service.

The number of Civil Servants employed by the department by regions for part (a) is available from this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2021. Table 12 of the ACSES data shows the regional breakdown by department.

For 1 June 2021 and 1 September 2021, the data is shown below

Region

1 June 2021 (data as at 31 May 21

1 September 2021 (data as at 31 Aug-21)

London

2535

2664

South East

316

318

East of England

164

166

East Midlands

67

77

West Midlands

209

220

Yorkshire & Humber

632

650

North East

200

224

North West

294

314

South West

928

978

Wales

9

12

Scotland

15

18

Home

252

316

Grand Total

5621

5957

The data is line with the statistical methodology used by the Office for National Statistics. We have taken the end of the month closest to dates requested. We have also shown in the above table the number of home-based permanent staff.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Thursday 16th September 2021

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the enquiry from the hon. Member for High Peak of 23 June 2021, referenced RL22747.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 9 September 2021.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Wednesday 2nd June 2021

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the enquiry from the hon. Member for High Peak dated 26 March 2021, referenced RL20503.

Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 28 May 2021.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Friday 12th March 2021

Asked by: Robert Largan (Conservative - High Peak)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the enquiry from the hon. Member for High Peak of 20 December 2020, reference RL16806.

Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General

A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 4 March 2021.