Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of agroecology to (a) reduce greenhouse gas emissions, (b) the UK'sfood and farming industry, and (c) support a healthy rural economy.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Nature-friendly farming is fundamental to our new approach to England’s agricultural system. We want to create new business opportunities alongside producing the great British food we all rely on, by paying farmers to adopt more environmentally sustainable farming practices and enhance our natural capital. [45117]
Our Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme will be the cornerstone of our new agricultural policy. Founded on the principle of “public money for public goods”, ELM is intended to provide a powerful vehicle for achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero emissions by 2050, while supporting our rural economy.
Farmers and other land managers may enter into agreements to be paid for delivering the following public goods set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan:
Where nature-based solutions contribute towards the delivery of these public goods, they may be funded by ELM. We will determine in more detail what ELM will pay for as we further develop the scheme and are engaging with stakeholders to inform this.
The ELM scheme is being designed collaboratively with stakeholders. We are considering how more environmentally-sustainable farming approaches, including organic farming and agro-ecological approaches, may fit within ELM where these contribute towards the delivery of environmental public goods.
Meanwhile, Countryside Stewardship (CS) provides a stepping stone to the future scheme, paying for environmental enhancements now as area-based payments are phased out.
CS supports Defra’s Strategic Objective of ‘a cleaner, healthier environment, benefitting people and the economy’. Through the scheme, farmers can apply for funding to improve their local environment – from restoring wildlife habitats and creating woodlands to managing flood risk.
We will continue to offer CS agreements in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
However, because CS is insufficient in scale to deliver the ambitious goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan, it will eventually be replaced with the new ELM scheme.
Those signed up to CS who secure a place in the ELM pilot, or join the scheme when it is fully rolled out, will be able to leave their agreements at agreed exit points, without penalty. [45118]
a) The merits of agro-ecology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions:
The Government is committed to taking action to mitigate climate change and to adapt to its impact. Defra is looking at ways to reduce agricultural emissions controlled directly within the farm boundary, considering a broad range of measures including improvements in on-farm efficiency.
One of the public goods incentivised by ELM will be mitigation and adaption to climate change. ELM is about giving farmers and land managers an income stream for the environmental public goods they provide. We are considering how more environmentally-sustainable farming approaches, including organic farming and agro-ecological approaches, may fit within ELM.
Additionally, agroforestry can play an important role in addressing some of the key issues of climate and land use change in England, through the ecosystem services it provides. Tree planting can provide significant carbon storage benefits.
b) The merits of agro-ecology to the UK’s food and farming industry:
Our new approach to the English agricultural system will create new income opportunities for farmers and land managers, by rewarding them for providing public goods and adopting more environmentally-sustainable farming practices.
We know that environmentally-friendly farming and food production can go hand in hand.
c) The merits of agro-ecology to support a healthy rural economy:
Our new ELM scheme is intended to provide a powerful vehicle for achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero emissions by 2050, while supporting our rural economy.
We are committed to co-designing the ELM scheme with stakeholders to produce the best outcomes for both the environment and our farmers and managers.
As we continue to design ELM, we will assess the impact of our proposals on a wide range of things such as the environment, our rural economies, and on England’s ability to continue to produce food. [45119]
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
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 ensure that carbon sinks in the UK are not destroyed.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
To reach net zero we must protect and enhance the capacity of our natural environment to capture carbon. Our manifesto committed to invest in nature-based solutions to climate change through a Nature for Climate Fund, to increase tree planting, peatland restoration and nature recovery.
The UK’s trees and woodlands currently capture 4% of our annual greenhouse gas emissions. We must protect the trees we already have, and plant more so that they can capture more carbon. That is why we committed to increase tree planting across the UK to 30,000 hectares of trees per year by 2025. Forestry regulations also ensure that when trees are felled, for example for timber, they should be replanted and the land restocked.
Our peatlands are a natural carbon sink, but they have been drained and degraded, releasing emissions. We have therefore allocated £10 million to restore approximately 6,500 hectares of degraded peatland, reducing emissions, and will fund further restoration in this Parliament.
