Virginia Crosbie

The UK Presidency is working with international counterparts and partners to secure global action to protect and restore forests, and shift international agricultural commodity supply chains away from deforestation and transition towards more sustainable practices. We have established the Forest, Agriculture and Commodity Trade (FACT) Dialogue to achieve this. The FACT Dialogue is a ground-breaking partnership between governments of producer and consumer countries committed to taking action to transition to more sustainable commodity production and global trade.

Civil society, with their links to on-the-ground communities and practitioners, are key partners to achieve the goals we have set for COP26. This is why I have set up an International COP26 Civil Society and Youth Advisory Council so that we can hear and act on the knowledge of civil society groups. My officials run regular, open-invite calls with a large network of civil society organisations to share updates on our planning for COP26, which are regularly attended by Welsh groups.

We are working with the Welsh Government, alongside the other devolved administrations, to ensure an inclusive and ambitious COP26 for the whole of the UK. As part of this, I chair the COP26 Devolved Administrations (DAs) Ministerial meeting with climate change ministers from the DAs. The COP26 Unit also worked with the Welsh Government and other DAs to encourage proposals from stakeholders across the UK via the Expression of Interest process for events or showcasing in UK Government managed spaces at COP26.

The Forest, Agriculture and Commodity Trade (FACT) Dialogue is critical to ensuring supply chains are environmentally responsible. This is a ground-breaking partnership between producer and consumer countries committed to taking action to transition to more sustainable commodity production and global trade. Building on the Just Rural Transition Initiative, we also aim to build momentum for policy action, innovation, and investment for sustainable agriculture and food systems, particularly through the ‘Transition to Sustainable Agriculture’ Policy Dialogue.

On the finance industry, the UK is implementing a framework for embedding climate into every financial decision and creating a more sustainable financial system to support the path to net zero. The agenda for private finance can be seen here.

In addition, we have now launched the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), which brings together over 160 firms (together responsible for assets in excess of $70 trillion) from the leading net zero initiatives across the financial system. GFANZ will work to mobilise the trillions of dollars necessary to build a global zero emissions economy and deliver the goals of the Paris Agreement.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for York Outer on 28 February to Question 125141.

In the Heat and Buildings Strategy, published in October 2021, the Government sets out actions for the reduction of emissions from buildings in the near and longer term. This includes a package of measures to reduce the costs of buying and running a heat pump and how the Government plans to scale up the deployment of heat pumps to 600,000 installations per annum by 2028. The new Boiler upgrade scheme, opened for grant applications 23 May, gives £5000 discounts towards installing a heat pump. The Government is also taking action to grow the market for heat networks and continues to invest in research for hydrogen heating.

The UK remains well-supplied for diesel from a diverse range of sources. UK demand for diesel is met by a combination of domestic production and imports. In 2021 UK production could have met over half of our demand for diesel. Imports in the same year came from a diverse range of reliable suppliers beyond Russia including the Netherlands, Belgium and Sweden.

BEIS monitors the fuel supply market to remain aware of current supply levels, and publishes weekly national average forecourt stock levels. There is no shortage of diesel in the UK.

The Government works closely with Ofgem and network companies to ensure there is necessary capacity for renewable generation in Wales and across Great Britain and is engaging with the Welsh Government on this. As part of the Government’s Offshore Transmission Network Review, the National Grid Electricity System Operator will publish a Holistic Network Design by June 30^th, which will accommodate 1GW of floating offshore wind capacity in the Celtic Sea.

As part of the Government’s ambition to set up the Great British Nuclear Vehicle this year, officials are working to scope the functions of this entity – building on UK industrial strengths and expertise.

The UK has a proud nuclear tradition across many regions, with expertise to match. The Government continues to recognise the strong interest for nuclear power in North Wales and will consider all appropriate locations.

It is important that communities can participate in and benefit from the deployment of new low carbon energy technologies in their local areas. As set out in its recent British Energy Security Strategy, the Government is developing onshore wind partnerships in England that will enable supportive communities to host new onshore wind infrastructure and enjoy the benefits of doing so, through developers supporting for example, local energy discounts and new community infrastructure projects.

Renewable and nuclear projects can also bring wider socio-economic benefits to local people and businesses, including increasing local employment, creating regional supply chains and investing in new training facilities in the community.

The Government’s British Energy Security Strategy sets out measures to accelerate the connecting onshore network infrastructure required to support targets for electricity generation. These measures could reduce timelines for delivering network infrastructure by around three years.

Communities will retain their voice in decision making and planning decisions will still be robust. The Government has consulted on amending the energy National Policy Statements to strengthen the mitigation of landscape and visual impacts from network infrastructure. This includes the need to follow ‘good design’ principles and a starting presumption to underground electricity cables in designated areas, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

According to Ofgem, environmental and social policy costs totalled 25.48 percent on electricity bills and 2.46 percent on gas bills in 2020. Over the past 10 years their net effect has reduced consumer energy bills.

These levies fund vital support schemes and energy efficiency measures which benefit low income and vulnerable households as well as investing in the UK’s home-grown renewable energy sector, reducing reliance on gas and therefore volatile gas prices.

The Government continues to monitor the efficiency and value of green policies.

The Government’s Heat and Buildings Strategy included £3.9 billion of new funding for decarbonising heat and buildings. This brings existing Government spending to a total of £6.6 billion across the lifetime of this parliament. This money is supporting energy-efficiency schemes including the Local Authority Delivery Scheme, the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and the new £450 Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which provides discounts on the costs of installing a heat pump. The Government’s Energy Company Obligation Scheme has also been extended from 2022 to 2026 and its value increased from £640 million to £1 billion a year.

The British Energy Security Strategy, announced on 7 April, outlined the intention to take one new nuclear power project to Final Investment Decision (FID) this Parliament, and two projects to FID in the next Parliament (including potentially at Wylfa). The ambition in the strategy could see our nuclear sector progressing up to 8 reactors by 2030. The statement also announced proposals for a new body to develop a resilient pipeline of new build nuclear projects, and a plan to launch the £120m Future Nuclear Enabling Fund in April, to award funding to projects which may potentially be part of future decisions.

The Government has no current plans to change the well-established and accepted arrangements for bank holidays in the UK. The Government remains committed to working together with all the Devolved Administrations to ensure that the UK’s institutions are working collectively as one United Kingdom.

The National Emergency Plan for Downstream Gas and Electricity remains an accurate overview of the plans and processes across the energy sector for emergencies.

The National Emergency Plan for Downstream Gas and Electricity is planned to be updated this year. While the document currently references EU law and regulation, these have been succeeded by UK law and regulation as part of a wider statutory instrument package brought in when the UK left the EU.

The latest English Housing Survey suggests 14% of English homes were rated EPC C+ in 2010 and 46% rated EPC C+ in 2020.

Source: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1054775/2020-21_EHS_Headline_Report_Section_2_Stock_Annex_Table_revised.ods

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BEIS publishes the Levelized Costs of Electricity (LCOE) for all generating technologies in the Generation Cost Reports (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/beis-electricity-generation-costs-2020). The LCOE of offshore wind turbines and gas plants (both CCGT and OCGT) are derived from their lifetime electricity generation, capital costs, and operational costs (including fuel).

The setting of energy tariffs including the standing charge is a commercial matter for individual suppliers. The standing charge is a daily flat rate passed on to consumers which covers the costs energy suppliers incur to provide a live supply to each household. It includes charges from network companies for using pipes and power lines to carry gas and electricity supplies, the maintenance and installation of meters and billing and accounting. A small proportion of the standing charge also goes towards Government initiatives that help vulnerable households and reduce emissions.

For millions of households the level of the standing charge is protected by the energy price cap rate set by Ofgem. The energy unit rate and the standing charge together for a supplier’s default and standard variable tariffs must not exceed the level of the price cap. For consumers looking for a new fixed deal for the energy, suppliers can offer a range of tariffs including some with a low or even a zero standing charge and a higher energy unit rate to attract low energy users.

Energy security is an absolute priority for this Government. The Government has highly diverse and flexible sources of gas supply and a diverse electricity mix, which ensure that households, businesses and heavy industry get the energy they need. Despite the high prices, the market continues to balance supply and demand.

The Government already receives regular shipments of liquified natural gas (LNG) from Qatar, and other LNG suppliers, as part of existing commercial arrangements between buyers and sellers.

The Government has regular discussions with key energy partners around the world ahead of winter and to discuss the global transition to clean energy.

The Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme is the Government’s main mechanism for supporting new low-carbon electricity generation projects in Great Britain. The fourth allocation round of the CfD scheme (AR4) opened on 13 December 2021 and aims to secure more low-carbon electricity capacity than the previous three rounds combined. AR4 is open to an expanded number of renewable technologies, including offshore wind, onshore wind, solar, tidal stream and floating offshore wind. In February, the Government also announced that the next CfD allocation round will be brought forward to March 2023, and future rounds will run annually, rather than every two years, thereafter. This will support renewable electricity producers and further drive deployment of renewable power.

In 2019 BEIS launched the Storage at Scale competition, which funded demonstration facilities for two innovative energy storage facilities. In 2021, BEIS launched a further programme, The Longer Duration Energy Storage competition. In February 2022, BEIS announced funding for 24 projects under this competition to perform engineering design or feasibility studies of their technologies. The Government is reviewing the responses to the Call for Evidence on large-scale, long-duration electricity storage, alongside analysis the Department commissioned on the role of this type of storage in the electricity system. The Government will publish a response in due course.

The Government has allocated £1.1 billion to the Home Upgrade Grant over the next three years, which will be delivered from early 2022 to March 2025. The Home Upgrade Grant will provide energy efficiency upgrades and low-carbon heating to low-income households living off the gas grid in England, tackling fuel poverty and helping households meet net zero.

Consumers of heating oil and liquified petroleum gas will be eligible for the £200 energy rebate as long as they are also domestic electricity customers. Financial support remains available for heating oil customers with energy bills, if eligible, through the Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel Payment and Cold Weather Payment schemes. More information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/browse/benefits/low-income.

The Government has committed to spend more than £6.6 billion in this Parliament to decarbonise heat and buildings, including across all housing tenures. Support is especially targeted at lower-income households through schemes such as the Home Upgrade Grant, Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and Local Authority Delivery Scheme. In addition to this, the Government has committed to a four-year £4 billion extension to the Energy Company Obligation. This aims to accelerate efforts to improve lower-income homes to meet fuel poverty targets.

Meanwhile, the new Boiler Upgrade Scheme will support homeowners with the cost of installing new lower-carbon heating systems, such as heat pumps, in their homes. The Government is also working with lenders to ensure homeowners can access green finance to improve their homes through measures such as insulation and new heating systems. As part of this work, the £1.8million Green Home Finance Innovation Fund will be complete by March 2022.

The Government has consulted on reforming the Warm Home Discount scheme to better target fuel poverty and to provide the rebates automatically to households, as announced in the Energy White Paper. The reforms include focusing support on households in receipt of qualifying means tested benefits and with high energy costs.

Disability benefits like the Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment are not means tested. The incomes of Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment recipients therefore tend to be higher than the incomes of the intended beneficiaries of the reformed Warm Home Discount. The Government’s analysis shows that around 62% of these recipients are also in receipt of a qualifying means-tested benefits and so would be considered low income under the new criteria. Introducing disability or other non-means-tested benefits would mean that households on lower incomes and in deeper fuel poverty would lose out.

My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has commissioned a post-incident review into Storm Arwen to identify lessons and best practice for communications, resourcing and system resilience.

As the independent regulator for energy, Ofgem has also announced it will undertake a review into the impact of Storm Arwen. This will focus on the role of the network companies in maintaining the resilience of the system and their emergency response.

The Government is committed to maintaining high levels of energy resilience as the sector decarbonises. Great Britain benefits from a diverse electricity mix and is therefore not dependent on any one technology or market participant to ensure security of supply.

The Government continues to finalise the arrangements and parameters for the fourth Contracts for Difference allocation round (CfD AR4), including any technology-specific budget ringfencing. In line with statutory timescales, the Government will announce these finalised arrangements before CfD AR4 opens in December 2021.

Thermal hydraulic testing is essential for designing safe and efficient nuclear power stations and in ensuring their safe operation throughout the many decades they are expected to generate electricity.

The Government are currently considering the business case for national thermal hydraulic research and testing facility, including the economic and strategic benefits such a facility might bring to the UK.

The Government is grateful to my Hon. Friend and other local stakeholders in Anglesey for their active input to this proposal.

The Department is currently considering the business case for a National Thermal Hydraulic Facility in North Wales. Officials are in regular contact with key stakeholders, including with my Hon. Friend the member for Ynys Mon, to assess possible sites in North Wales.

The Government is consulting on new regulations to phase out the installation of heating systems using high carbon fossil fuels in homes, businesses and public buildings in England off the gas grid during the 2020s. As Building Regulations are an area of devolved competence it would be for the Welsh Government to consider steps to enable the decarbonisation of oil heated homes in Wales.

The Department is aware of the potential benefits that could be brought by having a National Thermal Hydraulic Facility close to potential sites for new nuclear deployment and is considering those as part of the business case for such a facility.

There is inherent uncertainty in any cost estimate for the thirty-year transition to net zero, but it is clear the cost of inaction is much higher than the cost of action on climate change. The Stern Review estimated the impacts of unmitigated climate change at equivalent to 5-20% of global GDP.

Ahead of COP26, the Government has committed to publish a Net Zero Strategy, setting out the Government’s vision for the transition to a net zero economy and outlining our path to meet the UK’s emissions targets. HM Treasury are also conducting a review on the costs of reaching net zero, to inform the Government’s approach to achieving a transition in a way that works for households, businesses and public finances, and maximises growth opportunities.

The UK has an ambitious carbon pricing mechanism through our new UK Emissions Trading Scheme, launched at the start of this year to increase our carbon pricing ambition over the EU scheme it replaces. The scheme includes the energy generation sector. The UK ETS will be the world’s first net zero carbon cap and trade market, and a crucial step towards achieving the UK’s target for net zero carbon emissions by 2050. We also have the Carbon Price Support mechanism for power generation. Emissions trading and the CPS have helped clean up our electricity generation and will be key to achieving the total phase out of coal by October 2024 and meeting the Government’s 78% 2030 emissions reduction target.

