Tag: Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 19 January 2024.

New law will create a new specific offence for dog and cat abduction.

A new criminal offence for pet abduction has taken a significant step forward today (19 January) with the announcement of government backing for new legislation.

Under the Pet Abduction Bill – a Private Member’s Bill sponsored by Anna Firth MP – anyone found guilty of stealing a pet will face up to five years in prison, a fine, or both.

By supporting the Pet Abduction Bill, the Government is delivering on pledges made in its Action Plan for Animal Welfare.  This recognised that cats and dogs are not inanimate objects but sentient beings capable of experiencing distress and other emotional trauma when they are stolen from their owners or keepers.

Evidence from the Pet Theft Taskforce suggests that around 2,000 dog theft and over 400 cat theft crimes were reported to police in 2020, causing considerable distress for owners and their pets alike. With an estimated 28% of UK adults owning a dog and 24% owning a cat, pet theft is a major concern to the public.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said:

“As a dog owner myself, I appreciate deeply what treasured members of the family dogs and cats are. It is a deeply traumatic experience for both the owner and the pet when they are stolen.

“This vital Bill will recognise the severity of this shocking crime and should act as a deterrent to anyone considering stealing a dog or cat. We will do all we can to support its swift passage through Parliament.”

Anna Firth MP said:

“I am absolutely delighted that the Pet Abduction Bill has passed its second reading, and will move on to Committee stage. As a nation of pet-lovers, it is vital that the law recognises the emotional impact that the abduction of a pet can have, and brings the perpetrators to justice that correctly reflects this.

“Pets are not merely property like a smartphone or watch – they are part of the family. It is not right that the law does not distinguish this and I am delighted that my bill will redress this wrong.”

Today’s announcement builds upon wider work to protect pets from theft, including making it compulsory to microchip all pet cats and dogs in, making it easier for lost, stray or stolen pets to be reunited with their owners and returned home safely.

This builds on the Government’s efforts to enhance our world-leading standards of animal welfare. The UK was the first country in the world to introduce animal cruelty offences and is the highest ranked G7 nation according to World Animal Protection’s Index.  Our flagship Action Plan for Animal Welfare committed us to going even further to protect animals.

The Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill – which is only possible now we have left the European Union – was introduced to Parliament last month and will put an end to the export of live animals for slaughter and fattening from Great Britain, stopping animals enduring unnecessary stress, exhaustion and injury on long journeys.

Since publishing the Action Plan for Animal Welfare in 2021, we have also brought in new laws to recognise animal sentience, introduced tougher penalties for animal cruelty offences; extended the ivory ban to cover other ivory bearing species; introduced legislation to ban the keeping of primates as pets and supported legislation to ban glue traps, the import of detached shark fins and measures to ban the advertising and offering for sale of low welfare activities abroad.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 18 January 2024.

The pesticide will only be used if there is a threat to the crop, and stringent controls are attached to protect the environment.

• The threshold for neonicotinoid use has increased on previous years to the highest level it’s ever been set
• The government is committed to finding innovative solutions to manage pests and promote food production while protecting the environment

A neonicotinoid pesticide will be permitted for use on the 2024 sugar beet crop in England, only if there is a danger as evidenced by an independent prediction of virus incidence of 65% or more.

Emergency Authorisations for pesticides are only granted for a limited period of time, in special circumstances where it is necessary because of a danger that cannot be contained by any other reasonable means, and the use is limited and controlled.

Use of Cruiser SB will be permitted if levels of yellow virus are predicted by an independent model to exceed a particular threshold. If this threshold is not met, use of the product will not be permitted.

This year’s threshold for use is at the highest level it has ever been set. Even if the threshold is passed, further conditions will be applied to minimise the risk to the environment.

This includes restrictions on the crops which farmers can plant in subsequent years in any field where treated seed has been used, and compliance with the stewardship scheme to treat and use seed correctly and to monitor the level of neonicotinoids in the environment.

The application of the neonicotinoid pesticide protects crops against viruses to safeguard food production, while the threshold attached to its application helps protect the wider environment.

The government is committed to moving away from pesticide use and is supporting innovative methods to support land farmers effectively manage pests. Even if Cruiser SB were to be used on every sugar beet field in England, the amount of active substance would still be over 90% lower than the quantity of neonicotinoids applied to crops in each of the years 2012 to 2016.

Sugar beet seedlings and young plants are vulnerable to feeding by aphids which transmit viruses leading to reduced beet size and lower sugar content. The viruses can reduce yields up to 50%, impacting individual growers, domestic sugar production and an industry which sustains almost 10,000 jobs across the country.

More than half of the UK’s sugar comes from domestic production and in 2020, 25% of the national sugar beet crop was lost, costing £67 million of total economic loss across the industry.

