Tag: Baroness Parminter

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the 2014–15 Greening Government Commitments report is in preparation; and whether that document will report on the commitments set out in the 2012 Natural Environment White Paper.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

The 2014-15 Annual Report on Government’s progress on the Greening Government Commitments is in preparation and expected to be published later this year.

The Greening Government Commitments to take action on sustainable procurement and to report transparently on actions to address biodiversity and reducing the environmental impacts of food and catering services are aligned with the 2011 Natural Environment White Paper commitments. Reporting on both of these issues is therefore routinely incorporated in each year’s Greening Government Commitment report, including the upcoming 2014/15 report.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy on legal imports of lion-hunting trophies into the European Union.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

Under international rules set by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), a hunting trophy from an endangered species can be exported only if the exporting country is satisfied that the hunt was both legal and sustainable in terms of its impact on the overall population of the species in that country.

However, in the light of growing concerns about the sustainability of the hunting of some species, including lions, we have worked within the EU to introduce stricter controls on the import of hunting trophies of particular species. These require the importing country as well as the exporting country to consider the issue of sustainability. In this way the import of hunting trophies of certain species from certain countries is currently prohibited by the EU.

We will continue to monitor the impact of trophy hunting and will work with the EU and our international partners to put in place greater protection, including prohibiting imports, if this is shown to be needed.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to address reductions in woodland planting rates.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

£31m per year of new RDP funding will be spent on forestry, with £13m being spent on woodland management and £18m on new planting. By investing in woodlands, Countryside Stewardship will help us fulfil the Government’s manifesto commitment to plant another 11 million trees by supporting the creation of around 24,711 acres of new woodland.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what services they will introduce to replace the advisory, training and assessment services on the government’s timber procurement policy currently provided by the Central Point of Expertise on Timber when funding for its work comes to an end in 2016.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

The Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET) has been in place since 2004 and has advised and trained procurers across the public sector on implementation of the UK Government’s Timber Procurement Policy (TPP). CPET has been educating public procurers to meet their requirements under TPP and guidance will continue to be made available via the GOV.UK website. The certification schemes FSC and PEFC have been recently reviewed and it has been confirmed that they continue to provide Category A evidence of meeting the TPP. Defra is working with stakeholders who may wish to create additional support services for procurers of timber.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish the responses that were received following the letter sent by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Water, Forestry, Rural Affairs and Resource Management to all departments in March asking how each was addressing the timber procurement policy.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

We have no plans to publish the responses from Permanent Secretaries to Defra officials; however, where appropriate, Departments have covered timber under their supply chain reporting under the Greening Government Commitments.

Defra officials and the Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET) have used the responses to the letter sent to 15 Departments, to inform facilitated discussions with Departments. These discussions provided targeted support for effective Timber Procurement Policy (TPP) reporting for managers and leaders, as well as an opportunity to share good practice. For example, a standard set of legal clauses has been developed (in line with guidance from Cabinet Office) for use in future construction procurement projects, to mandate compliance against the TPP and provide for appropriate evidence from the supply chain. Other Departments have Guidance Notes to support the TPP and have included CPET-recommended wording in technical specifications. CPET continue to train new procurers across Government, to ensure they understand how to implement the TPP. This week 30 staff from MoD are attending training.