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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people are employed by the Environment Agency in roles relating to diversity, equality and inclusion.

There is a total of 9.66 full-time equivalents (FTE) currently employed by the Environment Agency in equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI). 8.66 are in the EDI national team (2 of which are on a temporary contract), and 1 FTE is employed as a local lead. The role of the EDI team is to implement Defra policies on EDI legislation, as the Environment Agency is bound by the Public Sector Equality Duty, which came into force in April 2011, arising from section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. At the Environment Agency, EDI resources are a supporting function and are fully integrated within all work areas of the Strategic Workforce Plan, to enable better environmental outcomes and to achieve a better representation of the community the Environment Agency serves.