Farming Minister Mark Spencer said:

We recognise the damaging impact that an outbreak of beet yellow virus could have on farmer livelihoods. We therefore regard issuing an emergency authorisation as a necessary and proportionate measure.

The product can only be used if a threshold is met, and its use will be strictly controlled. This decision is based on robust scientific assessment and the risks have been evaluated very carefully.

Sugar beet plants are harvested before they flower and do not generally exude through leaves or stems. Given this, the sugar beet crop itself is considered to be unattractive to bees, and there is little risk arising from bees foraging on pollen and nectar of the sugar beet crop.

The Government recently held a roundtable with members of the British sugar industry and environmental organisations during which the industry’s plan to move away from neonicotinoid use was discussed. The Farming Minister urges the applicants and others in the sector to drive forward these plans, including measures to improve seed germination, so that their outputs can be implemented in the field at pace.

The government has also set out actions to increase the use of Integrated Pest Management in agriculture. This includes new paid actions as part of the Sustainable Farming Incentive Scheme, such as an option to move to insecticide-free farming.

These actions will support farmers to increase their use of Integrated Pest Management solutions, thereby reducing the risks associated with pesticides, combatting pesticide resistance, and supporting sustainable agricultural productivity.

The Farming Minister considered advice on this application from Defra’s Chief Scientific Adviser, the Health and Safety Executive, the independent UK Expert Committee on Pesticides and economists.

The UK’s approach to emergency authorisations has not changed following our departure from the EU and the overall ban on the use of neonicotinoid pesticides remains in place.

Notes to Editors:

• To read the statement of reasons, visit: Neonicotinoid product as seed treatment for sugar beet: emergency authorisation application 2024 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
• Defra approved an emergency authorisation for neonicotinoid use in 2023 with a virus incidence threshold of 63% or above; in 2022 the virus incidence threshold was set at 19% or above.
• The decision applies to England only.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 11 January 2024.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has today (11 January 2024) announced the appointment of Chris Tyas OBE as a non-executive board member.

Non-executive board members are senior figures from outside government, appointed to provide challenge to government departments. All non-executive board member appointments follow an open and transparent process, in line with the government’s Code of Good Practice for Corporate Governance in Central Government Departments. As set out in the Code of Practice, non-executive board members are appointed directly by the Secretary of State and are not civil servants.

Chris’ term as non-executive board member will last for three years. The Defra board provides strategic, corporate leadership to the department and has particular responsibility for monitoring performance and delivery.

Chris Tyas OBE

Chris is the Chair of GS1UK, the neutral, not-for-profit standards organisation whose data standards power barcodes and QR codes globally across food, consumer goods, healthcare and construction. Chris recently spent two years as the co-Chair of Defra’s Food Resilience Industry Forum, helping to bring together all parts of the food supply chain during the pandemic.

Prior to that, Chris had a 40-year career in the food industry, working for Mars and Nestle in a variety of roles across procurement, manufacturing, HR, IT and logistics. He has spent the last five years as the Senior Vice President responsible for Nestle’s global supply chain, based in Switzerland.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 9 January 2024.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 4 January 2024.

Environment Secretary announces major updates for farmers, with an increase in funding and reduction in red tape this summer.

The biggest upgrade to the UK’s farming schemes since leaving the European Union has been set out by the Environment Secretary Steve Barclay at the Oxford Farming Conference today (4 January 2024).

The updates include funding uplifts, streamlined application processes, enhanced environmental incentives and support for the roll out of new technology. These will provide further support for British farmers, strengthening supply chains and helping deliver the Government’s commitment to continue to produce at least 60% of the food we eat in the UK.

Under the UK’s agricultural transition, new farming schemes are paying farmers to take actions that boost sustainable food production while delivering positive outcomes for the environment. The schemes are designed to work for all farm types and sizes, with thousands of farmers across England already taking part, and replace the bureaucratic Common Agricultural Policy which saw 50% of funding go to the largest 10% of landowners.

Speaking at the conference, Steve Barclay reiterated the Government’s support for British farmers and outlined the updated offer for 2024 which has been designed using farmers’ feedback and aims to bring more farmers onboard the schemes and facilitate even greater environmental ambition.

The improvements include:

• A 10% increase in the average value of agreements in the Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship driven by increased payment rates, with uplifts automatically applied to existing agreements.
• A streamlined single application process for farmers to apply for the Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier.
• Around 50 new actions that farmers can get paid for across all types of farm businesses, including actions for agroforestry and those driving forward agricultural technology such as robotic mechanical weeding.
• Enhanced payments for ‘creation’ and ‘maintenance’ options to improve the long term incentives for farmers to create habitats and ensure they are rewarded for looking after habitats once they have created them.
• Premium payments for actions with the biggest environmental impact or combinations of actions that deliver benefits at scale, such as £765 per hectare for nesting plots for lapwing, and £1,242 per hectare for connecting river and floodplain habitat.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said:

Farmers do the essential job of keeping Britain fed. That’s why I’ll back British farmers and help support farming businesses.