Coastal wetland habitats such as saltmarsh and seagrass provide carbon sinks. In the UK, these habitats are protected in some Marine Protected Areas and we are looking at whether their protection could be expanded further. There are also wider measures under the 25 Year Environment Plan to secure clean, healthy, productive and biologically diverse seas.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Office for National Statistics publication of 21 October 2019, The decoupling of economic growth from carbon emissions: UK evidence, what steps the Government plans to take to tackle the UK's status as the largest per capita net importer of carbon dioxide emissions in the G7.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
On 27 June, the UK Government set a legally binding target to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions from across the UK economy by 2050. This made the UK the first major economy to set a net zero target in law, ending the UK’s contribution to global warming in three decades.
The Government seeks to support more sustainable patterns of consumption and production by moving towards a more circular economy. This will help reduce carbon emissions related to consumption of imported goods as well as those produced domestically. Our Resources & Waste Strategy (RWS), published in December 2018, sets out how we will do this. We will also publish an indicator framework for the RWS later this year, which will include an indicator on consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions for England.
On 15 October, the Government introduced the landmark Environment Bill to Parliament to tackle the biggest environmental priorities of our time. The Bill builds on this Government’s commitments to protect the environment set out in our 25 Year Environment Plan. Legislation to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and hosting the climate-focused COP26 in 2020 will keep the UK at the forefront of international work on these issues.
To ensure environmental protection the Environment Bill will establish a new Office for Environment Protection, which will have a statutory duty to monitor progress in improving the natural environment, including on climate change.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department has taken to establish (a) a baseline for existing carbon dioxide emissions from agriculture (b) an agreed methodology for measuring emissions and (c) a pathway for zero emissions by 2050 and a methodology for assessing progress towards that target; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by George Eustice
a) In the UK, agricultural Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions statistics are calculated and updated annually, with the data forming part of the UK’s National GHG Inventory. The UK’s reporting methodology is built on scientific understanding developed through the joint Defra-Devolved Administration funded £12.6m Agricultural GHG Research Platform. As such it accurately reflects and captures UK agricultural conditions and practices.
Government also publishes emissions data online, the most recent update from April this year is available here:
b) The methodology used to estimate emissions from agriculture is compliant with guidelines set by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). This ensures transparency, accuracy, completeness and allows comparisons between countries. Along with 193 other signatories to the Paris Agreement, the UK has committed to using a common approach on emissions reporting, which is vital for robust and consistent reporting of global GHG emissions reductions.
c) On 27 June, the UK became the first major economy in the world to set a legally binding target to achieve net zero [100% reductions] GHG emissions from across the UK economy by 2050, bound by the Climate Change Act. The Act also introduced carbon budgets which cap emissions over successive 5-year periods and must be set 12 years in advance.
The Committee on Climate Change, our independent advisors, assesses emissions data to judge whether the UK is on course to meet its carbon budgets, and reports this progress to Parliament and the Devolved Administrations annually. The Government then has a statutory obligation to respond to this advice, laying out the progress and policies underway to meet our targets.
This week the Government announced that a new independent Office for Environmental Protection will be established to scrutinise environmental policy and law. The office’s powers will cover all climate change legislation and hold the Government to account on its commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
The Government recognises the importance of reducing emissions further in the food, farming and land use sectors. The Clean Growth Strategy and the 25 Year Environment Plan set out the Government’s ambition for how this will be achieved, including through environmental land management, strengthening biosecurity and control of endemic diseases in livestock, and encouraging use of low emissions fertilisers.
This year we have started developing a new emissions reduction plan for agriculture, in which we will set out our long-term vision for a more productive, low-carbon farming sector in England.
Our new Environmental Land Management Scheme will be underpinned by payment of public money for the provision of environmental public goods. Trees and woodland can contribute to numerous environmental goods and services. Activities to be paid for may include tree planting and woodland creation, and woodland management, including through natural regeneration. Trees and woodlands have multiple benefits and can contribute to many of the environmental outcomes we want to achieve, including mitigation of and adaption to climate change.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her Department's plan is for supporting new woodland establishment and tree planting during the transition period from the existing Countryside Stewardship scheme to the new Environmental Land Management Schemes being fully established by 2024.