Nuclear power is a proven technology which currently represents the UK’s second largest provider of low-carbon electricity.

On 9 November 2020, we announced we would develop a UK Green Taxonomy, which will define those economic activities that can be considered to be environmentally sustainable.

We will be discussing the evidence supporting nuclear energy’s inclusion in the UK’s Green Taxonomy with the newly established Energy Working Group, and the Working Group’s feedback will help inform our decision on including nuclear in the taxonomy.

The government will then consult on draft Technical Screening Criteria in the Green Taxonomy ahead of finalising the Taxonomy.

The UK has an ambitious carbon pricing mechanism through our new UK Emissions Trading Scheme, launched at the start of this year to increase our carbon pricing ambition over the EU scheme it replaces. The UK ETS will be the world’s first net zero carbon cap and trade market, and a crucial step towards achieving the UK’s target for net zero carbon emissions by 2050. We have committed to explore expanding the UK ETS to other sectors.

We are also consulting on a business model to provide revenue support to low carbon hydrogen production plants in order to unlock private investment in hydrogen projects.

This will be complemented by the £240m Net-Zero Hydrogen Fund (NZHF), aimed at supporting multiple low carbon production routes that can realistically deploy in the 2020s to contribute to our 5GW ambition. As described in our recent Hydrogen Strategy, electrolysis using low carbon power, renewable or nuclear, will have an important role as we scale up UK hydrogen production.

The United States is our closest strategic partner and we regularly discuss clean energy policy with them, including on nuclear energy. For example, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister and President Biden announced a new Strategic Dialogue in advance of the G7 Summit. The Dialogue will build upon our existing extensive co-operation, deepening it in areas such as the development and deployment of innovative, clean energy technologies such as nuclear energy, industrial decarbonisation, energy security and resilience, joint priorities in multilateral energy forums, and shared science, research, and innovation cooperation.

The 2016 Oxford Economics’ Nuclear Activity Report suggested that, in 2016, the nuclear sector contributed approximately £6.4bn GVA to the UK economy, where each civil nuclear worker contributed an average of £96,600 – significantly higher than the UK average of £56,200.

The Nuclear Skills Strategy Group – of which BEIS is a member – published the Nuclear Workforce Assessment 2019 and estimated that the sector employed approximately 89,000 full-time equivalents across the UK. This Group is expecting to update its assessment later this year.

In 2018, the Nuclear Skills Strategy Group – of which BEIS is a member - estimated that the sector employed approximately 89,000 full-time equivalents across the UK. The 2016 Oxford Economics’ Nuclear Activity Report suggested that, in 2016, the nuclear sector contributed approximately £6.4bn GVA to the UK economy, where each civil nuclear worker contributed an average of £96,600 – significantly higher than the UK average of £56,200.

The Government believes that nuclear could have a role in low-carbon hydrogen production and is aware of industry proposals showing how current nuclear technologies could play a role during the 2020s, while small and advanced modular reactors could unlock greater efficiencies in the production process.

While work continues to better understand the role that emerging technologies could play in our net zero future, the recent Nuclear Industry Association hydrogen roadmap suggests nuclear could provide up to a third of anticipated 2050 demand for hydrogen and modelling from the Energy Systems Catapult predicts a similar outcome.

We will say more on the role of various hydrogen production technologies in our forthcoming UK Hydrogen Strategy.

The UK has a wealth of expertise and capability in civil nuclear power. In 2018, the Nuclear Skills Strategy Group – of which the Department is a member - estimated that the sector employed approximately 89,000 full-time equivalents across the UK, including North Wales. The development and deployment of next generation technologies such as Small and Advanced Modular Reactors, will create new, exciting opportunities both for our existing highly skilled workforce and for those outside of the sector wishing to pursue a career in nuclear to support net zero.

This Government is committed to progressing new nuclear projects, including advanced nuclear technologies, to help decarbonise the UK energy system. In his Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced an up to £385 million Advanced Nuclear Fund to invest in the next generation of nuclear technologies. The Advanced Nuclear Fund includes up to £215 million to develop a domestic Small Modular Reactors (SMR) design and up to £170 million for an Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs) research and development programme, with an aim to build an AMR demonstrator by the early 2030s.

We are also committed to supporting the wider UK nuclear energy sector to help deliver advanced nuclear technologies to market. That is why, in addition to the Advanced Nuclear Fund, we have committed to invest in the nuclear regulatory frameworks and support UK supply chains.

In May 2021, we published new guidance for Advanced Nuclear Technologies to apply to enter the Generic Design Assessment (GDA). GDA allows the UK’s independent nuclear regulators to assess new reactor designs and provide the confidence that these new designs are capable of meeting the UK’s statutory regulatory requirements.

This Government is committed to progressing new nuclear projects, including advanced nuclear technologies, to help decarbonise the UK energy system. In his Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced an up to £385 million Advanced Nuclear Fund to invest in the next generation of nuclear technologies. The Advanced Nuclear Fund includes up to £215 million to develop a domestic Small Modular Reactors (SMR) design and up to £170 million for an Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs) research and development programme, with an aim to build an AMR demonstrator by the early 2030s.

We are also committed to supporting the wider UK nuclear energy sector to help deliver advanced nuclear technologies to market. That is why, in addition to the Advanced Nuclear Fund, we have committed to invest in the nuclear regulatory frameworks and support UK supply chains.

In May 2021, we published new guidance for Advanced Nuclear Technologies to apply to enter the Generic Design Assessment (GDA). GDA allows the UK’s independent nuclear regulators to assess new reactor designs and provide the confidence that these new designs are capable of meeting the UK’s statutory regulatory requirements.

This Government is committed to progressing new nuclear projects, including advanced nuclear technologies, to help decarbonise the UK energy system. In his Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced an up to £385 million Advanced Nuclear Fund to invest in the next generation of nuclear technologies. The Advanced Nuclear Fund includes up to £215 million to develop a domestic Small Modular Reactors (SMR) design and up to £170 million for an Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs) research and development programme, with an aim to build an AMR demonstrator by the early 2030s.

We are also committed to supporting the wider UK nuclear energy sector to help deliver advanced nuclear technologies to market. That is why, in addition to the Advanced Nuclear Fund, we have committed to invest in the nuclear regulatory frameworks and support UK supply chains.

In May 2021, we published new guidance for Advanced Nuclear Technologies to apply to enter the Generic Design Assessment (GDA). GDA allows the UK’s independent nuclear regulators to assess new reactor designs and provide the confidence that these new designs are capable of meeting the UK’s statutory regulatory requirements.

We recognise the highly skilled jobs Advanced Nuclear Technologies could create in local communities across the UK, in construction, manufacturing and support services.

We are also delighted by the recent announcement that the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) will be opening its first formal base in North Wales at the Menai Science Park (M-Sparc) in Anglesey. This announcement demonstrates their commitment to driving nuclear innovation, investment and the employment of a skilled workforce in Wales.

The Department regularly engages with the Department for Transport on tackling climate change and delivering our net zero commitments.

The Government is investing £1.3 billion in accelerating the roll out of charging infrastructure over the next four years, targeting support on rapid chargepoints on motorways and major roads, and installing more on-street chargepoints near homes and workplaces to make charging as easy as refuelling a petrol or diesel car. Our grant schemes and the £400 million Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund will see thousands more electric vehicle charge-points installed across the UK.

Government and industry have supported the installation of almost 25,000 publicly available charging devices. This includes more than 4,500 rapid devices. In order to ensure the private sector can continue to expand the charging network at pace in the 2020s, the Government will invest £950 million in future proofing grid capacity along the Strategic Road Network and launching a £90 million Local EV Infrastructure Fund to support the roll out of large on-street schemes and potentially rapid charging hubs in England.

However, we have not set an overall target for the number of chargepoints. Having a “target” number risks assuming technology stands still and creating a uniform approach to charging mixes and needs across the country.

Later this year we will publish an EV Infrastructure Strategy to set out the vision and action plan for charging infrastructure rollout needed to achieve the 2030/35 phase out successfully.

Electricity network companies are responsible for building, owning and operating the onshore electricity network, and are regulated by Ofgem, the independent energy regulator, in doing so. Ofgem sets a price control, called RIIO, which sets allowances and revenues for the networks during the price control period, incentivising networks to act efficiently in consumers’ best interests. This ensures there is sufficient capacity on the network to meet demand, including connecting to new renewable generation.

The Offshore Network Transmission Review (OTNR) is reviewing how offshore transmission can be better coordinated to support the Government’s target of 40GW of offshore wind by 2030, and net zero by 2050. This will support investment in transmission over the coming decades to accommodate the changing electricity generating mix.

Tidal and wave technologies could have a potentially important role in the long-term decarbonisation of the UK, however, they will have to reduce their costs sufficiently, to compete with other renewable technologies. We are committed to growing a development of a competitive UK supply chain in parallel with our plans for increasing the deployment of renewable electricity generating technologies. We are continuing to consider policy related to these technologies in light of the information received from the recent Marine Energy Call for Evidence on the potential of marine energy projects.

Wave and tidal stream projects remain eligible to compete in Pot 2 for Contracts for Difference auctions. We are currently developing parameters for Allocation Round 4 and will publish these well in advance of the next auction, including consideration of technology-specific minima.

As with the business cases for all major projects and programmes, the case for a large-scale nuclear power project will be assessed consistent with the approach set out in HM Treasury’s Green Book and Guide to Developing Project Business Cases:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-green-book-appraisal-and-evaluation-in-central-governent.

Before entering into commitments to support any nuclear project, as stated in the nuclear Regulated Asset Base (RAB) consultation document, the Government will assess the project business case on whether the project was expected to contribute to the target of net zero emissions by 2050 and deliver security of supply, at a lower total electricity system cost for consumers than alternatives without the project.

Once operational, Hinkley Point C will provide 3.2 gigawatts of secure, low carbon electricity for around 60 years, meeting around 7% of the UK’s current electricity requirements and providing enough electricity to power the equivalent of around 6 million homes.

BEIS analysis of the electricity system in 2050 – published alongside the Energy White Paper in December 2020 – shows that in the majority of modelled scenarios, more new nuclear beyond Hinkley Point C will be required to achieve net zero at low cost by 2050. That is why the Government confirmed in the Energy White Paper that it aims to bring at least one large-scale nuclear project to a Final Investment Decision by the end of this Parliament (subject to clear value-for-money and all relevant approvals), and that it will provide up to £385m in an Advanced Nuclear Fund (subject to future Spending Reviews) for the next generation of nuclear technology aiming, by the early 2030s, to develop a Small Modular Reactor design and to build an Advanced Modular Reactor demonstrator.

BEIS analysis of the electricity system in 2050 – published alongside the Energy White Paper in December 2020 – shows that in the majority of modelled scenarios, more new nuclear beyond Hinkley Point C will be required to achieve net zero at low cost by 2050. That is why the Government confirmed in the Energy White Paper that it aims to bring at least one large-scale nuclear project to a Final Investment Decision by the end of this Parliament (subject to clear value-for-money and all relevant approvals), and that it will provide up to £385m in an Advanced Nuclear Fund (subject to future Spending Reviews) for the next generation of nuclear technology aiming, by the early 2030s, to develop a Small Modular Reactor design and to build an Advanced Modular Reactor demonstrator.

The Government is aware of a number of international projects to produce low carbon hydrogen from nuclear energy. International collaboration is an important part of Government’s policy to successfully develop nuclear technology and Government is engaged in international initiatives such as the Clean Energy Ministerial, Mission Innovation and the Generation IV International forum where opportunities for low carbon hydrogen production from nuclear energy are being considered.

The Government welcomes the UK nuclear industry’s growing ambition to support low-carbon hydrogen production and the forthcoming UK Hydrogen Strategy will provide further detail on the role of production technologies in meeting our 5GW ambition. The Strategy will set out how the UK will position itself as a leader in the production, use and export of low carbon hydrogen, alongside the export of skills, technology and expertise. It will also set out our strong ambition to collaborate with key partners. By sharing expertise, building common standards and working together to remove deployment barriers, we can expedite hydrogen’s contribution to tackling climate change and creating green jobs. We look forward to engaging in more detailed discussions with overseas partners, including on nuclear-linked production, in light of the Strategy’s publication.

We are determined to seize the once-in-a-generation economic opportunities of the net zero transition by creating new business opportunities and, by one estimate, supporting up to 2 million green jobs by 2030 across all regions of the UK. The UK has a strong base to build upon, in 2019 there were already over 410,000 jobs in low carbon businesses and their supply chains across the country.

Through the Ten Point Plan, we will support a further 90,000 green collar jobs across the UK by 2024, and up to 250,000 by 2030. The Plan announced that we will invest up to £1 billion to support the establishment of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) in at least two industrial clusters by the mid-2020s, and four by 2030 at the latest, creating ‘SuperPlaces’ in areas potentially including south Wales. The UK Community Renewal Fund will also provide £220 million of additional funding over 2021-22, to better support people and communities in need across the whole of the UK, including Wales.

In order to ensure we have the skilled workforce to deliver net zero and our Ten Point Plan, we have launched the Green Jobs Taskforce. The Taskforce will conclude its work in summer 2021, with the actions feeding into our Net Zero Strategy to be published later in the year.

There is no legislation in the Insolvency Act or Company Directors Disqualification Act that would disqualify a business owner from obtaining insurance and other business support solely as a result of their previous company being subject to liquidation proceedings. A business owner in this position would have access to support from the Government, such as that provided through Growth Hubs and the free Business Support Helpline, on the same terms as any other business. Individual lenders and insurers may have policies in place that would take account of a previous insolvency and this would be a commercial matter for them.

Businesses of all sizes and all stages of growth can access free support and advice from their local Growth Hub, led by Local Enterprise Partnerships in England. Contact details can be found online: www.lepnetwork.net/local-growth-hub-contacts/. Firms based in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have access to similar support through their devolved governments: www.gov.uk/business-support-helpline.

