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Written Question
Electronic Cigarettes
Monday 19th February 2024

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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 the devolved Administrations on ensuring a consistent approach across the UK to the Government's proposed ban on disposable vapes.

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

Following the consultation on creating a smokefree generation and tackling youth vaping, the recently published government response confirmed that the UK Government intends to bring forward legislation as soon as possible to ban the supply and ban of disposable vapes in England. Scotland and Wales also confirmed they intend to bring forward similar legislation and Northern Ireland is considering next steps following the consultation. We are in regular discussions with the devolved administrations on these proposals.


Written Question
Sewage: Chipping Barnet
Wednesday 14th February 2024

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether there were storm overflow discharges into Pymmes Brook in 2023.

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

Defra and the Environment Agency have instructed water companies to introduce Event Duration Monitors (EDMs), which provide them with much more information about where and when storm overflow discharges have occurred. Water companies submit annual returns of their EDM data, which are publicly available. The annual returns for 2023 are not yet available. At the end of 2023, the Government target of having all storm overflows in England monitored was met, so the EDM data for all sites should soon be available. Three of the EDMs on the Pymmes Brook are new and therefore not online yet.


Written Question
Sewage: Chipping Barnet
Wednesday 14th February 2024

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any storm overflow discharges took place in Chipping Barnet constituency in 2023.

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

Defra and the Environment Agency have instructed water companies to introduce Event Duration Monitors (EDMs), which provide them with much more information about where and when storm overflow discharges have occurred. Water companies submit annual returns of their EDM data, which are publicly available. The annual returns for 2023 are not yet available. At the end of 2023, the Government target of having all storm overflows in England monitored was met, so the EDM data for all sites should soon be available.


Written Question
Poultry: Antibiotics
Tuesday 4th July 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had discussions with food (a) retailers and (b) producers onthe sale of chickens treated with fluoroquinolone antibiotics.

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

The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with retailers or producers on the sale of chickens treated with fluoroquinolone antibiotics. There was an 89% reduction in fluroquinolone use in broiler chickens between 2014 and 2021, with fluoroquinolones representing just 0.4% of total antibiotic use in broilers in 2021.


Written Question
Poultry: Antibiotics
Thursday 29th June 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much chicken treated with fluoroquinolone antibiotics was imported in each of the last five years.

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

Defra does not hold this data. All countries eligible to export poultry meat to the UK must have an approved plan for the control of residues of veterinary medicines in foodstuffs. This control plan will include testing for antibiotics, and trading partners must be able to demonstrate that their plan and maximum permitted residue levels are equivalent to our own domestic standards.


Written Question
Litter
Monday 26th June 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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 commission research on the potential effectiveness of behavioural science in reducing littering.

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

Our Litter Strategy already draws on insights from behavioural science and ‘nudge’ theory. Studies have shown that these approaches, which often combine elements of all three means of influencing behaviour set out in the Litter Strategy – education, enforcement and infrastructure - can be very effective ways to address specific types of littering. We are not currently planning to commission further research on the potential effectiveness of behavioural science in reducing littering.


Written Question
Chewing Gum: Recycling
Monday 26th June 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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 she has had with the recycling industry on recycling chewing gum.

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

The Secretary of State has not had recent discussions with the recycling industry on recycling chewing gum.

Defra, in partnership with chewing gum producers, has established the Chewing Gum Task Force through which gum producers will invest up to £10 million over five years to help tackle gum littering and staining.

In 2022, the Task Force provided funding of £1.25 million to help more than 40 councils across the UK remove gum stains from high streets. By combining targeted street cleaning with specially designed signage encouraging people to bin their gum, also provide by the Task Force, participating councils achieved reductions in gum littering of up to 80% in the first two months. Further details can be found in the Year One Annual Report here: https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/local-authorities/reduce-litter/gum-litter/chewing-gum-task-force.

The Task Force is currently running a similar scheme for local councils in 2023.


Written Question
Chewing Gum: Waste Disposal
Monday 26th June 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the effect on the environment of discarded chewing gum.

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

The Secretary of State has not had recent discussions with the recycling industry on recycling chewing gum.

Defra, in partnership with chewing gum producers, has established the Chewing Gum Task Force through which gum producers will invest up to £10 million over five years to help tackle gum littering and staining.

In 2022, the Task Force provided funding of £1.25 million to help more than 40 councils across the UK remove gum stains from high streets. By combining targeted street cleaning with specially designed signage encouraging people to bin their gum, also provide by the Task Force, participating councils achieved reductions in gum littering of up to 80% in the first two months. Further details can be found in the Year One Annual Report here: https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/local-authorities/reduce-litter/gum-litter/chewing-gum-task-force.

The Task Force is currently running a similar scheme for local councils in 2023.


Written Question
Chewing Gum: Waste Disposal
Monday 26th June 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the Chewing Gum Taskforce has made on reducing litter.

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

The Secretary of State has not had recent discussions with the recycling industry on recycling chewing gum.

Defra, in partnership with chewing gum producers, has established the Chewing Gum Task Force through which gum producers will invest up to £10 million over five years to help tackle gum littering and staining.

In 2022, the Task Force provided funding of £1.25 million to help more than 40 councils across the UK remove gum stains from high streets. By combining targeted street cleaning with specially designed signage encouraging people to bin their gum, also provide by the Task Force, participating councils achieved reductions in gum littering of up to 80% in the first two months. Further details can be found in the Year One Annual Report here: https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/local-authorities/reduce-litter/gum-litter/chewing-gum-task-force.

The Task Force is currently running a similar scheme for local councils in 2023.


Written Question
Dogs: Imports
Tuesday 20th June 2023

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to bring forward secondary legislation to ban the non-commercial import of pregnant dogs in the last 30 per cent of their gestation period.

Answered by Trudy Harrison

In August 2021, the Government launched a consultation on proposed changes to the rules governing the commercial and non-commercial movement of pets, including a ban on the movement of dogs which are more than 42 days pregnant into Great Britain.

We are carefully reviewing the feedback gathered from our consultation and wider engagement with stakeholders, and a response to the consultation will be published in due course.