Answered by George Eustice
We will ensure there is a smooth transition from the Countryside Stewardship scheme to the new Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMs). No one in an existing Countryside Stewardship agreement will be unfairly disadvantaged when we transition to new arrangements under the ELMs.
New Countryside Stewardship agreements, including supporting new woodland creation, restocking and management, will continue to be available in the first few years of the agricultural transition period. Signing a Countryside Stewardship agreement provides a viable, long-term source of income for delivering environmental benefits. The Woodland Carbon Fund and the HS2 Woodland Fund are also currently open to new applications from farmers and landowners who can meet the criteria for funding.
The ELMs will be open from the second half of 2024 and is founded on the principal of “public money for public goods”. It is intended to provide a powerful vehicle for achieving the goals of the Governments 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Public goods that ELMs will incentivise include: thriving plants and wildlife; protection from environmental hazards and mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. Activities to be paid for may include tree planting and woodland creation, and woodland management, including through natural regeneration.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans the Department has to prioritise the role of agroecological farming systems including agroforestry in future farming and environmental payments.
Answered by George Eustice
Our Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme is the cornerstone of our new agricultural policy. Founded on the principle of “public money for public goods”, ELM is intended to provide a powerful vehicle for achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero carbon emissions, while supporting our rural economy. Land managers will be paid for delivering the following public goods set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan: clean air; clean and plentiful water; thriving plants and wildlife; protection from and mitigation of environmental hazards; beauty, heritage and engagement; mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. To the extent that agroecological farming systems enable the supply of such environmental benefits, they will be able to underpin multi-annual ELM agreements and the resulting payment stream.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of the protection and restoration of peat moss in achieving net carbon neutrality for the UK.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
Recently published Government research identified that the emissions from UK peatlands range from 18.5 to 23 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents per year. Peatland restoration is therefore a key way to mitigate emissions and will play an important role in achieving net carbon neutrality in the UK. We will publish an England Peat Strategy later this year which will set out our approach to protecting and restoring peat.
Asked by: Paul Farrelly (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
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 ensure that the UK’s carbon footprint is not exported to countries with weaker targets in place.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
The Government publishes annual estimates of the UK’s carbon footprint on a consumption basis. The latest statistics were published on 11 April and show the footprint for years 1997 to 2016: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uks-carbon-footprint. Carbon footprint measured in this way refers to emissions that are associated with the consumption spending of UK residents on goods and services, wherever in the world these emissions arise along the supply chain, and those which are directly generated by UK households through private motoring etc. These emissions are often referred to as ‘consumption emissions’ to distinguish them from estimates relating to the emissions ‘produced’ within a country’s territory or economic sphere.
As stated in the Resources and Waste Strategy, the Government’s goal is to maximise the value of the resources we use, minimise the waste we create, cut emissions and help create a cleaner, greener, healthier planet. In the Strategy we have committed to measures that will improve resource efficiency, prevent waste and cut carbon consumption emissions.
Climate change is a global challenge. The UK is a world leader in cutting emissions while creating wealth. Between 1990 and 2017, the UK reduced its emissions by over 40 per cent while growing the economy by more than two thirds. We have met our first two Carbon Budgets and are on track to meet the third. In addition, our consumption emissions are falling. Greenhouse gas emissions on a consumption basis fell by 6% between 2015 and 2016; and by 21% between 2007 and 2016.
UK International Climate Finance (ICF) plays a crucial role in addressing this global challenge. Three government Departments (DFID, BEIS and Defra) have responsibility for investing the UK’s £5.8bn of ICF between 2016 and 2021. These investments aim to support international poverty eradication now and in the future, by helping developing countries to manage risk, adapt to and build resilience to the impacts of climate change; promoting low carbon development at scale; and supporting sustainable management of natural resources and reducing deforestation. Between 2011/12 and 2017/18, it is estimated that ICF programmes have reduced or avoided 10.4 million tonnes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (tCO2e).
