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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the volume of (a) imported and (b) exported animal (i) fur and (ii) fur products in the last 10 years.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

i) We are continuing to build our evidence base on the fur sector, which will be used to inform any future action on the fur trade.  We have also commissioned a report from our expert Animal Welfare Committee into the issue of what constitutes responsible sourcing in the fur industry. This report will support our understanding of the fur industry and help inform our next steps.

ii) HMRC statistics for the import and export of fur and fur products over the 10-year period 2014-23 are available online and can be accessed at Overseas trade data table - UK Trade Info using the relevant HS4 codes (4301, 4302 and 4303).

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made on implementing the recommendations included in the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime report entitled Wildlife and Forest Crime Analytic Toolkit Report, published in 2021.

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

We welcomed the UN Office of Drugs and Crime report and the fact that it recognised the UK's global leadership in fighting wildlife and forestry crime. We invited the UN to undertake this analysis and we are proud to be the first G7 country to request this assessment.

We have carefully considered all the recommendations of the report and they are informing our work to help us build on the positive progress we have already made in tackling wildlife crime. This will include strategic engagement with our partners that have responsibilities where individual recommendations are concerned such as the devolved administrations, the Crown Prosecution Service, and the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU).

Many of the resourcing recommendations fall outside of Defra's remit but progress has already been made in response to the report. For example, in 2022 Defra more than doubled its funding of the NWCU to £1.2 million for the three-year period from 2022 to 2025, compared to £495,000 in the three years previous. Additionally, Border Force has increased numbers in their team specialising in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact on rural communities in (a) Wales and (b) England of anti-social behaviour associated with hunting with dogs.

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

The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act. Since the introduction of the Act, many hunt organisations across the country have worked hard to adapt their activities towards trail hunting, which is intended to retain important traditions as part of the fabric of rural life without harming wildlife. We recognise it is possible that dogs may on occasion pick up and follow the scent of live foxes. If this occurs, it is the responsibility of the dog owner to control their dog. Those found guilty under the Hunting Act are subject to the full force of the law, and enforcement is an operational matter for the police.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Minister for the Environment in the Northern Ireland Executive.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Regular engagement with the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs at Ministerial and official level is a priority for the Secretary of State and he will meet Minister Muir at his earliest convenience.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent estimate he has made of the scale of illegal hunting with dogs in (a) England and (b) Wales.

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

Enforcement of the Hunting Act is an operational matter for the police. This is in line with their duties to keep the peace, protect communities and prevent the committing of offences, working within the provisions of the legal framework set by Parliament.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his Department's policy is on the (a) import and (b) sale of fur in the UK.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We have committed to explore potential action in relation to animal fur, as set out in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare. We are continuing to build our evidence base on the fur sector, which will be used to inform any future action on the fur trade. We have also commissioned a report from our expert Animal Welfare Committee into the issue of what constitutes responsible sourcing in the fur industry. This report will support our understanding of the fur industry and help inform our next steps.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the risk of infectious zoonotic diseases (a) mutating in and (b) spreading from fur farms to other mammals; and what steps he is taking to mitigate that risk.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government shares the British public’s high regard for animal welfare. Fur farming has been banned in England and Wales since 2000 (2002 in Scotland and Northern Ireland). Fur farming is legal in some EU countries. Where outbreaks of SARS-CoV-2 and avian influenza virus have occurred in fur farms in Europe in recent years, the governments in those countries took action to cull the affected farms to mitigate the risk of spread.

Nevertheless, together with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) we are keeping a close eye on the findings of zoonotic pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 and avian influenza in mink, foxes and other animals farmed for fur and the possible risk to human and animal health. We are vigilant to changes in risk and continue to use our established systems which include international disease monitoring programmes in the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and UKHSA to monitor the situation the outcomes of which are reviewed through our Veterinary Risk Group (VRG) and the Human Animal Infections and Risk Surveillance (HAIRS) group. The HAIRS group have published a risk assessment on the transmission from animals to humans of influenza of avian origin and on the risk SARS-CoV-2 infection in UK captive or wild Mustelidae populations presents to the UK human population. There is no direct exposure to infected fur farms for kept or wild mammals in the UK and there is no evidence to suggest an increased risk to wildlife.

International collaboration and knowledge exchange on avian influenza and other zoonotic pathogens is facilitated through discussions between the UK Chief Veterinary Officer and representatives from our national and international reference laboratories, and their counterparts in the EU and globally through the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), the QUADs alliance and allied projects. Including through the joint WOAH-FOA Scientific Network on animal influenza OFFLU.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps the Government has taken to reduce levels of economic inactivity among women aged between 45 and 60 in (a) Newport West constituency and (b) Wales.

