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  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22031, whether he has received any reports from UK personnel working with the Saudi military of (a) negligent and (b) inadvertent potential breaks of international humanitarian law.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    The UK is not a member of the Saudi-led Coalition. British personnel are not involved in carrying out strikes, directing or conducting operations in Yemen or selecting targets. They are also not involved in the Saudi targeting decision-making process. British liaison officers have provided information as part of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) monitoring of incidents of alleged International Humanitarian Law (IHL) violations. Looking at the information available to us, we have assessed that there has not been a breach of IHL by the coalition, but continue to monitor the situation closely, seeking further information where appropriate.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of possible links between trafficking of women and girls and the spread of the Zika virus.

    Mr David Lidington

    We are aware of meetings this week in Geneva of the WHO International Health Regulations Emergency Committee, to consider whether the Zika outbreak should be designated a public health emergency of international concern. We are not aware of a connection being made with human trafficking. Were such a connection substantiated, it would be an added reason for taking firm action to eradicate this crime. Modern slavery is a global crime and requires a strong and collaborative international response. The Government’s Modern Slavery Strategy commits the Government to tackle modern slavery by working with multi-lateral institutions, foreign governments, civil society organisations and faith groups. The Government and the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner have been successful in working with other Governments to include a commitment to end modern slavery in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The UK government successfully pushed for a Commonwealth Heads of Government commitment on this issue. The UK was also the first country in the world to bring in transparency in supply chains legislation, through the 2015 Modern Slavery Act, which requires businesses operating in the UK with a turnover of over £36 million to report annually on what they are doing to prevent modern slavery in their global supply chains.

  • Mrs Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Mrs Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Anne Main on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effects of the use of pyrethroids on crops and invertebrates.

    George Eustice

    Pyrethroids are a group of chemicals used to control insect pests in crops. As with all pesticides, pyrethroids are subject to strict regulation and the use of a pyrethroid is only authorised if it will not harm people, will not give rise to unacceptable risks to the environment and is effective against the target pest.

    Decisions are made on the basis of assessments of scientific data. This is a two-tier process. The pyrethroid itself is assessed by the European Food Safety Authority. Products containing approved pyrethroids are assessed by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate of the Health and Safety Executive. There are currently several pyrethroids approved at EU level. A number of products containing one or more of these chemicals are authorised in the UK following a satisfactory risk assessment.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, within what timescale she expects the Common Fisheries Policy objectives to be met.

    George Eustice

    On the Common Fisheries Policy’s principal objectives with deadlines, the UK is committed to implementing the landing obligation on all quota species by 2019, and to be fishing all stocks at Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) by 2020 at the latest.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what work her Department is doing to monitor air quality standards in (a) Greater Manchester and (b) England.

    Rory Stewart

    Defra has eight fixed air quality monitoring sites located in Greater Manchester – at Bury Whitefield Roadside, Glazebury, Manchester Law Courts, Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester South, Salford Eccles, Shaw Crompton Way, Wigan Centre – and one hundred and seventy eight fixed monitoring sites in total across England.

    Many of these sites (seven in Manchester and 111 across England) provide near real-time data on one or more of the following pollutants: nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), ozone, and sulphur dioxide. Data is made available on our website.

    Full details of the sites, including locations, pollutants measured and concentrations observed at each, are available on Defra’s UK Air Website: http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/.

    Data from these sites is reported alongside modelling data as part of the UK’s annual national compliance reporting.

    “

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to strengthen planning regulations in respect of air quality considerations when a planning application falls within an Air Quality Action Plan.

    James Wharton

    There are already strong protections in place to safeguard people from unacceptable risks from air pollution with particular recognition given to Air Quality Management Areas in national planning policy. The National Planning Policy Framework expects local planning policies to sustain compliance with and contribute to EU limit values or national objectives for pollutants, taking account the presence of Air Quality Management Areas. The Framework is also clear that planning decisions should ensure that any new development in Air Quality Management Areas is consistent with the local air quality action plan.

  • Ruth Cadbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Ruth Cadbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ruth Cadbury on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether the Government intends to apply to the EU Solidarity Fund to help support those affected by the recent flooding.

    James Wharton

    The Government will consider an application once the full costs are known. The European Union Solidarity Fund does not provide additional funding to local areas, but simply reimburses emergency costs that the Government would have incurred anyway. For this reason, the Government’s immediate priority remains dealing with the urgent needs of those affected, which is why we have provided just under £200 million to help those affected by the floods to support recovery and repair.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with her ministerial colleagues on distributing UK fines for air quality breaches to individual local authorities or combined authorities.

    Rory Stewart

    The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Ministerial colleagues within Defra and across Whitehall on a range of issues, including on air quality. The air quality plan for nitrogen dioxide we published on 17 December last year sets out the steps we are taking to reduce pollutant levels, including working in partnership with Local Authorities, to avoid any prospect of fines.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will discuss with the European Commission the need for co-operation throughout the EU on tackling the spread of bluetongue disease.

    George Eustice

    Discussions are continuing with EU Member States and the European Commission on tackling the spread of Bluetongue disease, including seeking expert opinion from the European Food Safety Agency on the most appropriate control strategy. Further information on the current control strategy for this disease can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bluetongue-gb-disease-control-strategy and https://www.dardni.gov.uk/sites/default/files/publications/dard/bluetongue-control-strategy.pdf

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  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2016 to Question 21375, what information her Department holds on the population estimates for each of the Environment Agency regions.

    Rory Stewart

    Population figures are sourced from the Office for National Statistics from the 2011 Census for England and Wales.