Energy and trade intensive businesses create particular challenges, where ambitious climate change targets could risk carbon leakage. As the Clean Growth Strategy sets out, we remain committed to carbon pricing as an emissions reduction tool whilst ensuring energy and trade intensive businesses are appropriately protected from any detrimental impacts on competitiveness.
During Phase IV negotiations on the EU Emissions Trading System the UK supported the provision of free allocation as a precaution against the risk of carbon leakage; as the UK leaves the EU our preferred position is to have a UK ETS that is linked to the EU ETS and in that scenario, as set-out in our recent consultation on the future of carbon pricing, we propose to continue the provision of free allocation to industry to help ensure a smooth transition and continued protection against carbon leakage.
Asked by: Stephen Twigg (Labour (Co-op) - Liverpool, West Derby)
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 minimise deforestation (a) in the UK and (b) abroad.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As forestry is a devolved matter this answer relates to England only.
The Forestry Act and the Environmental Impact Assessment regulations afford woodlands protection from inappropriate felling and land use change.
The Government is committed to accelerating new woodland planting and has a number of manifesto commitments to support afforestation in England, including the planting of 11 million trees and a further one million trees in our towns and cities by 2022.
The Government also has a number of schemes to support afforestation including the Woodland Creation Grant under Countryside Stewardship, the Woodland Carbon Fund, and the Woodland Creation Planning Grant.
In January the Prime Minister announced through the 25 Year Environment Plan the support of the new Northern Forest, which will see 50 million trees planted by 2042.
The 25 Year Environment Plan also outlines our commitment to supporting and protecting the world’s forests, supporting sustainable agriculture and enhancing sustainability and supporting zero-deforestation supply chains.
The UK Government endorses the New York Declaration on Forests, which aims to end natural forest loss by 2030, and is a member of the Tropical Forest Alliance 2020. Alongside Germany and Norway, we have pledged $5 billion to support countries that are reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. Through International Climate Finance, Defra has committed £210m in projects and programmes that aim to protect the world’s most biodiverse forests, for example in Brazil, Sri Lanka, Zambia and Madagascar.
Asked by: Paul Flynn (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, who the members of the Government’s official delegations were at all meetings of the International Maritime Organisation’s Marine Environment Protection Committee since May 2015.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
Since May 2015 there have been four meetings of the International Maritime Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee. The United Kingdom was represented at all of these meetings by:
Head of Delegation
Miss Katy Ware, Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to IMO, Head, International Maritime Coordination, Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)
Advisers
Mr. Bennett Ng, Environmental Policy Specialist, MCA
Mr. Jonathan Simpson, Head, Environmental Policy, MCA
Mr. Kevin Hunter, International Relations Manager (Technical), MCA
Mrs. Leanne Page, Policy Adviser, MCA
Ms. Lorraine Weller, Senior Policy Adviser, MCA
Dr. Zabi Bazari, Managing Director, Energy and Emissions Solutions
In addition, the following delegates represented the UK at these meetings:
MEPC 68 – 11 to 15 May 2015
Advisers
Ms. Claire McAllister, Assistant Director, Maritime Safety and Environment Division, DfT
Mr. Godfrey Souter, Head, Climate Change and Environment, DfT
Mr. Ian Timpson, Senior Policy Adviser, Ship Emissions and Recycling, DfT
Mr. Tony Cunningham, Policy Adviser, Climate Change, DfT
Mr. Ben Rattenbury, Senior Policy Adviser, Department of Energy and Climate Change
Ms. Victoria Volossov, Policy Adviser, Department of Energy and Climate Change
Mr. David MacRae, Marine Surveyor, MCA
