Environment Protection

(asked on 21st November 2023) - View Source

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to re-introduce environmental protections following the end of cross-compliance in January 2024.


Answered by
Rebecca Pow Portrait
Rebecca Pow
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This question was answered on 1st December 2023

There is an existing and ongoing strong domestic legal framework for protecting the environment, which will continue when cross compliance ends. We have recently consulted about introducing new hedgerow protections and we will publish the outcome shortly. Otherwise, it has been assessed that the gaps between cross compliance rules and regulatory requirements in regard to water, soil and stone walls are either mitigated by regulation such as through generalised provisions in Farming Rules for Water and the Water Resources Act, guidance like the Code of Practice for the use of Plant Protection Products, and standards in the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme. As a result of these, we do not believe farmers will lower standards and there will not be significant negative environmental impacts in these areas.

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