Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government why they consider the removal of white-fronted geese from Schedule 2(1) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to be necessary to protect Greenland white-fronted geese.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Natural England provided an evidence dossier for the European white-fronted goose as part of a recent Government consultation which proposes removing this species from Schedule 2.1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 in England. The dossier concludes that such a removal would act as an additional safeguard for protecting (from accidental shooting) individuals of the population of globally endangered Greenland white-fronted goose occurring in England. UK Government Ministers agreed with this assessment.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many European white-fronted geese have been shot at the Northumberland Wildlife Trust reserve Grindon Lough in the open season in each of the last ten years.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Natural England (NE) provided an evidence dossier for the European white-fronted goose as part of a recent government consultation. While the dossier notes Grindon Lough as a site where Greenland white-fronted geese overwinter, Grindon Lough is not an SSSI and neither NE nor the Government holds information on how many European white-fronted geese have been shot at this location in the open season in the last ten years.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of shooting pressure on the European white-fronted goose in England and Wales on the overall population of the European white-fronted goose in Europe, in line with the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has not made an assessment of the impact of shooting pressure on the European white-fronted goose in England and Wales on the overall population of the European white-fronted goose in Europe. Natural England provided an evidence dossier for the European white-fronted goose as part of a recent government consultation which proposes removing this species from Schedule 2.1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. It states that the European white-fronted goose shooting take in England and Wales numbers less than 100 each year, based on research estimates.
The dossier also notes that numbers in Europe ‘appear to be stable’. Latest estimates suggest that the European population of European white-fronted goose totals 1–1.4 million individuals, whereas the British population totals 1,500 individuals. This offers some context to the relatively small proportion of the European population at risk of shooting pressure in England.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to adding brent goose to Schedule 2(1) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has recently launched a consultation on amending Schedule 2.1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Though the thrust of the consultation is proposing to remove certain species from Schedule 2.1, or to extend the close seasons of others, the consultation proposes adding woodpigeon to Schedule 2.1 as it applies in England, Scotland and Wales. The consultation asks consultees if any other species should be added to Schedule 2.1 in England, Scotland or Wales, and for evidence or reasoning to support any such suggestions. If suggestions for brent goose being added to Schedule 2.1 are supported with compelling evidence or reasoning, the UK government will consider such a measure for England.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Greenland white-fronted geese have been shot accidentally in England in the open season for European white-fronted goose in each of the last ten years.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government does not hold information on how many Greenland white-fronted geese have been shot accidentally in England in the open season for European white-fronted geese in the last ten years. The published Conservation Brief for the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) International Single Species Action Plan for the Conservation of the Greenland White-fronted Goose makes clear that “accidental take remains a risk in England where European whitefronts remain a quarry species.”
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government why they propose to remove Goldeneye from Schedule 2(1) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act; and what evidence there is that shooting is impacting Goldeneye population and sustainability.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Natural England (NE) provided an evidence dossier for the goldeneye as part of a recent government consultation which proposes removing this species from Schedule 2.1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 in England. NE recommended that the Government should remove goldeneye from Schedule 2.1 to reduce the potential impact of hunting on the breeding and non-breeding populations, based on the precautionary principle, until more accurate data is available to show that recreational shooting can be managed on a sustainable basis. UK Government Ministers agreed with this assessment.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on animal welfare of the expected closure of some small and medium sized abattoirs as a result of the increases to inspection charges at meat premises for 2026/27 announced by the Food Standards Agency on 27 February.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra is not aware of the expected closure of any small or medium‑sized abattoirs as a result of the FSA’s updated inspection charges for 2026/27. We will continue to work with industry as the FSA implements reforms to its system of discounts on charges, on which it launched a 12‑week public consultation on 19 March. Under the proposals, the FSA would be able to target government support more effectively towards smaller abattoirs while minimising barriers to growth and providing better value for public money. More smaller abattoirs would also benefit from the maximum 90% discount on their charges.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the future of small and medium sized abattoirs following the Food Standards Agency's announcement on 27 February of increases to inspection charges at meat premises for 2026/27.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra recognises the important role small and medium sized abattoirs play in supporting local livestock producers and maintaining a resilient and competitive food supply chain.
Following the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) recent announcement on meat inspection charges for 2026/27, Defra has been engaging closely with the FSA and industry to ensure the implications for smaller plants are fully understood. The Government will continue to work with industry as the FSA implements reforms to its system of discounts on charges following a 12-week public consultation launched on 19 March. Under the proposals, the FSA would be able to target government support more effectively towards smaller abattoirs while minimising barriers to business growth and providing better value for public money. More smaller abattoirs would also benefit from the maximum 90% discount on their charges.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will monitor the impact on abattoirs of the increases to inspection charges at meat premises for 2026/27 announced by the Food Standards Agency on 27 February.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra recognises the important role small and medium sized abattoirs play in supporting local livestock producers and maintaining a resilient and competitive food supply chain.
Following the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) recent announcement on meat inspection charges for 2026/27, Defra has been engaging closely with the FSA and industry to ensure the implications for smaller plants are fully understood. The Government will continue to work with industry as the FSA implements reforms to its system of discounts on charges following a 12-week public consultation launched on 19 March. Under the proposals, the FSA would be able to target government support more effectively towards smaller abattoirs while minimising barriers to business growth and providing better value for public money. More smaller abattoirs would also benefit from the maximum 90% discount on their charges.
Asked by: Lord Hart of Tenby (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to (1) review the investigatory and enforcement responsibilities of, and (2) promote inter-agency co-operation and information sharing between, (a) local authorities, (b) the police, and (c) the Environment Agency in relation to instances of fly-tipping.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC) was launched in January 2020 as a multi-agency taskforce to share intelligence and operational capability and capacity to tackle serious and organised criminality in the waste sector.
It brings together the Environment Agency, HMRC, National Crime Agency, the police, waste regulators from across the UK and other operational partners to share intelligence and tasking to disrupt and prevent serious organised waste crime. JUWC works with local partners operationally as appropriate, including local authorities.
The JUWC published its latest annual review at GOV.UK.