Mr. Bjorn Emtage, Assistant Policy Adviser, MCA
Mr. Ronald Allen, Policy Lead, Stability, MCA
Mr. Paul Grace, Technical Policy Lead, IOM Ship Registry, Department of Economic Development, Government of the Isle of Man
Mr. Motonobu Tsuchiya, Principal Specialist for IMO/IACS, External Affairs, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Mr. Dimitris Argyros, Environmental Specialist, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Mr. John Bradshaw, Principal Specialist, Engineering, Marine Technology and
Engineering Systems, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Mr. Jonathan Morley, Technical Lead, MARPOL, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Ms. Katharine Palmer, Manager, Environment and Sustainability, Lloyd's Register EMEA
MEPC 69 - 18 to 22 April 2016
Advisers
Ms. Lola Fadina, Assistant Director, Maritime Safety and Environment Division,
DfT
Ms. Laura Marquis, Head of Climate Change and Environment, DfT
Mr. Tony Cunningham, Policy Adviser, Climate Change, DfT
Mr. Edward Donaldson-Balan, Policy Adviser, International Aviation and Climate Change, DfT
Ms. Melanie Pennant, Senior Lawyer, DfT
Mr. Robert Cheeseman, Legal Officer, DfT
Mr. Neil Beauchamp, Policy Adviser, International Negotations, Climate Diplomacy Unit, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Mr. Paul Grace, Technical Policy Lead, IOM Ship Registry
Mr. Martyn Oates, Policy and Research Officer, IOM Ship Registry
Mr. David Balston, Director, Safety and Environment, UK Chamber of Shipping
Ms. Anna Ziou, Policy Assistant, UK Chamber of Shipping
Mr. Motonobu Tsuchiya, Principal Specialist for IMO/IACS, External Affairs, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Ms. Yue Yao, Principal Specialist and Statutory Section Leader, Shanghai Technical Support Office, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Ms. Christiana Ntouni, Specialist, External Affairs, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Dr. Wei Chen, Head of Research and Development, Hamworthy Water Systems
Mr. Ian Timpson, Senior Policy Adviser, Ship Emissions and Recycling, DfT
Mr. David MacRae, Marine Surveyor, MCA
Mr. Andy Wibroe, Policy Lead-Marine Equipment Directive, MCA
MEPC 70 – 24 to 28 October 2016
Advisers
Ms. Claire McAllister, Assistant Director, Maritime Safety and Environment Division (MSE), DfT
Ms. Laura Marquis, Head, Climate Change and Environment, DfT
Mr. Ian Timpson, Senior Policy Adviser, Ship Emissions and Recycling, DfT
Ms. Stavroulla Economou, Policy Adviser, Maritime Climate Change, DfT
Ms. Kim Brown, Senior Environmental Inspector, Defence Safety and Environment Authority - Defence Maritime Regulator, Ministry of Defence
Ms. Samantha Langford-Holt, Marine Environmental Protection Officer, Ministry of Defence
Ms. Lindsey Hibberd, Senior Policy Manager, Global Carbon Markets, Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Ms. Anna Croos, Engagement Adviser, Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Mr. James Luetchford, Parliamentary and Ministerial Relations, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Mrs. Rebecca Austin, Deputy Receiver of Wreck, MCA
Mr. David Balston, Director, Safety and Environment, UK Chamber of Shipping
Ms. Anna Ziou, Policy Assistant, UK Chamber of Shipping
Ms. Yue Yao, Principal Specialist in Charge, Statutory Section, Shanghai Technical Support Office, Lloyd’s Register Asia
Dr. Nagaraja Reddy Devalapalli, Principal Specialist, Strategic Research, Lloyd’s Register EMEA
Dr. Wei Chen, Head, Research and Development, Hamworthy Water Systems
MEPC 71 – 3 to 7 July 2017
Advisers
Ms. Claire McAllister, Assistant Director, Maritime Safety and Environment Division, DfT
Ms. Katie Carleton, Head, Climate Change and Environment, DfT
Ms. Stavroulla Economou, Policy Adviser, Maritime Climate Change, DfT
Ms. Hannah Gray, Legal Officer, DfT
Mr. Gwilym Stone, IMO and EU Lead, MCA
Mr. Stuart Hannam, Principal, EU and International Standards, MCA
Mr. Yue Yao, Principal Specialist in Charge, Statutory Section, Lloyd’s Register Asia
Ms. Anna Ziou, Policy Director, UK Chamber of Shipping
Mr. Wu Shilel, Senior Emissions Specialist, Engineering Systems, Lloyd's Register EMEA
Mr. Ralph Bunch, Policy Adviser, Environment Strategy, Department for Transport (DfT)