Meeting our carbon goals will require the vast majority of the UK’s homes and non-domestic buildings to be zero carbon by 2050, through a combination of energy efficiency measures and moving to low carbon heating.

(a) We are supporting a range of research, development and testing projects designs to help determine the feasibility of using low carbon hydrogen as an alternative to the use of natural gas for heating. The Government has been supporting the development of hydrogen-ready boilers through the Hy4Heat programme. The programme includes ongoing projects to assess the timelines for the scale up of hydrogen-ready boiler production and their potential future costs. We will be consulting on the potential role of hydrogen-ready boilers in the transition to Net Zero later this year.

(b) The Government is bringing forward a wide-ranging package of policies to support the development of the heat pump market towards our ambition for 600,000 installations per year by 2028 including targeted regulations and financial support. We are working closely with industry to grow the supply chain, manage any impacts on the electricity network and provide support to consumers. Furthermore, the Government is helping to drive wider consumer acceptance and demonstrating the suitability of heat pumps, including hybrid heating systems, across the UK housing stock, through the £14.6 million Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project.

(c) The Government is keen to ensure that households and businesses are aware that all energy users are fairly sharing in the benefits and costs of the UK’s transition to Net Zero. Ensuring costs of the transition are allocated fairly is a priority for this Government, and we will shortly begin a dialogue on this between Government, consumers and industry, by publishing a call for evidence on affordability and fairness.

(d) Transitioning away from fossil fuels will not be simple and will require clear, long-term policy. The Government will shortly unveil a comprehensive policy package to support this ambition, including targeted regulatory, market-based and public investment measures, and will set out further detail on this in our forthcoming Heat and Buildings Strategy.

As we stated in our response to the consultation on a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) for nuclear published on 14^th December 2020, the Government is continuing to explore a RAB model. We will also continue to consider the potential role of Government finance during construction, provided there is clear value for money for consumers and taxpayers and subject to relevant approvals.

We believe that a RAB remains a credible model for large-scale nuclear projects, including future projects proposed for Wales, as it has the potential to help reduce the cost of raising private finance and thereby reduce consumer bills in the long run.

The UK Government has made available £4.8 million, subject to business case and other approvals, to support the development of the Holyhead Hydrogen Hub. The project proposes a hydrogen pilot production plant that would supply hydrogen fuel to the heavy goods and maritime vehicle markets on Ynys Môn. Officials are liaising with the developer and expect to consider the business case for the project in due course.

Hydrogen is expected to play a key role in transport decarbonisation, but it is likely to be most effective in the areas ‘that batteries cannot reach’, where energy density requirements or duty cycles and refuelling times make it the most suitable low carbon energy source. This might include its use in heavy goods vehicles, buses, rail, shipping and aviation. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will continue to work closely with the Department for Transport to explore the possibilities hydrogen can offer across different transport modes.

The Morlais project is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government and has received funding through the North Wales Growth Deal. Since 2003, various bodies across Government have provided innovation funding of £175m to the wave and tidal sectors.

The Climate Change Act 2008 introduced our framework of carbon budgets to mitigate climate change by ensuring continued progress towards our emission reduction target, capping emissions in successive five-year blocks. Through this legal framework and ambitious policy action, we have shown that cutting emissions and growing the economy go hand-in-hand – reducing our emissions by over 43% since 1990 while growing the economy by 78%.

We are going further and faster to mitigate climate change. This year we will set the sixth carbon budget in legislation and publish a Net Zero Strategy ahead of COP26, setting out the Government’s vision for transitioning to a net zero economy.

The Government remains committed to its manifesto pledge to invest £9.2 billion in the energy efficiency of homes, schools, and hospitals, helping to decarbonise buildings to keep us on track to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is a government-funded grant scheme to help public sector organisations in England, including schools, colleges and universities, and reserved public services across to the UK to install low carbon heating and energy efficiency measures on their estates. On 17th March 2021, £75m of funding was announced for Phase 2 Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme.

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination is unlawful. Redundancies which are based on unlawful discrimination are unacceptable. Legislation is in place to ensure processes are fair and reasonable - and informed by appropriate equalities considerations. Employees who believe their redundancy was unfair may be able to complain to an employment tribunal.

The Government is determined to do more to ensure pregnant women and new mothers are not disproportionately affected by redundancy. Following a consultation last year, the Government has committed to extend the statutory redundancy protection which a mother currently enjoys while on maternity leave, shared parental leave or adoption leave for a period for six months following a return to work. We will bring these measures forward as soon as there is an appropriate opportunity.

The Government is committed to the development of hydrogen as a strategic decarbonised energy carrier. We are currently developing our strategic approach to hydrogen and its potential to deliver against our net zero goals.

We are investing up to £121m (between 2015 and 2021) in hydrogen innovation across the value chain. We are developing new policy, in partnership with industry, to bring forward the technologies and supply chain we will need to grow the UK hydrogen economy. This includes business models to support the deployment of, and investment in, low carbon hydrogen production, and a £100m Low Carbon Hydrogen Production Fund to stimulate capital investment.

We are closely monitoring international hydrogen developments and participate in a range of international fora, including the International Partnership for Hydrogen for Fuel Cells in the Economy, Mission Innovation and Clean Energy Ministerial where we engage with partners including the EU. This is informing our own strategic approach to the development of hydrogen in the UK context, including the role of Government in ensuring that the UK can harness opportunities for partnership and economic benefit.

The Government is already investing up to £121m (between 2015 and 2021) in innovation across the hydrogen supply chain to grow the UK hydrogen economy. This includes the £33m Hydrogen Supply competition, supporting projects including renewable hydrogen at scale through offshore floating wind (Dolphyn), and the world’s largest electrolyser production facility (ITM Gigafactory). The HyDeploy project has been commissioned by Gas Network Operators to investigate the option of blending up to 20% hydrogen with natural gas in the gas grid, while the Government’s £25m Hy4Heat programme is exploring the safety and feasibility of using 100% hydrogen for heat in homes.

In addition, a £100m Low Carbon Hydrogen Production Fund was announced in August 2019, to stimulate capital investment in new low carbon hydrogen production, and at the Budget this year we announced at least £800m to support carbon capture and storage infrastructure that could help enable production of low carbon hydrogen at scale.

The government is strongly supportive of community radio. Community stations such as Môn FM have played a key role in keeping listeners informed and entertained during the coronavirus pandemic, and we are extremely grateful for the level of commitment shown by the sector in continuing to make connections within its communities during these difficult times.

We are, of course, very conscious of the impact that the pandemic has had on revenues within the sector, which is why we released a total of £600,000 in emergency funding through the Community Radio Fund in 2020/21 to help a significant number of stations to meet their immediate financial obligations. While the application windows for that funding have now closed, the Community Radio Fund will be allocating a further £400,000 in 2021/22 to support stations that can demonstrate that a grant would help to further their financial stability and future sustainability. Ofcom administer this Fund on behalf of DCMS, and further information about it can be found on their website.

Good progress has been made in the Ynys Mon constituency, with over 93% of premises in the constituency able to access superfast broadband. This is up from 6% in March 2013. Gigabit-capable coverage in the constituency stands at 19%, above the Welsh coverage figure of 16%.

The Ynys Mon constituency is included in the North Wales Wave 3 project as part of the Local Full Fibre Networks programme. The project is connecting 413 public sector sites across the six local authorities (Conwy County Borough Council, Denbighshire County Council, Flintshire County Council, Gwynedd County Council, Isle of Anglesey County Council, Wrexham County Borough Council) that make up North Wales.

In addition, there is a Rural Gigabit Connectivity project that is looking to connect a further 103 public sector sites across Wales - the Ynys Mon constituency is included in this project too.

For those premises that are still struggling from slow speeds, DCMS runs a voucher scheme that can be used by rural communities across the UK to reduce the cost of installing gigabit-capable connectivity. This provides a voucher worth up to £3,500 for eligible small businesses and vouchers worth up to £1,500 for residents. Increased funding is available for eligible small businesses and residents in Wales, where the Welsh Government is ‘match funding’ the vouchers, doubling the above figures.

Furthermore the government has pledged £5 billion to invest in the hardest to reach areas of the UK. Supplier engagement has taken place over the summer, and their feedback will be used to refine and finalise the delivery vehicle of the programme.

The government meets with the BBC on regular occasions to discuss a wide range of issues, including the over 75 concession. The Government has consistently made clear its disappointment with the BBC's decision to restrict the over 75 licence fee concession to only those in receipt of pension credit. We recognise the value of free TV licences for over-75s and believe they should be funded by the BBC.

The BBC remains responsible for the administration of the concession and it will be responsible for setting out what those affected will need to do. It must look urgently at how it can use its substantial licence fee income to support older people and deliver for UK audiences of all ages.

In November, the Government announced a substantial increase to our international agri-food capability, through the recruitment of eight new agriculture, food and drink attachés.

Since then Defra officials have worked with colleagues across Government and the international network to design this expanded agri-food attaché network, and determine the most impactful locations and portfolios for these roles. We will launch the recruitment of these new roles imminently, and aim to appoint and induct the new agri-food attachés rapidly in the coming months.

The agri-food attachés themselves represent a significant commitment from the Government to increase our agri-food export capability. To support this expanded international network, we are laying the groundwork to ensure the agri-food attachés are well connected to all relevant Government stakeholders and policy levers, ensuring that the additional capability that they bring is as impactful as possible for all parts of the UK.

This will build on the successful work of our existing Agriculture Counsellor roles in China and the Gulf. For example, the Agriculture Counsellor in China was pivotal to securing lucrative market access for pork, and protecting agri-food exports when new import conditions were applied last year.

The UK's high degree of food security is built on supply from diverse sources, including strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. We produce 60% of all the food we need, and 74% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year, and these figures have changed little over the last 20 years. In addition, the UK has nearly 100% sufficiency in poultry, carrots, and swedes.

Recognising the importance of food production, the Government made a commitment to produce an assessment of our food security at least once every three years. The first UK Food Security Report was published in December 2021. It recognised the contribution made by British farmers to our resilience, and the importance of strong domestic production to our food security. This report will serve as an evidence base for future policy work.

The Food Strategy White Paper will set out Government's ambition and priorities for the food system - to support our exceptional British food and drink producers, and to protect and enhance the nation's health and the natural environment for generations to come. The Government will consider the evidence of Henry Dimbleby's independent review throughout the development of Food Strategy. Given ongoing wider circumstances we are postponing publication of the food strategy until after the pre-election period for the local elections.

Plastic pollution is a global challenge, and the UK engages across multilateral forums and organisations to raise global ambition and drive action to minimise plastic pollution from both land and sea-based sources, including the G7 and G20, the OSPAR Convention, the World Trade Organisation and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Through the £500 million Blue Planet Fund the UK is funding developing countries to protect the marine environment and reduce poverty, including the Global Plastic Action Partnership to address plastic pollution. Through the UK and Vanuatu-led Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, 34 Commonwealth nations have now committed to taking action on plastic pollution in the ocean.

The UK co-sponsored the ambitious proposal that led to the resolution adopted at the United Nations Environment Assembly in March 2022 to develop a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution, and the UK has joined the High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution to drive a comprehensive and effective treaty.

A second consultation on introducing a deposit return scheme in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was published in 2021 and is now closed. The Government is analysing the responses to that consultation, with a view to publishing a Government response soon.

We are very much aware of the disruption to supply chains that the Russian invasion of Ukraine will have both globally and here in the UK and are closely monitoring the market situation.

The UK food chain is very robust and adaptable. Our initial assessment is the principal impact on UK farmers will be an increase in the cost of a range of inputs including red diesel, animal feed, fertiliser, and energy.

We are working with the industry to identify where mitigations are available and continue to keep the situation under review.

Food prices are influenced by a range of factors - from currency fluctuations to commodity prices. While recent pressures have been sustained, we have a highly resilient food supply chain. Direct food imports from Eastern Europe are low, and we do not expect any significant direct impact on UK food supply. However, we will continue to speak with the industry to understand any potential pressures.

The UK sources fertiliser from a wide range of countries and also produces fertiliser such as ammonium nitrate domestically. The situation and impacts on farmers in particular, and industry more widely, from current high fertiliser prices, are being monitored closely.

There are nutrient management techniques and technologies that can be used alongside fertiliser products that help the efficacy of fertilisers and help maintain high yield and good quality produce. Support in the form of guidance from fertiliser suppliers and agricultural organisations such as the National Farmers Union (NFU) can be found from various public sources. Defra is aware that the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board has published many helpful public pieces of guidance, advice and webinar recordings on mitigating high fertiliser prices.

Defra is in regular contact with key industry figures including the NFU, fertiliser producers and importers, and the key sector representative body for fertilisers, the Agricultural Industries Confederation. We are continuing to monitor the security and stability of fertiliser and other supply chains, and working closely with colleagues across Government and devolved administrations as well as industry figures to share knowledge and discuss all options available to tackle these issues. This will help inform how Defra and other industry bodies can best support farmers.

Defra is committed to promoting the use of less environmentally damaging fertilisers and better nutrient use efficiency. The current shortage of inorganic fertilisers provides an opportunity for farmers to continue exploring increasing their use of environmentally sustainable products and more efficient nutrient management methods.

The Government shares the public's high regard for animal welfare. We are delivering a series of ambitious reforms, as outlined in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare. We are actively exploring options for improving the welfare of farmed animals and are considering the case for introducing further reforms, in areas such as the use of cages for gamebirds.

We need to gather evidence on the welfare of gamebirds and the use of cages in the sector to inform future policy development. The expectation is that we will be calling for evidence later this year.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carry out targeted inspections on gamebird breeding and rearing units in response to intelligence received. Intelligence led monitoring and offering advice on compliance are key components of all APHA inspections. Where welfare regulations are breached, appropriate action is always taken.

According to APHA records, 10 inspections took place in England and Wales in 2021. One inspection in England resulted in non-compliances being identified and a follow up inspection was carried out to ensure corrective action had been taken.