We have listened to farmers’ feedback and set out the biggest upgrades to our farming schemes since leaving the EU, with more money, more choice and more trust to support domestic food production whilst also protecting the environment.

We’re also making it easier for farmers of every farm type and size to enter the schemes, and I encourage everyone to take a look at how you can join the thousands of other farmers and land managers who are already receiving our backing through the schemes.

Farmers will be able to submit their applications for the 2024 offer from this summer, and the timeline for agreements being offered will be accelerated to help farmers benefit from the changes earlier than in previous years.

The application process will also be simplified in 2024 by enabling farmers to apply for the Sustainable Farming Incentive and Countryside Stewardship Mid Tier through a single application.

Farmers and landowners can be paid for taking a range of actions under the government’s farming schemes, such as actions to improve soil health or providing nesting and foraging habitats for farmland wildlife. The Government has listened to feedback and introduced more ‘maintenance’ actions, alongside improving existing actions, to reward farmers who are already protecting the environment, for example through maintaining grasslands, wetlands and scrub. Farmers will also be paid more for existing actions to maintain habitats, with the price of maintaining species rich grassland, for example, rising from £182 to £646 per hectare.

The offer also includes more actions for shorter length agreements of up to three years to make the schemes more accessible for tenant farmers.

Today’s announcement builds on significant improvements to the farming schemes in 2023, with thousands of farmers already taking part. Around 8,000 farmers to date have applied to the Sustainable Farming Incentive 2023 and there has been a 94% increase in Countryside Stewardship agreements since 2020. This adds to the more than 50 Landscape Recovery projects to deliver large scale environmental benefits around the country.

It comes alongside ongoing support for farmer-led innovation and technology, with the Government committing over £168 million in grant funding to farmers in 2023 to drive innovation, support food production, improve animal health and welfare and protect the environment. This includes the Environment Secretary announcing a further £45 million at the Country Land and Business Association conference in November to fund robotic and automatic equipment and invest in research and development.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 1 January 2024.

Four committee member terms are extended.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 1 January 2024.

From today, households no longer have to pay to get rid of DIY waste at council recycling centres.

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 31 December 2023.

On the eve of New Year reforms for the wine industry, Environment Secretary Steve Barclay today welcomed the scrapping of outdated rules inherited from the EU.

The reforms made possible by leaving the EU will uncork innovation, encourage sustainable practices and reduce burdens for businesses.

In addition to the UK’s longstanding status as a global wine trading hub, with a wine market worth over £10 billion last year, England and Wales have a fast-growing winemaking industry.

Now boasting almost 900 vineyards, hectares under vine in the UK have more than quadrupled since 2000. Viticulture – the cultivation and harvesting of grapes – is now Britain’s fastest-growing agricultural sector, employing around 2,300 people full time with a predicted 50% growth in jobs by 2025.

WineGB also reports 2023 is Great Britain’s largest-ever grape harvest, expected to produce an estimated 20-22m bottles and over 50% bigger on Britain’s previous record year in 2018.

Benefiting from perfect growing conditions in the south of England, English Sparkling Wine has seen a surge in popularity in recent years with 8.3 million bottles produced last year. The home-grown fizz is expected to be a popular choice for Brits to see in the New Year.

From tomorrow (1 January 2024), makers of English Sparkling Wine will no longer have to use mushroom-shaped stoppers and foil covers on bottlenecks, giving producers the choice to opt for simpler packaging to reduce both waste and costs.

Restrictions will also be scrapped on the making and selling of piquette – a lower-alcohol drink dating back to antiquity, made by extracting the remaining goodness from grapes left over after winemaking. This gives producers the option to create new income streams and tap into consumer demand for lower-alcohol drinks.

In a move welcomed by wine traders, the government will also remove the requirement for imported wines to have an importer address on the label, reducing administrative burdens for businesses.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said:

Our departure from the EU gives us the opportunity to review and scrap outdated and burdensome rules that have been holding back our wine sector.

The reforms we’re introducing tomorrow will help our wine producers and traders become more profitable, dynamic, and sustainable – while freeing them from pointless red tape.

Looking ahead to 2024, I’m committed to this government continuing to support our world-class winemakers, vineyards and traders to grow and innovate.

Nicola Bates, CEO of WineGB, the trade association for Great British vineyard and wine producers, said:

We welcome the additional choice that comes from this first phase of actions from the wine reform consultation. There will be producers who are keen to take advantage of all and every option to reduce materials on bottles, so we can expect to see fewer foils on sparkling allowing you to celebrate that bit faster, and with an environmental benefit.

