Tag: Alex Cunningham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her comments at the Oxford Farming Conference on 6 January 2016 on additional powers to internal drainage boards, what plans she has to give local authorities a role in the maintenance of local watercourses.

Rory Stewart

Local Authorities (LAs) have powers to carry out flood risk management works, including maintenance on ordinary watercourses, while the Environment Agency (EA) has powers to carry out work on main rivers. In addition, under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010, flood risk management authorities may carry out work using the powers of other risk management authorities using public sector cooperation agreements. There are some excellent examples of LAs working in partnership with the EA and internal drainage boards, for example in Lincolnshire and Somerset.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-03-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people caught smoking in cars with children present receive a fixed penalty notice and their fine collected.

Jane Ellison

In changing the law we always said the measure of success would be in changes in attitude and behaviour. As with other smokefree legislation, we expect high levels of compliance with this change. Discussions are ongoing with the relevant authorities about enforcement action.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 March 2016 to Question 31014, whether her Department has (a) paid and (b) been issued with any fines for not meeting the aim of achieving good status for all water bodies by December 2015.

Rory Stewart

The Department has not been issued with any fines relating to any aspect of its implementation of the Water Framework Directive.

The exemptions referred to in my reply to PQ 31014 are:

• Article 4(4) provides for extensions of the deadline to 2021 or 2027 for reasons of disproportionate cost or technical feasibility;

• Article 4(5) provides for setting of less stringent objectives where it would be disproportionately expensive or technically infeasible to achieve good status due to natural conditions or the effects of essential human activity;

• Article 4(6) allows for temporary deterioration due to natural causes such as extreme floods or prolonged drought; and

• Article 4(7) allows for deterioration from high status to good status and failure to achieve good status to allow for new sustainable development activities.

The application of each of the exemptions is subject to conditions set out in the above provision.

River Basin Management Plans (RBMPs) provide the framework for protecting and improving the water environment. Updated plans covering the period 2016 to 2021 were published by the Environment Agency (EA) on 18 February.

The Plans for England confirm over £3 billion investment in the water environment by 2021, leading to improvements in at least 680 water bodies by 2021, including an overall target to enhance at least 8,000km of fresh waters by 2021. The EA is currently working with Defra to profile the delivery of this target over the six years that the RBMP covers, and is also working with partners to explore opportunities to deliver more.

The EA coordinates action by water companies, farmers, local groups, businesses and councils to achieve the targets set out in the Plans. These actions include reducing pollution from sewage treatment works, managing water abstraction, opening up rivers to salmon and other fish species, and improving the physical habitat.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-04-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many lifetime disqualification orders have been issued under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in each year since that Act was passed.

George Eustice

There are no central records of disqualification orders issued by the courts under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Each individual court would have the details of any disqualification order they have made.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-05-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the Education Cannot Wait fund for education in emergencies enhances the capability and effectiveness of existing bodies such as the UNHCR and the Emergency Education Cluster and does not duplicate their work.

Mr Nick Hurd

Education Cannot Wait is designed to bring together the expertise, energy and capabilities of different actors, to work together more effectively on education in emergencies and protracted crises. A diverse range of organisations were involved in the development of the fund – including UN agencies, donors, recipient countries and civil society – through a consultative process co-chaired by the UK and Canada. The fund is intended to enable agencies to do more of what they currently do well in the sector, for example through providing support to strengthen the humanitarian education cluster at a global and local level. The UK will continue to engage closely during Education Cannot Wait’s inception phase, to ensure that this objective is fully reflected in its final design and finance mechanisms, and that a wide range of organisations are represented through the fund’s governance structure.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-06-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 14 June 2016 to Question 39766, what proportion of all flights between UK airports and oil rigs were undertaken by (a) AS332 Super Puma and (b) Eurocopter EC225 aircraft in each of those years.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The proportion of flights between UK airports and oil rigs undertaken by the AS3332 SUPER PUMA and Eurocopter EC225 aircraft in each year since 2007 is as follows:

Aircraft Type	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
AEROSPATIALE AS332 SUPER PUMA C1E	54.1%	42.5%	33.4%	28.7%	24.9%	23.5%	25.9%	13.4%	4.0%
EUROCOPTER EC225 (H225)	11.0%	14.6%	17.2%	23.4%	27.2%	21.0%	1.5%	15.8%	21.4%

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what provisions her Department makes for long-term humanitarian funding for children in protracted crises (a) in Central African Republic and (b) elsewhere where aid organisations are inhibited in providing psycho-social support for children affected by armed conflict because of short-term funding cycles.