It remains the farmer/keeper’s responsibility to ensure that birds are kept in a suitable environment, as required by Section 9 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which includes the provision of suitable protection from adverse weather conditions.

The Code of Practice for the welfare of Gamebirds reared for Sporting Purposes states that when birds are housed or penned, the accommodation should be well constructed and managed and of sufficient size to ensure good health and welfare; which is best achieved by ensuring protection from adverse weather conditions and extremes of temperature. The code also states that there should be a contingency plan to prevent or deal with emergencies which would include extremes of temperature.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carry out targeted inspections on gamebird units in response to intelligence received. In determining whether a temperature range is suitable, APHA inspectors conduct a case-by-case assessment based on the birds’ environment, including any clinical signs in the birds, to verify compliance with the legislation. APHA also assess stockmanship and contingency actions that have been put in place to protect bird welfare.

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a devolved competency and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

The UK is at the forefront of marine protection with 372 MPAs protecting 38% of UK waters. We have built a comprehensive network of MPAs and are focusing on making sure they are protected properly. Ninety-eight of our inshore English MPAs now have management measures in place to protect sensitive features from bottom towed fishing gears. We are also developing an ambitious three-year programme for assessing sites and implementing byelaws, where necessary, to manage fishing activity in all English offshore MPAs.

Our manifesto was clear that no changes will be made to the Hunting Act. 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. Those found guilty under the Act are subject to the full force of the law.

Issuing a license or giving permission for trail hunting is an operational matter for the landowner and those organisations with a land lease or agreement in place for Government land.

The Marine Management Organisation publishes annual statistics on catch, effort and fleet data in aggregated from which includes catch by gear type:

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/marine-management-organisation/about/statistics. The UK discard/bycatch information, derived from scientific fisheries observer programmes in each of the UK administrations, is the EU Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) database. Data collected up to the end of 2020 have been submitted to the EU STECF in accordance with UK obligations and can be found here: Fisheries Dependent Information - European Commission (europa.eu)

All wild-capture commercial fishers are required to report incidental mortality or injury (bycatch) of marine mammals during fishing operations to the Marine Management Organisation. These data are used in UK bycatch monitoring programmes to help identify and where possible reduce potential impacts with sensitive marine species. The UK government funds a comprehensive and well-respected bycatch monitoring programme, which provides essential observer data on incidents of sensitive species bycatch. Annual reports are published online here: Defra, UK - Science Search.

UK regulations require fishery and aquaculture product labelling to indicate the production method, area where the product was caught or farmed, and category of fishing gear used in capture of fisheries.

The Government is fully committed to tackling the issue of accidental bycatch of sensitive marine species, as seen in the Fisheries Act through the ecosystem objective which seeks to ensure “incidental catches of sensitive marine species are minimised and, where possible, eliminated”. The Joint Fisheries Statement and UK Bycatch Mitigation Initiative will set out policies in more detail to help achieve this objective, including improving our understanding of where and how much bycatch occurs and effective mitigation measures to reduce bycatch of sensitive marine species.

We are currently examining our wider policy on supertrawlers. Any action needs to be evidence-based and in line with the UK/EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The Marine Management Organisation continues to monitor fishing activity in English waters with dedicated enforcement and surveillance work to protect fisheries, including offshore patrol vessels for at-sea surveillance.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 23 November 2021: PQ UIN 76872.

This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has provided advice on managing farm manures to reduce antibiotic resistance. The guidance from APHA recognises that the anaerobic digestion process destroys bacteria and is considered to be the best approach for reducing spread of bacteria to the environment. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has provided practical advice on how to reduce the risk of contamination of ready-to-eat crops when using farm manures to improve soil fertility. The FSA guidelines are based on research, largely funded by the FSA, on pathogen occurrence and survival in farm manures during storage and following land spreading.

This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

The Animal by-products regulation classifies manure as a category 2 Animal by-product. However, there is no requirement to use an approved anaerobic digestion site for the disposal of manure (unlike other materials such as food waste). If the Animal and Plant Health Agency (which enforces the ABP regulations in question) does not consider there to be a risk of spreading any serious, transmissible disease, manure can be applied to land without processing (Authorisation B1). Nonetheless, the stacking and storage of manure, composting of manure and/or anaerobic digestion are recommended as best practice and should be adopted wherever possible to reduce the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria.

Environment Agency Position Statement 029: Anaerobic digestion of agricultural manure and slurry, Version 1.0, October 2010 has been assessed as part of a current waste quality protocols review. In December 2020 the Environment Agency published its first outcome of a review of the Anaerobic Digestate Quality Protocol. This concluded that, amongst other issues, the Environment Agency needs to review its position on the waste status of manure-based digestates (as detailed in Position Statement 029). The review is ongoing. The Environment Agency has set up a task and finish group with industry representation and the revision process has started. Details of this work can be found here.

Although we have not made any recent assessments on the benefits to soil health of banning mineral based fertilisers the Nutrient Management Expert Group (NMEG) is independently reviewing and analysing existing policy, alongside up-to-date technical and scientific evidence on fertilisers and nutrient management. It is considering the multiple challenges surrounding nutrient management (reaching Net Zero by 2050, protecting and enhancing soil health, improving water and air quality, protecting natural biodiversity and managing resources sustainably) and developing recommendations on the optimal policy approaches to minimise nitrogen-based and other pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from fertiliser use.  The Group is engaging with sector sounding boards, including industry representatives and other key stakeholders, to ensure its recommendations have practical merit.

The findings and recommendations of NMEG will be published in the new year. They will feed into our review of fertiliser regulation and inform wider Defra policy development and delivery plans.

The Government is developing a Soil Health Action Plan for England. It will look at how land management practices and planning can be adapted to help protect soil from the impact of climate change, and will deliver a single, strategic and coherent plan for multiple outcomes that prevents soil degradation and improves soil health.

The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) is a key focus of the Action Plan and will support sustainable approaches to farm husbandry that deliver for the environment and improve soil health. For example, 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.

Two of the standards that are being piloted in the SFI are the Improved Grassland Soils Standard and the Arable and Horticultural Soils Standard. These standards focus on soil management and health and will also be available under the early roll out of the SFI from 2022.

We are seeking agreement from the European Commission on awarding Great Britain ‘Part 1’ listed status and recognition of the UK’s tapeworm-free status. Achieving these would alleviate the most onerous pet travel rules for all travellers and we see no valid animal health reason for these to not be granted. We have one of the most rigorous pet checking regimes in Europe to protect our biosecurity and have submitted a detailed technical case setting this out and are continuing to engage with the EU on a workable solution.

Animal Health Certificates (AHCs) fees are set by veterinary practices and are a private matter between individual practices and their clients and neither the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, the UK regulator of the veterinary profession, nor Defra intervenes in the level of fees that are charged.

We are engaging with the British Veterinary Association to address concerns on veterinary capacity to complete and issue AHCs. We are working to ensure that the process of issuing pet travel documentation is as efficient as possible.

The AHC format is mandated by the EU, but the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has taken steps to help Official Veterinarians (OVs) complete them including the development of a model certificate and accompanying printable guidance. APHA has publicised the availability of the required training course on completing AHCs and has made it easily available on-line which can be accessed by all qualified OVs at any time.

The Department believes that the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) is a fit for purpose regulator. The Department does not consider an independent ombudsman would improve the regulation of the veterinary profession. RCVS have been developing recommendations on reforming the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, including an overhaul of the disciplinary framework and fitness to practise regime. We will carefully consider their proposals.

The current EU rules for the production of animal feed are more stringent than those of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

The EU’s forthcoming changes are in line with the OIE and with the EU TSE Roadmaps. The Roadmaps are a programme of stepwise relaxations in line with the latest scientific advice which the UK, an EU Member State at the time, supported. They would permit the feeding of porcine Processed Animal Protein (PAP) to poultry and poultry PAP to pigs, and ruminant gelatine and collagen and protein derived from insects to pigs and poultry.

Now that we have left the EU, the restrictions on feeding of livestock in the UK will not be altered by EU legislation and they apply whether the feed is imported or produced here.

The UK does not ban the imports of animals or products of animal origin from countries where the feed rules comply with the OIE requirements. This means that imports of animals or products of animal origin from the EU or Northern Ireland will continue to be accepted into Great Britain.

The Government is in the process of assessing the implications of these changes for the UK and will use the latest scientific evidence to decide if any policy changes should be made in England.

Fisheries protection is a devolved matter. Nonetheless, Defra, the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive continue to work together to share information and ensure a coordinated approach to monitoring, compliance and enforcement across UK waters.

The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement requires both Parties to share information on such matters. The two parties exchange information on records of catches of quota species from the UK Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) on a monthly basis, supplemented with International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES)-rectangle (geographical areas) level data to provide assurance of the robustness of the EEZ-level data.

We are working closely with counterparts in EU Member States to ensure effective coordination of intelligence-sharing and inspections. It is a legal requirement for all registered fishing vessels over 12m operating within UK waters, including EU vessels, to be fitted with a Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) device. Data from this device is relayed via the flag member states providing the UK Fisheries Authorities with live positional data.

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the EU provides for a significant uplift in quota for UK fishers equal to 25% of the value of the average annual EU catch from UK waters and will be phased in over five years, with the majority of this value (15%) being transferred in the first year (2021). It ensures a smooth and managed transition to new quota sharing arrangements and a framework for annual negotiations between the UK and the EU.

We set out how the additional quota would be apportioned between the four administrations on 24 March. How each administration distributes that to industry is a devolved issue.

For England we set out the new distribution method on 14 April and this provided significant uplifts for under 10 metre vessels.

Full details, including what has been allocated to Wales, have been published on the Marine Management Organisation’s website.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fishing-quota-allocations-for-2021-for-england-and-the-uk

Country of origin information is required for all prepacked food where its omission would be misleading to consumers, and is required for fresh and frozen meat of beef, sheep, goat, pigs and poultry, as well as for uncut fresh fruit and vegetables, honey, olive oil and wine. For processed food, where the origin of the primary ingredient is different to that of the food itself and the origin of the food is given, an indication that the origin of the primary ingredient is different or the specific origin must also be provided. In any case, where an indication, in words of pictures, of origin or provenance is given this must be accurate.

For method of production, an indication must be provided on shell eggs when sold as such and in the case of poultry, where it is stated must meet strict criteria. For other species and for dairy products, any claims around method of production either in words or pictures must not be misleading.

We have the opportunity to review food labelling now we are no longer bound by EU rules to ensure information supports UK consumers' food choices and the marketing of quality British food products. This review will be made in the context of the government’s food strategy white paper which will be published following Henry Dimbleby’s independent review of the food system later this year.

The Government has further committed to consult on what can be done through labelling to promote high standards and high welfare across the UK. There will be a call for evidence launched this summer which will look to address evidence gaps on the impact, costs and deliverability on different types of labelling reforms. This, alongside Henry Dimbleby’s review, will inform a full consultation later this year which will seek stakeholder and public views on how welfare information should be presented to consumers.

Illegal fishing in UK waters by vessels of any nationality is an extremely serious matter which endangers the sustainability of our stocks and the long-term interests of the UK fishing fleet. Given that fisheries management is a devolved matter, the four UK fisheries authorities work together to combat illegal fishing by a range of means. These include: applying scientific data and evidence to fisheries management to ensure sustainable fishing; sharing intelligence and coordinating assets when required through the Joint Maritime Security Centre; significantly increasing the number of onshore personnel and maritime surveillance assets; ensuring that all commercial fishing vessels operating in UK waters are licenced in a way which means that, regardless of nationality, they must all abide by the same regulations as UK vessels; and working closely with counterparts in EU Member States to ensure effective coordination of intelligence-sharing and inspections.

The Government is fully committed to the sustainable management of our seas, whilst enabling a successful UK fishing fleet. The objectives in the Fisheries Act 2021 collectively reaffirm our commitment to achieving sustainable fishing and protecting the marine environment while tailoring our approach to our unique seas. This commitment will be delivered through the Joint Fisheries Statement and Fisheries Management Plans.

We set out policy how additional quota would be allocated in March. This is now included in the UK Quota Management Rules for 2021. Quota allocations have taken place and are available on gov.uk here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fishing-quota-allocations-for-2021-for-england-and-the-uk

The UK has been a strong advocate for the sustainable management of fisheries and will continue to collect data to support this. The regulations that enable us to collect data have been rolled over into UK law and funding has been maintained in line with manifesto commitments. This ensures continuity and consistency of data collection in the short-term. We have now commenced work on developing a new fisheries' monitoring programme that supports UK priorities as well as our international commitments.

Restoring the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act would be inconsistent with wider government policy which welcomes foreign investment in UK industry. Our investment commitments under the UK / EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement reflect this policy.

We believe that ensuring all vessels over 10 metres in length that land more than 2 tonnes of per annum and are fishing against English quota demonstrate a link to the UK would provide a stronger benefit to the UK economy. We consulted on proposals to strengthen the economic link licence condition for English vessels last year and intend to publish the government response this summer.

UK fishing quota is not held by EU registered vessels. It is only allocated to UK registered vessels.

We do not keep records of the nationality of UK registered vessel owners.

UK fishing quota is not held by EU registered vessels. It is only allocated to UK registered vessels.

We do not keep records of the nationality of UK registered vessel owners.

Full details, including what has been allocated to Wales, have been published on the Marine Management Organisation’s website.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fishing-quota-allocations-for-2021-for-england-and-the-uk

The UK recognises the important role that blue carbon habitats – such as saltmarsh and seagrass - can play to prevent biodiversity loss and support adaptation and resilience to climate change, alongside carbon sequestration benefits. The protection and restoration of these habitats therefore provides a nature-based solution.

The UK is a global leader in ocean protection with 38% of UK waters in Marine Protected Areas, covering the majority of saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. Our focus is now on ensuring these are effectively protected.

The Government recently published its response to the Benyon Review into Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs), accepting the central recommendation that we should identify a number of locations to pilot this approach. HPMAs will be identified on the basis of their ecological value, including areas with potential to recover, and blue carbon habitats. Social and economic principles will then be used to help us understand and minimise the impacts on sea users.

