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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the debate entitled Environmental impact of armed conflict, which took place at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 25 January 2023.

The Secretary of State understands that the debate at the Council of Europe raised prominent issues about the devastating effects that armed conflicts have on the environment. The Secretary of State has confidence in the UK’s approach and actions on this issue, particularly in Ukraine.

The Government works with and supports international partners and organisations collecting evidence of the environmental impact of Russia’s actions in Ukraine. The theft of environmental resources is one element of the damage conflicts can cause, which is why Defra has invested £1.5 million to create a grain verification reference database to help identify stolen grain from Ukraine, and £1.1 million to support the collection of timber samples in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.

In June 2023, the UK and Ukraine will jointly host the Ukraine Recovery Conference to underline the UK’s enduring commitment to Ukraine. The restoration of its environment is one part of this recovery.