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

Local Jobcentre teams are supporting customers into work and helping those in work to progress to higher paid jobs. We are working with local and national employers to help fill vacancies quickly, recruitment days, Job Fairs, wellbeing events and work trials, all of which can help support women across Wales to return to work.

Eligible older jobseekers on Universal Credit benefit from additional time with their Work Coach and the delivery of Mid Life MOTs in Jobcentres which support people to review their health, wealth and skills, with sessions delivered in Newport Jobcentre and across Wales. DWP also offers the digital MOT which is available online to help anyone who needs help to assess their finances, skills and work.

In addition, Newport Jobcentre offers bespoke support for over 50s including Job Clubs in collaboration with C4W+, offering 4-weeks of employability skills support, events with Springboard Charity focused on the hospitality sector, providing training, qualifications and work placements, and events with 1st Impressions, a charity that supplies clothing to women attending interviews or starting work.

Further planned support in Newport includes a Digital Skills course and wellbeing hubs as part of our 50Plus offer, myth busting sessions with Admiral Insurance and coaching support from Business in the Community. Activity across Wales includes a six week back to work programme for over 50s in Llandudno, and sessions delivered by local provider, Groundworks, to support customers in Shotton, both of which were well attended by local women.

We also work with businesses and the Government's Menopause Employment Champion to drive awareness of issues surrounding the menopause and work; encouraging employers to develop policies that create a more supportive environment to help women return to, stay in and progress in work. As part of the 50plus choices offer, 50plus Champions have delivered presentations to Jobcentre teams in Newport and across Wales on the menopause and the support available.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he is taking steps to improve (a) data collection, (b) mapping and (c) tracking of (i) critical minerals and (ii) other material streams in (A) electrical and (B) electronic equipment.

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

Defra has recently announced the world’s first United Nations-backed International Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Resource Management in the Circular Economy. In partnership with national and international partners the centre will deliver environmentally sustainable primary extraction of Critical Minerals and map the flow of these critical and priority minerals across there complete life cycle, from extraction to reuse, recovery to disposal. In addition, Defra also published a consultation and call for evidence on reforms to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations 2013. This sought evidence in support of future policy measures intended to improve treatment standards and critical mineral recovery from WEEE. Defra is currently analysing and will publish a summary in due course.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he is taking steps to (a) support the development of recycling (i) infrastructure and (ii) technologies and (b) help enable increased recovery of (A) critical minerals and (B) other materials.

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

Defra is committed to delivering a more sustainable future for the UK and world. Supporting this it recently announced the world’s first United Nations-backed International Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Resource Management in the Circular Economy. In partnership with national and international partners the centre will deliver environmentally sustainable primary extraction of Critical Minerals and map the flow of these critical and priority minerals across there complete life cycle, from extraction to reuse, recovery to disposal.

Defra also published a consultation and a call for evidence on reforms to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations 2013 with a view to improving levels of collection for re-use and recycling, improving treatment standards and critical mineral recovery from WEEE and wider measures in support of the circular economy. The consultation and call for evidence closed on 7 March. Defra is currently analysing the responses and will publish a summary of responses in due course.

The current regulations require producers to finance the collection and proper treatment of WEEE which has stimulated investment in WEEE treatment infrastructure. Under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007 obligated producers are required to obtain Packaging Waste Recycling Notes (PRNs), as evidence that a certain tonnage of packaging waste that has been recycled. The sale of PRNs generates millions of pounds of revenue a year for reprocessors and exporters of packaging waste (circa £490m in 2022), which should be re-invested to support development of the necessary recycling and reprocessing infrastructure.

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 take steps to support the (a) re-use, (b) repair and (c) re-manufacturing of electronic waste products according to the waste hierarchy; and if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of recycling infrastructure in supporting the management of e-waste.

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

The Waste Prevention Programme for England: Maximising Resources, Minimising Waste (MRMW), commits the government to prioritise measures to support the waste hierarchy in relation to electrical equipment. This includes consideration of ways to provide consumers and businesses with information on the environmental performance of electrical and electronic products, focussing on material resource efficiency aspects such as durability, reparability and recyclability. The government has also introduced new eco-design requirements for a range of industrial appliances, white goods, electronic displays and lighting products, to increase their reparability. We have also published a consultation and call for evidence on potential reforms to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations 2013. The review includes measures to ensure more WEEE is properly collected for reuse and recycling, considers new metrics to evaluate the performance of the WEEE system and wider proposals that would support the circular economy. We are currently analysing the responses to this consultation and call for evidence and will publish a summary in due course.

Found: Wednesday 15 November 2023 Members present Stephen Crabb, in the Chair Simon Baynes Ruth Jones

Found: Ruth Jones, please.

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Stephen Crabb (Chair); Tonia Antoniazzi; Ruth Jones; Ben Lake; Robin