In addition, a number of coastal and estuarine habit restoration initiatives are underway. The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative is working to restore our estuarine and coastal habitats, including blue carbon habitats, to benefit people and nature. Natural England is also leading the EU-funded LIFE Recreation ReMEDIES (Reducing and Mitigating Erosion and Disturbance Impacts affecting the Seabed) project, which aims to restore seagrass and maerl habitat in five Special Areas of Conservation.

We are also introducing three schemes that reward the delivery of environmental benefits, including for coastal habitat: the Sustainable Farming Incentive, the Local Nature Recovery scheme and the Landscape Recovery scheme. We are working with stakeholders and end users to determine the specific land management actions that will be paid for under our new schemes. The Agricultural Transition Plan set out examples of the types of actions that we envisage paying for under the schemes, including creating, managing, and restoring coastal habitats such as wetlands and salt marsh.

The UK greenhouse gas (GHG) Inventory will be used to report progress against the UK’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). UK NDC performance will be assessed in 2032 based on the UK 1990-2030 GHG Inventory submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The UK does not currently have the required data to report on anthropogenic activities impacting saltmarsh and seagrass (blue carbon habitats), as set out in the 2013 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Wetlands Supplement, and they are therefore not currently included in the UK GHG Inventory. We continue to build the evidence base on blue carbon habitats to help inform future, robust GHG reporting and accounting.

The Government recognises the role that blue carbon habitats, such as saltmarsh and seagrass, can play to prevent biodiversity loss and support adaptation and resilience to climate change, alongside carbon sequestration benefits. The importance of marine habitats was acknowledged in the UK NDC’s information to facilitate clarity, transparency and understanding, as well as in the UK’s Adaptation Communication.

There have been no changes in our import conditions for scrapie, Annex IX chapter H of regulation (EC) No. 999.2001 details the requirements for import of ovine and caprine semen, oocytes and embryos, which was adopted into UK law. These germinal products of non-ARR/ARR prion protein genotypes may be imported provided they meet the other scrapie requirements set out in the legislation and corresponding import health certificate.

Ovine and caprine germinal products: health certificates - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The UK maintains its own sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) imports regime to protect public, animal and plant life and health and the environment. We have repatriated the functions of audit and inspections to ensure that trading partners, including those we secure trade deals with, continue to meet our import conditions. This provides a standing, robust system that works alongside border controls to maintain our high standards going forward.

This Government takes the conservation of endangered species very seriously, which is why we will be banning the import of hunting trophies from endangered species. Our approach will be comprehensive, robust and effective and will deliver the change we promised to help protect thousands of species worldwide. We will be setting out plans soon.

There is no requirement in the Environment Bill for a deforestation target. This does not preclude the Government from setting one if it is judged to be the best way to deliver long-term environmental outcomes. The Bill framework allows for long-term targets to be set on any aspect of the natural environment, or people’s enjoyment of it. The Government is committed to setting targets through a robust, evidence-led process that seeks independent expert advice, provides a role for stakeholders and the public, as well as scrutiny from Parliament.

We have commissioned the Joint Nature Conservation Committee to develop a global environmental footprint indicator to help us understand the UK’s global footprint. The first phase of this work was published in May 2021, with further development following in the summer. The outcomes of this work will help inform our future thinking on the most appropriate approach to drive change in this area.

On finance, delivering our net zero objective will require deep decarbonisation of all sectors. We know that financial services will be a critical enabler in mobilizing green investment at the pace and scale required – and that is why green finance is a key priority for this Government.

Furthermore, the UK will become the first G20 country to make Taskforce on Climate- related Financial Disclosures-aligned disclosures fully mandatory across the economy, with most requirements introduced in the next three years. The Government is also actively supporting the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures.

Finally, the UK will implement a green taxonomy, a common framework for determining which activities can be defined as environmentally sustainable, which will improve understanding of the environmental impact of firms’ activities and investments.

Although there has been research reporting the presence and impacts of microplastics in the marine environment, little is known about their sources, release and impact on rivers. Defra has published research to contribute to better understanding of these issues, and will use the outcomes from this and other studies to develop policy options to help mitigate the impact of microplastics in the environment.

Defra is also working with the Environment Agency, academics and the UK water industry to understand the scale of the microplastic pollution problem and to establish detection methods to identify, characterise and quantify the types of microplastics entering wastewater treatment plants; evaluate the efficiency of treatment processes for the removal of microplastics from domestic wastewaters, and assess the fate and biological effects of microplastics in receiving rivers.

With regards to discharges of untreated waste water, tackling the harm caused by sewer overflows is a top priority for this department.

To achieve this, the new Storm Overflows Taskforce - bringing together Government, the water industry, regulators and environmental NGOs - has agreed to set a long-term goal to eliminate harm from storm overflows. The Taskforce is meeting regularly and working on plans to start making progress towards that goal, and they have commissioned research to gather evidence on the costs, benefits and feasibility of different options.

We are also introducing new duties in the Environment Bill that will require the Government to publish a plan by September 2022 to reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows and to report progress to Parliament on implementing that plan. We are also introducing duties requiring water companies and the Environment Agency to publish data on storm overflow operations on an annual basis. These legally binding obligations on water companies and Government will help reduce pollution in rivers, including microplastic contamination, protecting wildlife and public health.

Water companies are committed in the five-year business planning period (2020-25) to a significant programme of improvements to the monitoring and management of storm overflows at a cost of around £1.3 billion.

Analysis carried out by ADAS consultants in 2020 showed planting hedgerows has a range of environmental gains, including positive impacts on biodiversity, landscape character and protection from, and mitigation of environmental hazards.

Recent reports and research from Natural England and Defra have further evidenced that hedgerows can deliver habitat and resources for a range of important wildlife, support ecosystem services, and sequester and store carbon.

In England, the Environmental Stewardship (ES) and Countryside Stewardship (CS) schemes are currently our primary tools in delivering environmentally beneficial hedgerow management and hedgerow creation, which support the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan. Hedgerow management is one of the most popular options within the CS scheme.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Caerphilly on 15 April 2021, PQ UIN 178842.

The Horse Welfare Board’s five-year Horse Welfare Strategy (HWS) A life well-lived was published on 20 February 2020. The HWS contains 20 recommendations for improving the welfare of horses bred for racing. The HWS recommends that, as a minimum, the penalties for misuse of the whip need to increase and that the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) should conduct a consultation on the use of the whip. The Strategy also recommends that this consultation should gather views on future restrictions on whip use and on a possible ban. Defra has been informed by the British Horse Racing Authority that the delayed opening of the consultation due to COVID-19 disruption will take place later in 2021.

Defra officials will remain engaged with the BHA on the progress being made with the consultation. I would encourage anyone with evidence that a racehorse has suffered unnecessarily from being whipped to get in touch with the BHA and share their concerns. In the most severe cases of misuse, an individual may be investigated under the 2006 Animal Welfare Act, as well as receiving significant sanctions from the sport.

This pandemic has had a huge impact on businesses up and down the country

We are continuing to monitor the pig sector recognising the challenges it has faced as a result of both Covid-19 outbreaks in processing plants and the end of the Transition period. The Secretary of State and I held a roundtable with the pig industry on 9 February to discuss these issues.

A further roundtable with the retail sector is planned for this week. Approving and maintaining the approvals of UK Food Business Operators (FBOs) for pork exports to China is a decision for the Chinese Authorities but Defra will continue to work closely with UK industry and the British Embassy in Beijing with the aim of securing China’s agreement to reinstate the approval of pork exports from de-listed UK FBOs. The Government has already made available considerable support for businesses impacted by the pandemic. Where appropriate, we would encourage pig farmers to access these funds.

African swine fever remains one of our key priorities in terms of exotic notifiable diseases. Whilst we have never had an outbreak in the UK, we continue to prepare for this eventuality.

We are aware of the concerns around the use of glue traps, which can cause immense suffering to both target and non-target animals.

It is an issue we are looking at very closely as part of our continued drive to maintain the highest animal welfare standards in the world.

Anyone using glue traps has a responsibility under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to act within the law to ensure their activities do not cause any unnecessary suffering.

Tackling the harm caused by sewer overflows is a top priority for this Department.

During periods of significant rainfall untreated sewage diluted by rainwater will discharge through storm overflows to avoid streets, premises and sewage treatment plants from being flooded. Water companies are committed in the five-year business planning period (2020-2025) to a significant programme of improvements to the monitoring and management of storm overflows at a cost of around £1.1 billion. This investment includes undertaking 800 investigations and 798 improvement schemes to provide environmental improvements by reducing spills from frequently spilling overflows.

I recognise that there is more to do to manage sewage pollution. I met water company CEOs and made clear that the volume of sewage discharged into rivers and other waterways in extreme weather must be reduced.

To achieve this, the new Storm Overflows Taskforce - bringing together Government, the water industry, regulators and environmental NGOs - has agreed to set a long term goal to eliminate harm from storm overflows. The Taskforce is now working on plans to start making progress towards that goal, and they have commissioned research to gather evidence on the costs, benefits and feasibility of different options.

We are introducing new duties requiring the Government to publish a plan by September 2022 to reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows and to report progress to Parliament on implementing that plan. We are also introducing duties requiring water companies and the Environment Agency to publish data on storm overflow operations on an annual basis. These legally-binding obligations on water companies and government will reduce pollution in rivers – protecting wildlife and public health.

Water companies are currently producing for the first time comprehensive Drainage and Wastewater Management Plans to assess the capacity of their wastewater networks. We are also taking key steps through the Environment Bill to require water companies to produce such Plans on a statutory basis. These plans will be another tool to help address the risks that storm overflows pose to the environment.

The Environment Agency uses a range of enforcement options ranging from warning letters to prosecutions. The Environment Agency has brought 44 prosecutions against water companies in the last five years, securing fines of £34 million. £7.9 million has also been donated to environmental and wildlife trusts organisations in the same period through enforcement undertakings. The Environment Agency will continue to prosecute water companies which fail to uphold the law or cause serious environmental harm.

We are committed to improving our already high standards of animal welfare and are examining the evidence around the use of cages in farming, including their use for breeding pheasants and partridges.

The welfare of gamebirds is protected by the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which makes it an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to any animal. The Statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes offers additional protection and provides keepers with guidance on how to meet the welfare needs of their gamebirds as required by the 2006 Act. It recommends that barren cages for breeding pheasants and small barren cages for breeding partridges should not be used and that any system should be appropriately enriched.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carries out targeted inspections on gamebird farms. Advice on compliance is a key component of all APHA inspections.

APHA game bird inspections conducted and action taken:

The Government’s ambition is for world-class fisheries management to achieve sustainable fisheries, safeguarding stocks and the marine environment. This commitment is clearly set out in the Fisheries Act 2020 objectives and the 25 Year Environment Plan.

The bycatch objective in the Fisheries Act underlines the UK's commitment to avoid or reduce bycatch and the wasteful practice of discarding. It also sets out a commitment to ensure that any unavoidable bycatch is recorded and accounted for. There are rules in force (commonly referred to as the ‘landing obligation’) that prohibit the discarding of fish.

We also manage other bycatch through a comprehensive and well-respected bycatch monitoring programme which helps to protect sensitive marine species and to monitor and reduce any potential fisheries impacts on these species. The UK has an additional observer programme that collects data on fisheries catch and bycatch for scientific advice and management. Additionally, the Government funds Clean Catch UK which is a collaborative research programme dedicated to better monitoring, reducing, and, where possible, eliminating the bycatch of sensitive marine species in UK fisheries.

The Government recognises that a healthy ocean is vital to life and livelihoods on Earth. Tackling climate change is vital for ocean health and as COP26 President we are pushing for ambitious and accelerated action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. Ocean conservation and the protection of marine biodiversity are particularly important for building resilience and adapting to the impacts of climate change, as well as supporting climate change mitigation.

The UK Marine Strategy is vital in achieving the Government's vision for 'clean, healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse ocean and seas' and our climate change objectives. It provides the framework for monitoring, assessing and taking measures to achieve and maintain Good Environmental Status in our seas. Marine nature-based solutions, including marine protection, restoration and sustainable management, have a crucial role to play as part of measures to prevent biodiversity loss and support climate change adaptation, resilience and mitigation.

We are a global leader in ocean protection, with 38% of UK waters in Marine Protected Areas. We have also stated our intention to pilot Highly Protected Marine Areas in Secretary of State waters and look forward to publishing the Government's response to Richard Benyon's review in due course.

The UK Government is committed to reducing the impact of the fishing industry on the marine environment. The Climate Change Objective in clause 1 of the Fisheries Act ensures that consideration is taken of how fisheries management policy can mitigate against the effects of climate change, where appropriate, as well as adapting to any future impacts of climate change. Fisheries Administrations will introduce policies to achieve this objective in the legally binding Joint Fisheries Statement.

Marine protection is a devolved matter and the information below relates to England only.

No such assessments have been made as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) commonly protect seabed habitats and are generally not the best method of protecting commercial fish stocks, which need to be protected across their range and not just within the boundaries of an MPA. In addition, the impact a fishing vessel has on a site is determined by how damaging the fishing method is, rather than the size of the vessel.

Vessels fishing in the 6-12nm tend to be smaller and more local day boats. Their catches are limited by quotas, effort limits or local rules. Larger vessels have more flexibility about where they can fish and tend to go further off-shore. There are restrictions on gear types and engine size in the zone, for example restricting the size of beam trawlers, and these apply to UK and EU vessels.

The latest ‘Review of the Population and Conservation Status of British Mammals’ estimates red squirrel populations in Britain as 287,000.

The conservation of red squirrels is a devolved matter and this response is with regards to England only. Defra, Natural England and the Forestry Commission are signatories to the United Kingdom Squirrel Accord, working with over 30 other signatories to secure and expand red squirrel populations.

The Environment Bill contains measures that will help improve the status of threatened species. This will include setting at least one biodiversity target in law, as well as enhancing duties for public authorities to carry out strategic assessments of the actions they can take to enhance and conserve biodiversity.