Mr Desmond Swayne

Since 2013, the UK has committed £58 million to address the needs of Central Africans, Central African children and of CAR refugees. This funding has enabled agencies to support children who have been separated from their families, provide services for girls and boys who have suffered sexual and gender-based violence, to reduce malnutrition, and give children access to education and training. The UK monitors need in CAR and reviews regularly the strategy and level of support it provides.

In many other conflict affected countries DFID is providing multi-year funding to help humanitarian agencies with strategic longer term plans to assist conflict affected populations, including children.

In the Syria region for example, the UK has allocated £111 million to provide protection, psychosocial support and education for children affected by the crisis in Syria and the region. In Iraq, this includes funding to establish women and children’s centres, which provide counselling and support for women, and safe spaces for children to play and learn. In Syria, the UK is supporting children with food, shelter and health. The UK also helped launch, and mobilise international support for, the ‘No Lost Generation’ Initiative (NLGI), which aims to prevent a whole generation being lost to the Syria conflict through physical and psychological trauma and lack of access to quality education and other basic services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what evidence her Department has recently received about wildlife mortality caused by lead poisoning resulting from the use of lead ammunition in sports shooting.

Rory Stewart

The Government is considering the independent Lead Ammunition Group’s report on the effect of lead shot on human and wildlife health and will respond as soon as possible.

The Food Standards Agency has produced advice on the consumption of lead shot game which can be accessed at https://www.food.gov.uk/science/advice-to-frequent-eaters-of-game-shot-with-lead.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) healthy adults, (b) pregnant women and (c) children who regularly consume game meat shot with lead.

Jane Ellison

Government set up the independent Lead Ammunition Group in 2010 to provide advice on risks to wildlife and human health from lead shot game. The Government is considering the independent Lead Ammunition Group’s report on the effect of lead shot on human and wildlife health and will respond as soon as possible The Food Standards Agency (FSA) accepts the expert advice of the UK Committee on Toxicity and the European Food Safety Authority that it is not possible to set a safe level for exposure to lead from food. However, to better understand the potential risk to UK consumers the FSA produced a risk assessment in 2012 based on its survey data from 2007 of game meat samples; Veterinary Medicines Directorate data from the national surveillance scheme was also considered. The FSA risk assessment considered the potential levels of exposure to lead from lead shot game for adults, children and toddlers based on different levels of game meat consumption.

This risk assessment led to FSA issuing targeted advice to frequent consumers of lead shot game in 2012, warning of the potential risks. The advice was promoted as especially important for vulnerable groups such as toddlers and children, pregnant women and women trying for a baby, as exposure to lead can harm the developing brain and nervous system. The FSA risk assessment was published along with this advice. The Government has not estimated the number of people who regularly consume game meat shot with lead.

More generally, the FSA, works on behalf of the UK within the European Union to agree harmonised controls to reduce public exposure to lead in the food chain. EU maximum limits apply for lead in a range of foods and these are regularly reviewed by the EU Commission and member states. These maximum limits apply to all food produced in the EU or imported to the EU.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of whether ending her Department’s funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit would affect the UK’s Commitment to Action on the illegal wildlife trade.

Rory Stewart

An assessment of the effect of future funding decisions regarding the UK National Wildlife Crime Unit on the UK’s Commitment to Action on the Illegal Wildlife Trade has not yet been made.

Decisions on future funding of the National Wildlife Crime Unit beyond March 2016 will be made as part of the current Spending Review process.