The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2016 to Question 27251, what estimate she has made of the cost of testing badgers in cull areas; and when she expects to make a decision on testing to assess the impact of the Government’s policy.
George Eustice
Costed options for cost effective surveillance for TB in badgers are being prepared
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-03-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reasons waste reduction, improved resource efficiency and increasing recycling rates were not included in her Department’s Single Department Plan: 2015 to 2020, published on 19 January 2016.
Rory Stewart
Waste and resource management are important priorities for the Government. That is why reducing waste is one of the key aims in our departmental strategy that was published last month. Furthermore, our 25 Year Environment Plan will consider waste and resource management alongside other issues.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-04-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what advice she has received from the Science Advisory Council on (a) causes of bovine TB, (b) methods of controlling bovine TB, (c) risks associated with badger culls and (d) the updated licensing criteria for badger culls; and if she will review the scientific evidence on badger culls before licensing any further such culls.
George Eustice
The Science Advisory Council (SAC) has a high-level strategic role and does not normally advise on detailed scientific aspects of policies. Therefore advice has not been sought recently from the SAC on the causes of, or methods of controlling, bovine TB, including badger control. The Guidance to Natural England on licences to control the risk of bovine TB from badgers was published in December 2015 after a public consultation. The Guidance reflects the advice of the UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer and Defra’s Chief Scientific Advisor.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-04-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether future grants awarded by her Department to (a) universities and (b) charities will be exempt from the anti-lobbying clause in government grant agreements.
George Eustice
The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will continue to follow the guidance set by Cabinet Office in all respects of the anti-lobbying clause.
The current guidance to departments is provided on the Government’s website at the following location:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-06-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to stop the illegal export of electronic and other hazardous waste from the UK to Africa.
Rory Stewart
The UK is a Party to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Waste and their Disposal, which sets controls on the shipments of waste from developed to developing countries. This is implemented through the Waste Shipment Regulations and the UK Plan (on import and export of waste) which bans the export of waste for disposal to non-OECD countries.
The UK environment agencies enforce the Regulations in the UK. They have adopted an intelligence-led approach to identify and disrupt the movement of waste intended for illegal export.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what UK representation there is at the International Union for Conservation of Nature World Conservation Congress.
Dr Thérèse Coffey
The UK is represented at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress by various members of the IUCN UK National Committee (IUCN NCUK). The IUCN NCUK is comprised of IUCN members in the United Kingdom and its Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, and also represents the interests of its Members in the IUCN Pan European region. The Chair and Chief Executive from NCUK are both in attendance at the Congress.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-10-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which animal welfare groups her Department consulted on the new Code of Practice for the use of snares for fox control in England.
Dr Thérèse Coffey
The Government has sought to improve the welfare of snared animals through the commission of snare use research and by working with stakeholders to produce improved best practice guidance and increase its observance by users.
Evidence obtained from the research helped to identify possible improvements to the code of best practice as well as to snare design. Defra worked with animal welfare groups such as OneKind, the League Against Cruel Sports and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, as well as snare user groups to develop an improved guidance for the use of snares in England and Wales.
This improved guidance, which was supported by both sides of the debate, was then used as the basis for Welsh Government designed and owned guidance for Wales and snare user group designed and owned guidance for England.
By taking ownership of this guidance and showing leadership in this area, the snare user groups should be more successful in promoting good practice with their members and changing their behaviour than the Government would on its own.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2015-11-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding the Government has allocated for flood defence maintenance in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17, (c) 2017-18, (d) 2018-19 and (e) 2019-20.
Rory Stewart
The Government has confirmed through the Spending Review that, given the potentially devastating impact flooding can have on communities, Defra will protect investment in flood defences. We remain committed to spending £2.3 billion on over 1,500 schemes by 2021, better protecting 300,000 homes from flooding. Flood defence maintenance funding will also be protected, and a planned efficiency programme will generate 10% efficiencies by 2019-20, with all resultant savings reinvested in maintenance.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-01-28.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the capacity of landfill operators to pay 10 per cent of qualifying contributions under the Landfill Communities Fund; and if he will allow more flexibility in the sourcing of the match funding.
Damian Hinds
The Landfill Communities Fund (LCF) is a tax credit scheme into which landfill operators contribute voluntarily. Information on the impact of the changes to the LCF announced at Autumn Statement 2015 is set out in Reform and value of the Landfill Communities Fund. This document can be found here:
The government has received representations from a number of waste operators on this issue. We are taking views into consideration and our priority is to ensure that the LCF operates effectively and encourages money to be spent in the communities that need it.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what representations were made by the Minister of State for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise at the Pre Competitiveness Council on 29 February 2016, on the EC Circular Economy package.
Anna Soubry
My noble Friend Baroness Neville-Rolfe represented the UK at the meeting of the Competitiveness Council on 29th February 2016.
In the discussions on the Circular Economy Package, the UK supported the ambition behind the Circular Economy Action Plan and stressed that action should be prioritised to ensure ambitious use of voluntary approaches and measures to improve the coherence between existing EU legislation and initiatives.