The Government committed, in its 2019 manifesto, to introduce a deposit return scheme to incentivise people to recycle drinks containers.

On 24 March we published our second consultation on implementing a deposit return scheme for drinks containers. The materials we propose would be in-scope of the scheme are PET plastic containers, aluminium and steel cans, and glass bottles. Further details of the proposed deposit return scheme are presented in this second consultation.

Timelines have been reviewed to ensure we allow sufficient time for the roll out of a complex policy, and we therefore propose to implement the scheme in 2024, with views on this being taken in the consultation.

Powers from the Environment Bill will give us the option to establish deposit return schemes for other materials in the future and we will continue to consider these as policy options.

There is no scientific or technical justification for the European Commission banning this trade in live bivalve molluscs from GB from Class B waters. Our exports remain of high quality. We are continuing to apply the same rules that we did before EU Exit, exactly reflecting those of the EU. We are willing to provide additional reassurances to demonstrate shellfish health within reason, but this must recognise the existing high standards and history of trade between us.

We know this is an important trade for shellfish exporters in Great Britain and the EU ban has had a significant impact on the businesses. This includes those in Ynys Môn and I have met representatives from the area. We are working with the Food Standards Agency, Cefas and others to look at grading of the waters as this may provide some help to the businesses.

The current restrictions are affecting businesses on each side of the channel and we are talking to Member States in the EU whose businesses are also damaged by the ban.

The latest ‘Review of the Population and Conservation Status of British Mammals’ estimates the hedgehog populations in the UK is 522,000.

Wildlife policy is a devolved issue and this response is with regard to England only.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 sets out a legal duty for the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) to undertake a review of Schedule 5 and 8 (protected species) every five years to determine whether any further species warrant inclusion, and for the Secretary of State to lay this advice before Parliament. This review process is science led and evidence based, with criteria for consideration of species agreed across the jurisdictions of the UK. The JNCC is currently reviewing schedule 5 and will make recommendations for any additions at the end of this year.

The Government is clear that it wants to secure a Canada-style free trade deal with the EU which has at its heart a zero tariff trading regime.

At the end of the transition period, the UK will leave the EU’s customs area and the EU’s single market which means that traders will have to comply with new processes to trade with the EU, whether or not we reach an agreement with the EU.

Planning for the end of the transition period is well underway and the Government is working closely with businesses and other partners across the UK to ensure that the trade of seafood with the EU can continue as smoothly as possible.

Fisheries management is largely devolved and specific measures to support local industry would be a matter for each Fisheries Administration.

The introduction of the Fisheries Bill will allow the four Fisheries Administrations to reform the management of fisheries over time, creating a flexible and adaptive regime that is better suited to the individual needs of our fisheries. Defra has worked very closely with the Devolved Administrations during the development of the Fisheries Bill. At their requests, the Bill contains significant new powers for the Devolved Administrations that in most cases mirror those of the Secretary of State.

The UK Government will put in place new, domestic, long-term arrangements to support the UK’s fishing industry from 2021, through the creation of four new schemes comparable to the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund to deliver funding for each nation.

Seafish is working with industry from across the UK to develop a tool box of measures that can be used to better manage inshore fisheries and to develop more effective management for shellfish.

Fisheries management is of course devolved. The extent to which the benefits of the Fisheries Bill and the fisheries negotiations on access and quota will be felt across the UK, will largely be a matter for each fisheries Administration.

The Joint Fisheries Statement will provide an opportunity to describe how the Administrations will jointly or individually as appropriate deliver policies to achieve the eight fisheries objectives in the Bill. The objectives cover fish as a food source and the national benefit objective.

In England, we will shortly be consulting on strengthening the economic link criteria to ensure the UK benefits from the additional quota we intend to negotiate to secure for the UK. This will boost opportunities for fishers.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, there have been promising signs that the public are eating more locally caught fish. The "Sea for Yourself" campaign being run jointly by the Sea Fish Industry Authority and Defra aims to increase consumption of seafood caught in UK waters.

Government is investing £1.3 billion in accelerating the roll out of charging infrastructure over the next four years, targeting support on rapid chargepoints on motorways and major roads, and installing more on-street chargepoints near homes and workplaces to make charging as easy as refuelling a petrol or diesel car. Our grant schemes and the £400 million Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund will see thousands more electric vehicle charge-points installed across the UK.

We have set ambitious targets for chargepoints on our strategic road network in England to support long distance journeys. By 2023, we aim to have at least 6 high powered, open access chargepoints (150 - 350 kilowatt capable) at all motorway service areas and by 2030, we are planning for there to be around 2,500 high powered chargepoints across England’s motorways and major A roads. However, we have not set an overall target for the number of chargepoints. Having a “target” number risks assuming technology stands still and creating a uniform approach to charging mixes and needs across the country.

Government and industry have supported the installation of almost 25,000 publicly available charging devices. This includes more than 4,500 rapid devices. To ensure the private sector can continue to expand the charging network at pace in the 2020s, the Government will invest £950 million in future proofing grid capacity along the Strategic Road Network and launching a £90 million Local EV Infrastructure Fund to support the roll out of large on-street schemes and potentially rapid charging hubs in England.

Later this year we will publish an EV Infrastructure Strategy to set out the vision and action plan for charging infrastructure rollout needed to achieve the 2030/35 phase out successfully. This will set expected roles for different stakeholders and how government will intervene to address the gaps between the current market status and our vision.

The Department recognises the vitally important role NHS and other keyworkers have played in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, there are currently no plans to extend or launch any new railcards at this time.

On 15 March the Government launched England’s long-term National Bus Strategy, setting out a bold vision for bus services across the country. Backed by £3 billion of transformational funding, the strategy’s central aim is to get more people travelling by bus, by making services more frequent, more reliable, easier to understand and use, better co-ordinated and cheaper. The Williams-Shapps Rail Review was launched in May and set out a series of measures to support the government’s vision for the UK to have a world-class railway, recognising that the railways must become better at meeting passenger needs to avoid a society dependent on the car.

We recognise the need to provide better value and a more convenient option to meet the needs of flexible commuters, which is why we are introducing new rail flexible season tickets across England. These tickets will be available to purchase on 21 June and valid from 28 June, and will offer most 2 and 3 day per week commuters savings against buying daily tickets or traditional seasons. Transport for Wales Rail currently offers the Multiflex product to support flexible commuters in Wales.

The Maritime 2050 Strategy highlights the importance of new technologies to the future of the maritime sector and sets out the ambition to become a world leader in marine innovation. To support this, DfT has provided over £5m in funding to Maritime Research and Innovation UK (MarRI-UK), which acts as a national body to coordinate research and development in maritime innovation.

Technology development is also critical to support the UK’s wider decarbonisation agenda. The Department’s Clean Maritime Plan (CMP), published in July 2019, outlined the UK’s pathway to zero carbon emissions in the domestic maritime arena. In March, DfT launched the £20 million Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC) to enable the development and commercialisation of novel solutions for clean maritime technologies. Further details of our policies will be set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, which will be published this year.

My Department recently launched a £20 million Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, building on the vision set out in the Clean Maritime Plan published in 2019 and will announce further policy proposals in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan this Spring.

The UK and EU have agreed a high-level Aviation Safety Agreement, with an annex on Airworthiness. We are aware that there is interest in further annexes on topics such as licencing recognition between the UK and EU. There is potential to negotiate further annexes to the agreement in the future, and the UK will continue to engage with the EU on this matter.

HS2 will free up capacity on the existing West Coast Main Line which could be used for additional services. Current plans would see North Wales passengers benefiting from an HS2 interchange at Crewe, with shorter journey times than those currently possible on the West Coast Main Line to Holyhead.

In addition, we are progressing the development of a line speed enhancement scheme for the North Wales Coast Line, and the Prime Minister has asked Sir Peter Hendy CBE to undertake an independent review into transport connections across Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England. The review will make recommendations on how the UK Government can level up transport infrastructure, boosting access to opportunities and improving people’s everyday connections.

My officials or I have had a number of discussions with ferry, port and haulage operators in relation to Irish Sea traffic since 1 January, encompassing reductions in traffic at Holyhead, Fishguard and Pembroke compared with equivalent weeks in previous years. A significant proportion of these reductions is likely to be attributable to the expansion and take-up of direct services recently introduced and strongly promoted between the Republic of Ireland and other EU ports. It is, however, too early to identify any longer term trends or say what the longer term impacts will be. The Government is, however, confident that Welsh ports, and Holyhead in particular, will continue to provide critical routes to and from the Republic of Ireland and continental Europe, irrespective of direct links for haulage between Ireland and France. The land bridge route has significant advantages for hauliers over maritime routes and the Government is confident that Welsh ports will continue to thrive as we build on the opportunities provided by being an independent trading nation.

My officials or I have had a number of discussions with ferry, port and haulage operators in relation to Irish Sea traffic since 1 January, encompassing reductions in traffic at Holyhead, Fishguard and Pembroke compared with equivalent weeks in previous years. A significant proportion of these reductions is likely to be attributable to the expansion and take-up of direct services recently introduced and strongly promoted between the Republic of Ireland and other EU ports. It is, however, too early to identify any longer term trends or say what the longer term impacts will be. The Government is, however, confident that Welsh ports, and Holyhead in particular, will continue to provide critical routes to and from the Republic of Ireland and continental Europe, irrespective of direct links for haulage between Ireland and France. The land bridge route has significant advantages for hauliers over maritime routes and the Government is confident that Welsh ports will continue to thrive as we build on the opportunities provided by being an independent trading nation.

The Department set how it will evaluate rental e-scooter trials in its guidance to local areas and rental operators in September 2020. As stated in the guidance, the primary areas of focus for DfT and its monitoring and evaluation contractors include:

• safety outcomes for e-scooter users and what influences this

• interaction with, and effect on, other road users

• public perceptions of e-scooters, including by people with disabilities and related groups

• nature of modal shift and new journeys that have been enabled

• characteristics of users, and how uptake and outcomes differ for different groups

• The evidence gathered during trials, the responses to the Future of Transport regulatory review call for evidence and other research will inform legal changes that may be necessary after the trial period ends.

The Department is working with unions and industry to understand what steps can be taken to further protect jobs and livelihoods in the sector. However, no recent in-depth assessment has been made on the impact of Covid-19 on rates of pay for seafarers or maritime workers.

Local and harbour authorities already have powers to introduce measures controlling personal water craft and boat use in the waters they manage. They are best placed to consider what provisions are necessary in their local areas to ensure safety and deliver an appropriate balance between the requirements and priorities of different water users.

While the majority of personal watercraft riders use their craft sensibly and safely, we are currently considering the introduction of new enforcement measures to ensure that any who willfully or neglectfully cause accidents or endanger the safety of others can be prosecuted.

On the first question, I refer the Hon member to the answer I gave on 24 March 2022 to Question Number 142004.

On the second question, I refer the Hon member to the answer I gave on 10 February 2022 to question number 120937.

Citizens Advice is funded by various Government departments, public bodies, private companies, local authorities as well as charitable trusts. Details regarding their sources of funding can be found on their website: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/our-work/annual-reports/.

We expect this would cost around £6bn per year. The cost of funding one year of the uplift is the equivalent of adding 1p on the basic rate of income tax in addition to a 3p increase in fuel duty.

No such assessment has been made. The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic.

There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced with the success of the vaccine rollout. Now the economy is reopening and as we continue to progress with our recovery our focus is on helping people back into work.

Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for UC claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; we have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job; and introduced Restart which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to UC claimants who are unemployed for a year. Our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.

It is vital that the voices of disabled people are at the centre of health and disability policy development. Over the past 18 months I have personally led a series of events in which I have heard directly from disabled people about their lived experiences with the benefits system. The forthcoming Health and Disability Green Paper will reflect themes coming out of those conversations and ask for views on how best to address them.

Given the necessary focus on the departmental response to Covid-19, we are working to a longer timescale than previously anticipated. We will continue the engagement with disabled people and their representatives and plan to publish the formal consultation document in the coming months.

The Department is committed to delivering an improved benefit system for claimants that are nearing the end of their lives and is working across Government to bring forward proposals following the evaluation. The Department remains committed to implementing the key areas identified in the evaluation and will announce the outcome in due course.

On 18 March 2003 the UK government formally recognised that British Sign Language (BSL) is a language in its own right. Provision for accessing services by users of BSL are covered by the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty.

Existing equality legislation already means employers, service providers and public bodies have to provide services in BSL and other formats when it is reasonable to do so. The Public Sector Equality Duty requires public bodies, when carrying out their functions, to have due regard to the needs of a range of protected characteristics, including disability.

The Department is committed to delivering an improved benefit system for claimants that are nearing the end of their lives and is working across Government to bring forward proposals following the evaluation. I remain committed to implementing the key areas identified in the evaluation; a consensus to change the six-month rule; improving ​consistency with other services used by people nearing the end of their lives; and raising awareness of the support that is available.

The Department is committed to delivering an improved benefit system for claimants that are nearing the end of their lives and is working across Government to bring forward proposals following the evaluation. I remain committed to implementing the key areas identified in the evaluation; a consensus to change the six-month rule; improving ​consistency with other services used by people nearing the end of their lives; and raising awareness of the support that is available.

The Department will respond to the written request from Canada for a reciprocal social security agreement in due course.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on 09 February to question number 149299.

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) places duties on employers, the self-employed and people in control of work premises (the Responsible Person) to report certain workplace injuries, occupational diseases and specified dangerous occurrences (near misses).

The timescales for submitting reports under RIDDOR are contained within Schedule 1 to the regulation. In respect of injuries, fatalities and dangerous occurrences the responsible person must notify the relevant enforcing authority of the reportable incident by the quickest practicable means without delay; and send a report of that incident in an approved manner to the relevant enforcing authority (the Health and Safety Executive) within 10 days of the incident occurring.

Should there be either a failure or significant delay in a report being made by the responsible person, then the Enforcing Authority would include this factor as a line of enquiry in any subsequent investigation.