We look forward to working with Government and the Defra team on future consultations, and am sure they will be as constructive as those now being implemented.

Earlier this week, the government announced that businesses will be able to sell prepacked still and sparkling wine in 500ml and 200ml sizes as well as a new 568ml ‘pint’ quantity.

The reforms coming into force tomorrow (1 January 2024) follow this year’s Wine: reforms to retained EU law consultation) on the overly complex and bureaucratic existing 400-page rulebook for wine. The changes aim to facilitate international trade and foster domestic innovation and growth.

• The UK wine market was worth over £10 billion in 2022 in off-trade and on-trade sales, and the UK’s developing domestic production sector has attracted significant global investment.
• The UK is a global hub for wine. It is home to a diverse and dynamic wine sector and is the second largest importer of wine in the world by value.
• In 2022, off-trade sales of still, sparkling, and fortified wine via supermarkets, convenience stores, and specialist off-licences in the UK were worth around £7.6 billion, while on-trade sales through hospitality outlets were worth an estimated £3.5 billion.
• The domestic winemaking sector in England and Wales is by comparison very small, but rapidly growing and developing a global reputation for quality. Production reports for 2022 show a 36% increase in production. There has been a 74% growth in hectarage of vines between 2017 and 2022 (from 2257ha to 3928 ha).

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 31 December 2023.

It is now illegal to breed, sell, advertise, gift, exchange, and abandon these dogs or let them stray.

New restrictions on the XL Bully dogs are now in force (31 December) making it a legal requirement for all XL Bully dogs to be kept on a lead and muzzled when in public. It is also illegal to breed, sell, advertise, gift, exchange, abandon or let XL Bully dogs stray from today.

The decision to ban XL Bully dogs was made following a concerning rise in attacks from these dangerous dogs, with 23 people sadly losing their lives after vicious dog attacks in the last three years. XL Bullies have been involved in many of these tragic deaths.

Owners are also being urged to apply to register their current XL Bully dogs, as the Government takes action to safely manage the existing population of the breed. There is only a month left to meet the deadline when the ban comes into force on 1 February.

Owning an unregistered dog after this date will be a criminal offence, with owners who don’t facing a criminal record and an unlimited fine.

Owners who do not want to keep their dogs after this date should take them to a vet to have them put down.

If owners are unsure whether their dog could be classed as an XL Bully, they should check their dog carefully against our guidance and photo examples of XL Bully dogs to help them decide.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said:

The Prime Minister pledged to take quick and decisive action to protect the public from devastating dog attacks with measures in place by the end of 2023. We have met that pledge – it is now a legal requirement for XL Bully dogs to be muzzled and on a lead in public. It is also now illegal to breed, sell, advertise, gift, exchange, abandon or let XL Bully dogs stray.

All XL Bully owners are expected to comply with the law and we will continue to work closely with the police, canine and veterinary experts, and animal welfare groups, with further restrictions on XL Bully dogs coming into force on 1 February.

The Government has taken a staggered approach to safely manage the existing population of XL Bully dogs, while ultimately banning the breed.

On the 31 October, XL Bully dogs were added to the Dangerous Dogs Act, with owners given two months to prepare for the first stage of the ban.

Since the 31 December [today], it is illegal to breed, sell, advertise, gift, exchange, abandon or let XL Bully dogs stray. All XL Bully dogs must also be kept on a lead and muzzled when in public.

From 1st February all XL Bully dogs must be registered.

From 30 June, XL Bully dogs over 1 year old must be neutered, this is extended until the 31 December for younger dogs.

Notes to readers:

• Leading animal welfare organisations including Blue Cross, Dogs Trust, PDSA and Battersea Dogs and Cats Home have developed a range of helpful resources and free online learning opportunities to support owners to muzzle train their dogs.
• To register an XL Bully, owners must hold active public liability insurance for their dog, have had their dog microchipped, and pay the application fee. Owners will also be required to provide proof that their dog has been neutered. This will be by 30 June 2024 for most dogs, and by the end of 2024 for dogs under one-year-old on 31 January 2024.
• Owners who no longer wish to keep their dogs and who arrange for a vet to put them down may apply for compensation towards this. Owners and their vets will need to complete a form to make a claim.
• Owners can access the most up-to-date information on what action they need to take and when on this dedicated page, Prepare for the ban on XL Bully dogs – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

If the dog is:

• less than one year old on 31 January 2024, it must be neutered and evidence received by 31 December 2024
• more than one year old on 31 January 2024, it must be neutered and evidence received by 30 June 2024
• If your dog is already neutered, a vet must confirm this by:
  • 31 December 2024 for dogs less than one year old on 31 January 2024
  • 30 June 2024 for dogs more than one year old on 31 January 2024

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 30 December 2023.

Every storm overflow across England’s water network is now monitored.