Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many civil servants in his Department have a criminal conviction.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The information requested is not held centrally and to obtain it would incur disproportionate costs.
New appointments to Defra undergo pre-employment criminal record checks. Where a conviction is flagged, appointment is dependent on a role-specific risk assessment. Convictions for the following offences result in the individual automatically failing pre-employment checks and not being appointed: life sentences, arson, sexual offences and hate and terror offences.
Defra has participated in the Going Forward into Employment Scheme for Ex-Offenders and has appointed to posts via this scheme. We can confirm that the numbers appointed under this scheme are currently less than 10. However, exact numbers may enable individuals to be identifiable and the privacy and confidentiality of this information requires us to ensure individuals are properly protected.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of the (a) quality of and (b) availability of the water supply on the viability of the Cambridge 2040 plan.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
At the Spring Budget 2024, the Government published a policy paper setting out its ambition to address water challenges in Greater Cambridge and measures to achieve this. Further information can be found here.
The Government also published a joint statement from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Environment Agency, and Greater Cambridge Shared Planning Service, signalling the intention to work together to support successful delivery of these measures.
Asked by: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department (a) paid in apprenticeship levy fees and (b) spent from its apprenticeship levy funds between September 2021 and August 2023.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The department paid £4,665,652 in apprenticeship levy fees and received £437,478.16 between 1 September 2021 and 31 August 2023. This includes the 10% Government top up.
The department spent £2,644,021.77 of its available apprenticeship levy funds between September 2021 and August 2023.
The data above is for Defra Core, Marine Management Organisation, Natural England, Animal and Plant Health Agency and Joint Nature Conservation Committee, which are collectively included in the Defra Levy Account.
Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress has been made on introducing the mandatory fortification of flour with folic acid to help prevent neural tube defects in foetuses.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We remain committed to bringing forward legislation to introduce mandatory fortification of flour with folic acid. On 17 January 2024, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs published the response to the United Kingdom-wide consultation on amending the Bread and Flour Regulations, which is available at the GOV.UK website, in an online only format.
The Government has notified the World Trade Organization and the European Commission in accordance with international obligations, with a view to making the legislative changes later in 2024.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 February 2024 to Question 13732 on Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Public Expenditure, for what reason funding has been reprofiled; and if he will list all programmes impacted by these budget changes.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Details of the reasons that funding has been reprofiled; and a list of all programmes impacted by these budget changes can be found here (Supplementary Estimates, Budget Regime Changes, Budget Surrenders, page 387):
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will respond to Question 13730 on Environmental Land Management Schemes tabled by the hon. Member for Croydon North on 8 February 2024.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A response to Question 13730 is being prepared and will be provided as soon as possible. I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to Questions (a) 11320 on Import Controls: Disease Control tabled by the hon. Member for Walthamstow on 24 January for answer of 29 January 2024, and (b) 12300 on Export Health Certificates tabled by the hon. Member for Walthamstow on 31 January for Answer of 5 February 2024; and for what reason his Department was unable to answer the Questions within the usual time period.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The answer to Question 11320 was published on 9 February 2024.
An answer to Question 12300 is being prepared and will be provided as soon as possible.
I apologise to the hon. Member for the delay. On this occasion, it was not possible to answer these questions within the usual time frame.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to which domestic destinations Ministers in his Department have attended overnight visits in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government publishes on GOV.UK details of the cost of overseas Ministerial travel, including costs of travel, and on other costs (vias, accommodation, meals).
But as has been the case under successive administrations, the Government does not publish granular detail on Ministers’ travel at home or abroad.
Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to Question 12881 on Food: Imports tabled by the Rt hon. Member for New Forest East; and if he will include in that Answer (a) the reasons for which sealed refrigerated food vehicles entering the UK via the Port of Dover and intended for embarkation on cruise ships from the Port of Southampton are required to undergo biosecurity checks at an inland border security facility in Sevington, Kent and (b) whether a biosecurity risk would manifest itself between the port of arrival and the border security facility.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Answer to Question 12881 was published on 7 March 2024 and I trust it addresses the concerns raised by the Rt Hon Member. I apologise for the delay in responding.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
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 comply with principle (d) of schedule 1 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra designs work and workplaces to adapt to the needs of the individual so far as is reasonably practicable.
Defra’s Health and Safety Policy, and Management System, focuses on the principles of prevention of all work-related harm. Work tasks and activities of the individual are risk assessed by the business using a framework of policies and good practice guidance (based on legislation and Health and Safety Executive legal guidance) to develop safe systems of work. Line managers are responsible for ensuring that work roles and tasks are suited to the individual and that employees are competent to carry out tasks and roles safely and without risk to physical or psychological health.
The majority of Defra workplaces provide a range of flexible workspaces, furniture and equipment to suit the work activity of the team or individual. Bespoke or specialist items are provided if an employee requires personal adaptations for health and safety purposes or workplace adjustments in accordance with the Equality Act 2010.