Failure to report under RIDDOR is a criminal offence and the responsible person can be sentenced in the Magistrates’ Court with a fine up to £20,000, or in the Crown Court with an unlimited fine.

This Government has a strong safety net that helps people who are facing hardship and are unable to support themselves financially. We have taken steps to strengthen that safety net so that people are supported to do the right thing where they are required to self-isolate. We have extended eligibility for SSP, and made it payable from day 1 – rather than day 4 – for employees who are sick or need to self-isolate because of covid-19. Employers can choose to pay more than SSP and many do.

SSP is just one part of our welfare safety net and our wider government offer to support people in times of need. Where an individual’s income is reduced while off work sick and they require further financial support they may be able to claim Universal Credit and new style Employment and Support Allowance, depending on individual circumstances. Working people on low incomes who are required to remain at home by NHS Test and Trace to help stop the spread of the virus and cannot work from home could be eligible for a £500 payment to financially support them while self-isolating.

Background

• SSP is paid entirely by the employer at £95.85 per week for up to 28 weeks.
• Approximately 60% of employees receive more than the statutory minimum from their employer.
• If an individual claims Universal Credit while receiving SSP their SSP will be taken into account when calculating their Universal Credit.
• We have strengthened our wider safety net by temporarily increasing the standard allowance of Universal Credit by the equivalent of £20 per week, meaning that claimants will be up to £1,040 better off for the 20/21 tax year.

We are focused on transforming the PIP claimant journey overall to provide a more streamlined and user-friendly approach. We are committed to providing a digital channel - “PIP Apply” - to widen claimants’ choices on how to make a new claim for PIP. Using the digital channel is optional and we will ensure we provide effective alternatives for those who are unable or prefer not to use our online services. We are aiming to provide this service by the end of the year.

Face-to-face assessments for health and disability related benefits continue to be suspended since 17 March. This temporary suspension was brought in to protect vulnerable people (and assessment centre staff) from unnecessary risk of exposure to COVID-19. We are regularly reviewing this position in line with public health advice, and will also review our estates requirements as part of this work.

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment providers are responsible for supplying their own estate. Whilst the use of the Storiel venue has been a temporary arrangement, Capita has confirmed that it is suitable for use as it meets all contractual requirements in terms of size, location and access. The department is exploring options for securing a long term lease with a view to this becoming a more permanent fixture in the future.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have commissioned the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Dementia Intelligence Network to investigate the underlying variation in dementia diagnosis rates in specific areas in England. This will include a focus on social and economic deprivation; rurality; demographic characteristics including age, ethnicity and educational attainment; and general health and life expectancy.

In 2021, factsheets were published to encourage local conversations to understand patterns and potential reasons for any trends in dementia diagnosis rates and identifying specific areas for support. In 2021/22, we also provided £17 million to clinical commissioning groups to address the needs of those waiting for diagnosis and those who have a diagnosis but are unable to access support services due to the pandemic. We will set out plans for dementia in England for the next 10 years later this year, which will include a focus on dementia diagnosis.

The Department funds research into rare genetic conditions, such as Usher Syndrome, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Funding is not usually ring-fenced for specific topics, with applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition and awards made based on the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. The UK Rare Diseases Framework aims to meet the needs of patients with rare diseases, including Usher Syndrome. Each United Kingdom nation has committed to publish an action plan by the end of 2022, outlining how the Framework will be implemented. England and Northern Ireland have recently published action plans, with those from Scotland and Wales to follow later this year.

Data from Cancer Alliances in March 2021 showed that approximately 83% of all cancer multi-disciplinary teams had implemented Personalised Care and Support Planning based on Holistic Needs Assessments. This will ensure that all cancer patients, including those with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, are empowered to self-manage their care where appropriate and providing a route back into the system if they notice any worrying changes or need to seek help.

The National Health Service is supporting adults experiencing cancer with access to Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) mental health services. IAPT services provide evidence-based psychological therapies for people with anxiety disorders and depression. IAPT Long Term Condition pathways have been identified as a priority to support integration of mental health and physical health services for people with co-morbid long-term conditions, such as cancer.

The Government accepted the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s advice to offer a further booster dose to those aged 75 years old and over, residents in care homes for older adults and the immunosuppressed. The UK Health Security Agency’s data shows that as of 10 April 2022, more than 1.3 million people aged 75 years old and over and more than 35,000 immunosuppressed people in England have received at least three doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

Vaccination appointments are available via NHS.UK or 119. Hundreds of walk-in centres are also available to those eligible without an appointment. In addition, local National Health Service teams are also offering vaccinations in care homes.

No estimate has been made and there are no plans to ask the National Health Service to recognise this as a syndrome. The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare is the body responsible for providing clinical guidance on contraception, including female sterilisation. As set out in the Faculty’s clinical guidelines, there is no evidence that tubal ligation results in significant changes to hormone levels, nor is there evidence that it directly causes changes to menstrual symptoms or increased risk of subsequent hysterectomy. As such, post tubal ligation syndrome is not currently recognised by professional bodies in their clinical guidance. Any woman experiencing complications following surgery should seek advice from their general practitioner.

The UK has responded to requests by the Greek Government to provide specific humanitarian goods for the migrants affected by the Moria fires. UK support will help nearly 2,000 vulnerable families prepare, cook and serve food, and solar lanterns will help people to stay safe. We will work with our partners to ensure these supplies are fairly distributed and reach those most in need.

The UK has been clear that those responsible for serious human rights violations should be held to account. We will continue to shine a spotlight on gross human rights violations committed by the Myanmar Military across the country. This includes horrific violence against children. The UK has been at the forefront of international demands for accountability. We have used our role on the UN Security Council to increase international attention on the Rohingya crisis and continue to lead calls for accountability. On 23 June, I spoke to the Myanmar Minister for International Cooperation. I encouraged Myanmar to continue to engage with the International Court of Justice process in a transparent way. The UK has worked with partners to try and implement the Fact Finding Mission recommendations, including establishing the UN Independent Investigative Mechanism on Myanmar to collect and preserve evidence of atrocities. On 6 July, the UK's Global Human Rights sanction regime (GHR) listed the Myanmar military's Commander-in-Chief and Deputy Commander-in-Chief, for overseeing the systematic and brutal violence against the Rohingya and other minorities, as set out in the Independent Fact Finding Mission Report. This is in addition to the sanctions which the UK secured through the EU, against 14 members of the Myanmar military responsible for serious human rights violations.

The UK is committed to protecting the most vulnerable populations around the globe including the Rohingya, and especially children. We work with humanitarian partners such as UNICEF in the Rohingya response to deliver robust child protection systems. UK aid is helping run community-based child protection and child-friendly centres in the Rohingya camps and supporting 3,000 children living with foster families, including victims of trafficking, to receive cash assistance, case management and psycho-social support. Improving access to and quality of education also remains a priority, including the roll out and expansion of the Myanmar curriculum.

Difficult decisions have been necessary to identify the savings needed to ensure we meet the 0.7 per cent commitment this year. The Foreign Secretary chaired a review process across government looking at all strands of the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget, evaluating the impacts of spend and making sure the UK can maintain operational capacity. This process also has made sure there is continued support for five ODA priorities; bottom billion poverty reduction, climate change, girls' education, COVID-19 and Britain as a force for good.

The Chancellor continues to engage with G7 partners and International Financial Institutions on progressing current and future support to Ukraine. This includes a G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting held on 1 March with the Ukrainian Finance Minister.

Alongside our allies, we’ve hit Russia with the most severe package of sanctions it has ever seen and our economic and humanitarian support to Ukraine now totals around £400 million. This includes USD$100 million of funding to Ukraine through the World Bank Multi-Donor Trust Fund and that we stand ready to provide USD$500 million in loan guarantees to support Multilateral Development Bank lending. This support has also enabled a package to be agreed on 8 March of over $700m for direct fiscal support to Ukraine via the World Bank, to help mitigate direct economic impacts.

In recognition of high prices at the pump and the fact that fuel represents a major cost for households and businesses, the Chancellor announced at the Autumn Budget 2021 that fuel duty would remain frozen for a twelfth consecutive year. This benefits consumers across the UK, and represents savings worth almost £8 billion over the next five years.

All taxes, including fuel duty, remain under review.

In recognition of high prices at the pump and the fact that fuel represents a major cost for households and businesses, including the haulage sector, the Chancellor announced at the Autumn Budget 2021 that fuel duty would remain frozen for a twelfth consecutive year.

A freeze already represents a cut in real terms, providing savings for consumers worth almost £8 billion over the next five years.

All taxes, including fuel duty, remain under review.

The Government already maintains VAT reliefs to aid the purchase of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), including VAT relief on purchases made by local authorities and those made through voluntary contributions, where the AED is donated to eligible charities or the NHS. Otherwise, they attract the standard rate of VAT.

Introducing any new VAT reliefs would come at a cost to the Exchequer and the Government has received over £50 billion worth of requests for relief from VAT since the EU referendum.

The Government has consistently stated that fraud is totally unacceptable, and we are taking action on multiple fronts to recover money lost to error and fraud and, where necessary, take legal action on those who have sought to exploit the COVID-19 support schemes.

It was right to establish the schemes quickly and in a way that they could be accessed easily by the millions who needed support. Given the unprecedented efforts that the Government has made to protect jobs and livelihoods during this pandemic, it would have been impossible to prevent all related fraud.

In designing the COVID-19 support schemes the Government followed the leading practice of the International Public Sector Fraud Forum on dealing with fraud in an emergency context. The dedicated Government Counter Fraud Function and Centre of Expertise re-prioritised its work to focus on COVID financial support schemes. It provided fraud risk assessment support, offered expert counter fraud advice and created data driven tools to Government Departments to help prevent, detect and recover fraud. The Fraud Function continues to offer post-event assurance support to Government Departments to find and fight fraud.

Robust measures were put in place to control error and fraud in COVID-19 support schemes from their inception. For instance, to minimise the risk of fraud and error and unverified claims, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and Self-Employment Income Support Scheme were designed around existing data held on HMRC’s systems.

To further bolster anti-fraud measures on HMRC-delivered COVID-19 support schemes, at the Spring Budget last year, the Government invested more than £100 million in a Taxpayer Protection Taskforce of more than 1,200 HMRC staff to combat COVID-19-related fraud. This Taskforce is expected to recover between £800 million and £1 billion from fraudulent or incorrect payments during 2021-22 and 2022-23. In addition, HMRC has so far stopped or recovered £743 million of overclaimed grants in 2020/21.

In respect of the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, the Government continues to work closely with the British Business Bank, lenders and enforcement agencies to tackle fraud and to recover as many fraudulent loans as possible. This is on top of the £2.2 billion worth of fraudulent applications that were prevented by upfront checks.

As part of the Spring Budget last year, we announced plans to significantly strengthen enforcement activity against fraudulent Bounce Back Loans, including new powers for the Insolvency Service to tackle rogue directors and investing in the National Investigation Service to investigate serious fraud.

For local authority-administered business grants, local authorities are responsible for ensuring the safe administration of grants and that appropriate measures are put in place to mitigate against the increased risks of both fraud and payment error. Guidance for the grant schemes requires that local authorities have assurance plans in place which set out the steps they would take to minimise fraud. Government has mandated pre-payment checks (company and bank account searches) as well as post-event assurance, and a Fraud Risk Assessment.

Where grants have been paid in error, non-compliantly or to a fraudster, local authorities must seek to recover these funds and return them to BEIS. If local authorities have been unable to reclaim the grant, the case may be referred to BEIS under the Debt Recovery Policy to establish the next steps.

The temporary reduced rate of VAT was introduced on 15 July 2020 to support the cash flow and viability of around 150,000 businesses and protect over 2.4 million jobs in the hospitality and tourism sectors. As announced at Spring Budget 2021, the Government extended the 5 per cent temporary reduced rate of VAT for the tourism and hospitality sectors until the end of September 2021. On 1 October 2021, a new reduced rate of 12.5 per cent was introduced for these goods and services to help ease affected businesses back to the standard rate. This new rate will end on 31 March 2022.

This relief has cost over £8 billion and, whilst all taxes are kept under review, there are no plans to extend the 12.5 per cent reduced rate of VAT. The Government has been clear that this relief is a temporary measure designed to support the sectors that have been severely affected by COVID-19. It is appropriate that as restrictions are lifted and demand for goods and services in these sectors increases, the temporary tax reliefs are first reduced, and then removed, in order to rebuild and strengthen the public finances.

Any new VAT relief would come at a cost to the Exchequer and the Government has received over £50 billion worth of requests for relief from VAT since the EU referendum.

The Government however keeps all taxes under constant review.

Biofuels such as liquid fuel hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) may play a role in future off-gas-grid decarbonisation. However, further evidence is needed to consider the extent of this. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will publish a new Biomass Strategy in 2022, which will review the amount of sustainable biomass the UK will have access to, including liquid biofuels, and how this could be best used across the economy to achieve our net zero target.

As part of the Net Zero Strategy, the Government announced the new £450 million Boiler Upgrade Scheme to support the uptake of heat pumps

The Government keeps all taxes under review, and any changes are made in the round at fiscal events.

The Government is considering the merits of extending small producer reliefs to other categories as part of its alcohol duty review. Further updates will be provided in our response to the alcohol duty review call for evidence in due course.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme was designed as a temporary, economy-wide measure to support businesses while widespread restrictions were in place. Closing the scheme at the end of September is designed to strike the right balance between supporting the economy as it opens up, continuing to provide support and protect incomes, and ensuring that incentives are in place to get people back to work as demand returns.  This approach has worked; the OBR have estimated that without the short-term fiscal easing announced in the Budget, and in particular the CJRS extension, unemployment would have been about 300,000 higher in the fourth quarter of this year than the 2.2 million in the central forecast.

The Government recognises the particular challenges that the travel industry has faced as a result of COVID-19. In England travel agents have recently benefited from Restart Grants worth up to £6,000, and can continue to benefit from the £2 billion of discretionary grant funding that has been made available to local authorities in England through the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG). Furthermore, the travel sector is being supported with over £12 billion that has been made available through loan guarantees and support for exporters. In addition, airports continue to benefit from the renewed Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme announced at Budget.

The Global Travel Taskforce (GTT) report sets out a clear framework for the Government’s objective of establishing a safe and sustainable return to international travel, which is key to enabling the sector’s recovery. It has been created following extensive engagement with the international travel and tourism industries, and changes following the recent checkpoint review of the GTT are a vital step in enabling the recovery of travel operators and those whose jobs rely on the travel industry.

The Government has shown throughout the pandemic that it is prepared to adapt support if the path of the virus changes. It continues to engage closely with sectors across the economy, including the travel industry, in order to understand their recovery horizons as the vaccine is rolled out and restrictions ease.

In July 2019, the Government published a consultation on the viability of a Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model for financing new nuclear projects. The responses to this consultation were published in December 2020 alongside the Energy White Paper. At this time, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that the RAB could help secure private investment in nuclear projects and cost consumers less in the long run. The Government is in negotiations with EDF in relation to the Sizewell C project and is continuing to explore a range of financing options, including the RAB model and the potential role of government finance during construction, provided there is clear value for money for consumers and taxpayers.

Furthermore, in August 2020, the Government published a response to the June 2019 consultation on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCUS) business models. CCUS is expected to decarbonise heavy industrial process and gas-fired power stations by capturing carbon dioxide emissions and transporting it via a network of pipelines to underwater stores. Government concluded that a RAB model would likely be the most effective way to provide value for money for taxpayers whilst also providing investors with confidence over the reliability and sustainability of a revenue stream. Government published further updates to the model in February, May and August 2021.

The government recognises that reaching net zero emissions by 2050 will require power to be generated from low carbon sources. As set out in the Government’s Energy White Paper last autumn, nuclear power will play an important role in achieving net zero.

Some energy sources have been excluded from the UK Government Green Financing Framework, including nuclear energy. This is in line with current international market standards for sovereign green bonds, it does not represent an assessment of what the Government considers ‘green’ or affect an expenditure’s eligibility for traditional financing instruments. We will review the framework on a regular basis with the aim of adhering to best practices in the market.

In December, the Government published responses to the consultation on the proposed regulated asset base (RAB) funding model for nuclear projects, which involves an economic regulator granting a licence to a company to charge a regulated price to users of the infrastructure. The funding model could help secure private investment and cost consumers less in the long run. The Government is continuing to explore a range of financing options, including the RAB model and the potential role of government finance during construction, provided there is clear value for money for consumers and taxpayers.

Freeports will regenerate communities across the UK by attracting new businesses, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities up and down the country. The UK Government remains committed to establishing at least one Freeport in Wales and I’d welcome the support of the Welsh Government to ensure Freeports are introduced in Wales as soon as possible.

The Welsh Government is due to receive Barnett in the usual way and it should be for the Welsh Government to decide how much seed funding to provide to a Freeport in Wales. It is also important to recognise that the seed funding is only one part of the offer available to ports and businesses. There are a variety of benefits from Freeports, including on tax, customs, planning and innovation, many of these which will be delivered by the UK Government.

Freeports will be national hubs for international trade, innovation and commerce, regenerating communities across the UK by attracting new businesses, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities up and down the country.

We want to ensure that the whole of the UK can benefit, which is why we remain committed to establishing a Freeport in Wales as soon as possible.

Any Freeport in Wales will be allocated by a fair and open process. The government will not be analysing the merits of any specific locations in advance of that.

We have reiterated our commitment to ensure Freeports policy upholds our obligations under the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The Government recognises and values the vital contribution made by carers in supporting some of the most vulnerable in society.

Carers who are not put on furlough by their employer could be eligible for a number of benefits. Unpaid carers may be able to apply for Carer’s Allowance if they meet the qualifying conditions, such as providing 35 hours of care a week. In order to ensure that carers already in receipt of Carer’s Allowance do not inadvertently stop receiving it because of changes to patterns of care during COVID-19, the Government has allowed emotional support to count towards the 35 hours of care being provided by the carer. The Government has also relaxed the rules on breaks in care. These measures recognise that carers need extra flexibility in the way they provide care during the current emergency.

The Government continues to protect the value of benefits paid to carers while also spending record amounts in real terms. Since 2010, the rate of Carer’s Allowance has increased from £53.90 to £67.25 a week, meaning about an additional £700 a year for carers. Between 2020/21 and 2025/26, real terms expenditure on Carer’s Allowance is forecast to increase by nearly a third (about £1 billion). By 2025/26, the Government is forecast to spend just over £4 billion a year on Carer’s Allowance.

Furthermore, Carer’s Allowance is not the only benefit available to carers. Carers have access to the full range of social security benefits depending on their individual circumstances. Many of these benefits have additional elements to recognise the additional contribution and responsibilities associated with caring. For example, Universal Credit includes a carer element at the rate of £162.92 per monthly assessment period.

Carers will also benefit from the Government’s wider changes to the welfare system to support individuals during the pandemic, worth £7.4bn in 2020/21 according to Office for Budget Responsibility estimates. This includes carers on Universal Credit who will benefit from the temporary increase to the standard allowance by £20 per week.

The temporary VAT reduced rate came into effect on 15 July 2020 and was initially scheduled to end on 12 January 2021.

In order to continue supporting the cash flow and viability of over 150,000 businesses and to protect 2.4 million jobs, the Government extended the temporary reduced rate of VAT (five per cent) to goods and services supplied by the tourism and hospitality sectors until 31 March 2021.

The Government has also provided an unprecedented business rates holiday for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties due to the direct adverse effects of COVID-19, worth over £10 billion, and has frozen the business rates multiplier for all businesses for 2021-22.

The Government keeps all taxes under review, and any future decisions will be made at Budget.

The extension of the zero rate of VAT has been introduced to provide consistency in approach between certain physical and digital publications to support reading and literacy in all its forms. Audiobooks are already taxed consistently at the standard rate in both physical and digital format.

In UK law, a book is deemed to be something that is read or looked at; this definition does not include audio content in either digital or physical form.

There are no current plans to extend the VAT zero rate to audiobooks. However, the Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT.

We continue to welcome feedback on how we can improve our services.

Home Office officials are planning to meet with the 3million group to discuss the feasibility of their suggested approach of using a digital app for this purpose.

The Home Office remains committed to ensuring those who are eligible can apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), including those who are vulnerable, need extra support or are harder to reach.

£22 million of funding, through to 30 September 2021, has been awarded to a network of 72 charities and local authorities across the UK, to ensure important information and assistance gets through to those who are hardest to reach, and no one is left behind. These organisations have helped more than 310,000 vulnerable people to apply to the EUSS already.

Local authorities have relevant statutory duties where looked after children are concerned and we have been working closely with them since 2018 to help ensure these duties are fulfilled in relation to making or supporting applications to the EUSS, with additional funding provided following a new burdens assessment. A child-friendly EUSS leaflet has been shared with our extensive network of stakeholders who support children, including local authorities, children’s charities and the education sector.

Communications to support the EUSS have been live since 2019, with almost £8 million spent on marketing ahead of the 30 June 2021 deadline to reach EEA and Swiss citizens in all UK regions and nations. This activity, which also includes toolkits, assets and information translated into 26 EEA languages, including Welsh, has helped to drive over 5.6 million applications to the scheme to 31 May 2021.

Under the Citizens’ Rights (Application Deadline and Temporary Protection) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020, those who apply before the 30 June 2021 deadline, but whose application is not decided until after it, will have their existing EU law rights protected pending the outcome of their application, including any appeal. Also in line with the Citizens’ Rights Agreements, those with reasonable grounds for missing the deadline will be able to make a late application, with non-exhaustive guidance published on 1 April 2021 to underpin a flexible and pragmatic approach to dealing with late applications.

EU Nationals who do not have status under the EUSS and are not eligible to apply for it, can enter the UK for up to six months as visitors, visa free. However, now freedom of movement has ended, those coming to work or study must prove they meet our entry requirements.

In addition to the immigration rules, any travel to the UK at this time must be in line with the Border Health Requirements relating to the global pandemic set by the UK Government and the three devolved administrations. We urge people to check these requirements carefully before travelling, as entry to the UK may also be denied by Border Force on the basis of failure to comply with these regulations.

Border Force treat all arrivals with respect and consider each passengers situation on an individual basis to check everyone entering the UK has the right to do so.

We have issued instructions to our officers to reinforce the principle; in all cases there exists a presumption in favour of bail.

The Home Office published data on how many people are detained or returned on gov.uk. the latest publication can be found at:

www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-year-ending-december-2020/how-many-people-are-detained-or-returned

The UK welcomes international students and recognises the valuable contribution they make to the UK economy. Students can switch into the Graduate or Start-up routes once they have completed their studies; self-employment is permitted under each of these routes.

The Graduate route, which launches on 1 July, enables students who successfully complete an eligible qualification to stay and work or look for work for two years (three for PhD students), including self-employment.

Those on the Graduate route who establish an innovative, viable and scalable business will be able to switch into the Innovator route subject to securing the required endorsement from a relevant endorsing body.

Students can also switch into the Start-up route. The Start-up route is reserved for early-stage, high-potential entrepreneurs starting an innovative, viable and scalable business in the UK for the first time.

The restrictions on employment whilst studying on the Student route are designed to ensure their primary purpose for being in the UK is to study as indicated, rather than to work.

It is vitally important that we prevent young people from being drawn into violent crime and carry knives in the first place. Raising awareness of the risks and consequences of carrying a knife is an important part of the Government’s approach to knife crime prevention. And there are many sources of funding we have put in place to ensure this education exists for young people:

The Government has invested over £200 million specifically in early intervention and prevention initiatives to support children and young people at risk of exploitation and involvement in serious violence. The Youth Endowment Fund and their National Centre of Excellence are sharing knowledge and expertise with those working with vulnerable children and young people at risk of involvement in serious youth violence.

This funding is in addition to the £22 million Early Intervention Youth Fund which ran from 2018 – 2020 that directly funded awareness raising and education programmes, diversionary activities, tailored interventions, and programmes which aimed to cease offending or reoffending.

Locally we have set up Violence Reduction Units in 18 of the highest violence hotspots whose job it is to bring together police, local government, health and education professionals, community leaders and other key partners to identify the drivers of serious violence, to help them to implement a long term, multi-agency, preventative approach, to stop violence from happening in the first place. We know that a number of these Units are funding education/awareness programmes.

The Home Office is undertaking ambitious work to support all victims of Domestic Abuse, including male victims.

Since 2017/18 the Home Office has provided funding of £160,000 per year to the Men’s Advice Line run by Respect which supports and advises male victims of domestic abuse. Additional funding of £151,000 was provided to further bolster the helpline earlier this year from the funding announced by the Home Secretary on April 11 in response to COVID-19 pressures.

In March 2019 the Home Office published the Male Victims Position Statement which sets out 12 specific commitments to better enable male victims and survivors to come forward and receive necessary support, and to tackle offenders. A copy of the statement can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-unveils-commitments-to-tackle-abuse-against-men

More widely the Government announced £76 million for charities supporting victims of domestic and sexual abuse, amongst others.

Specific advice has been published on gov.uk for domestic abuse victims during COVID-19 directing them to a range of specialist organisations including those supporting male victims. The information also makes clear that stay at home orders do not apply where any victim needs to leave home to seek help if they are in danger of domestic abuse.

In April the Home Secretary launched a domestic abuse campaign, #YouAreNotAlone, to raise general awareness of domestic abuse during COVID-19 and signpost the support and advice available.

Our landmark Domestic Abuse Bill will help all victims to have the confidence to report their experiences, knowing they will be properly supported, and perpetrators brought to justice.

In the meantime, we are continuing to work closely with domestic abuse organisations, including male victim organisations, to assess ongoing trends and needs and to help support them through the period of new measures, building on the progress to date.

Tackling digital crime is a cross government agenda in which the Home Office and its agencies has a key role to play.

The National Digital Policing Strategy 2020-2030: Digital, Data and Technology Strategy was partly developed in response to the pace of digital change and was launched at the Police ICT Summit 2020. The strategy was developed by the Police ICT Company and the National Police Technology Council in collaboration with the Home Office.

Under this strategy, the Home Office is committed to ensuring new capabilities are available to the police to tackle crime in an evolving digital landscape, to cooperate more efficiently and to support their contributions to the effectiveness and efficiency of the CJS. We are clear that technology will make it easier for the public to report a crime and enable the police to make better use of digital evidence as part of their investigations.

The Strategic Change and Investment Board (SCIB), is chaired by the Policing Minister and forms part of the sub-governance of the National Policing Board (NPB). The SCIB oversees investment across the policing system to meet Government priorities. This includes investment in digital technology to drive convergence of police forces towards delivery of the policing digital strategy.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes all aspects of the health and wellbeing of its personnel very seriously; we are working to create and sustain an environment where people feel able to be authentic in the workplace; where people feel respected and able to achieve their full potential.

All military Chaplains have long provided pastoral care to those of all faiths and none. Assurance work in this area consistently indicates that Service personnel have a high degree of satisfaction with this pastoral care – which is always non-invasive, professionally qualified and non-partisan. In addition, all Service personnel can access pastoral care from a variety of sources, including from within their Chain of Command, through the Services’ professional social workers, medical staff, welfare staff and via the various staff networks.

In Defence we encourage and support a number of faith and belief staff networks to support and connect people with each other and help to create a better working environment for our staff. They also play an important role connecting Defence to local faith and belief communities, who often have a strong interest in our work. The Defence Humanist Network (DHN) is a thriving community, led by a strong champion, promoting Humanism consistently within Defence.

The DHN is committed to giving personnel with humanist beliefs the option to talk to someone with a similar view on life, should they need pastoral support. The DHN, working together with the MOD’s Diversity and Inclusion team, have an active ongoing project which seeks to address the delivery of pastoral care to Defence personnel.

The funding allocated to the Royal Air Force as part of this announcement will be prioritised to improve existing accommodation across its estate. No current requirement has been identified for additional accommodation to support visiting personnel at RAF Valley.