Environment, Food and Rural Affairs The Secretary of State was
asked— Air Pollution Geraint Davies (Swansea West) (Lab/Co-op) 1.
Whether his Department plans to monitor levels of toxic air
pollution around schools. (905982) The Parliamentary
Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
(Jo Churchill) Air pollution is at a record low. However, we need
to do more to protect the vulnerable, in particular, and drive
cleaner air for...Request free trial
Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs
The Secretary of State was asked—
Air Pollution
(Swansea West)
(Lab/Co-op)
1. Whether his Department plans to monitor levels of toxic air
pollution around schools. (905982)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs ()
Air pollution is at a record low. However, we need to do more to
protect the vulnerable, in particular, and drive cleaner air for
all. Last year, more than £1 million was awarded to local
authorities under the Department’s air quality grant for projects
specifically aimed at children. Yesterday, we announced more than
£11 million-worth of grants, across 40 local authorities, to
improve air quality; several of these projects were focused on
schools and their monitoring.
Vortex, a company in Swansea bay, manufactures high-quality,
low-cost digital monitors—it has 500 across Hammersmith—which
help to deliver local air quality schemes, with public support.
Given that half a million children in schools are suffering from
toxic levels of air pollution, will the Minister undertake to
provide monitors across the country, to drive public opinion and
better air quality, in accordance with World Health Organisation
standards?
The hon. Gentleman is a very assiduous campaigner on this topic.
Local authorities can choose to monitor outside schools, but it
is often better to target resources at improving air quality
generally. As I say, we gave £11.6 million yesterday, of which
more than £1 million was also for education, following the
coroner’s report on Ella Kissi-Debrah. I would, of course, be
happy to meet the hon. Gentleman to discuss the issue
further.
Biodiversity
(Southport) (Con)
2. What steps his Department is taking to support biodiversity
and rewilding in local urban communities. (905983)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs ()
The Government have a world-leading target to halt nature’s
decline by 2030, and recovering urban biodiversity is an
important part of that work. Through our local nature recovery
strategies, we will identify local priorities for nature
recovery, including of course in urban areas, such as creating,
connecting and restoring habitat to form part of our nature
recovery network. We are investing £750 million through the
nature for climate fund, and I urge my hon. Friend to look at the
range of funding we have available, including the local authority
treescapes fund and the urban tree challenge fund.
Local urban communities such as Southport benefit enormously from
trees, shrubbery and other green spaces that promote biodiversity
and rewilding, but there are strong concerns among my
constituents that Sefton Council is planning to cut back the
greenery along Southport’s pavements and replace it with concrete
blocks for cycle lanes. So will my hon. Friend support my
attempts to fight this nature crime—a potential tree massacre—by
Labour-controlled Sefton Council?
My hon. Friend is a great advocate for this, as Members can tell,
and he has regularly bent my ear about the green spaces in his
constituency. Through our Environment Act 2021, we have a
strengthened duty on local authorities to assess what they can do
to further conservation and biodiversity, and we have placed a
duty on designated authorities to produce these local nature
recovery strategies. We also have that world-leading target to
halt the decline in nature. So I urge him to work with the
council and get it to do more, but it could replace those
concrete blocks with hedges. The air pollution Minister, the
Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,
my hon. Friend the Member for Bury St Edmunds (), would be grateful for that, as there are some
views that that would help to tackle air pollution as well.
(Leeds North West)
(Lab/Co-op)
How bio- diversity and renaturing is undertaken in the UK will be
guided by the convention on biological diversity. Biodiversity
has experienced a catastrophic collapse globally. The United
Nations biodiversity COP15 is shortly to resume. What are the
Government’s strategic goals at COP15? What equivalent headline
target is there to the net zero target at COP26, which is well
understood in local urban communities and across the UK?
I thank the hon. Gentleman for that and for his shared interest
in biodiversity. He is right: we must not just do this at home—we
have to deal with it abroad as well. Biodiversity loss is a
global problem and the forthcoming COP15 on the convention on
biological diversity will be really important in furthering our
work to bend the curve on the loss of biodiversity. That was
agreed at the G7, and the aim of the CBD is to get as many as
countries as possible to sign up to that.
Extended Producer Responsibility
(North East Bedfordshire)
(Con)
3. What progress his Department has made on introducing extended
producer responsibility.(905984)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs ()
The Government consulted on the introduction of extended producer
responsibility for packaging last year, and the response will be
published shortly. We will then consult on reforms to extend
schemes to batteries and waste electronic and electrical
equipment this year, and to end-of-life vehicles in 2023. I am
keen for industries to step up and come forward with schemes
themselves, just as the paint-manufacturing industry has done. My
door is always open to ways to drive EPR forward.
I commend the Minister for moving forward with the extended
producer responsibility scheme, which has the potential to
significantly increase recycling rates for a number of products,
but she will be aware of the potential impact on household
budgets. She has opened the door to speak to industry; will she
also listen to industry about the pace of change, so that we can
get it right at an affordable cost?
Many of the companies local to my hon. Friend have articulated
their concerns and worries—indeed, during a trip to Viridor last
week to look at polymer recycling, I spoke to Unilever, which I
believe has a plant local to him. The forthcoming response to the
EPR consultation will show businesses that we are listening and
working with them. Our initial analysis indicates that EPR will
not result in a significant uplift to prices, but we will keep
things under review and I am happy to talk to my hon. Friend
further.
UK-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement
(Orkney and Shetland)
(LD)
4. If he will hold discussions with the Secretary of State for
International Trade on the potential effect on farmers and
crofters in the highlands and islands of the UK-New Zealand free
trade agreement. [R] (905985)
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
()
Over the past 18 months, I have held regular discussions with
both the current Secretary of State for International Trade, my
right hon. Friend the Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (), and her predecessor,
my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Norfolk (), regarding the negotiating
mandate for the free trade agreement with New Zealand, which
includes protections for British agriculture. Tariff
liberalisation for sensitive goods, including beef and lamb, will
be staged over time.
Mr Carmichael
The Secretary of State’s decision to seek advice from the Trade
and Agriculture Commission is welcome, but the questions on which
he seeks advice all seem to revolve around standards. Important
though standards are, they are not the full story as far as the
crofters and farmers in my constituency are concerned. Will the
Secretary of State encourage his right hon. Friend the Secretary
of State for International Trade to take a more farmer and
crofter-focused approach? This week the Government’s own figures
indicated that that trade deal risks taking £150 million out of
British agriculture.
It is important to recognise that New Zealand has always had
access to the UK market under an existing World Trade
Organisation schedule of around 114,000 tonnes, but in recent
years New Zealand has used only half its quota, because long
before the quota is filled it is unable to compete with the great
UK producers, including those in the right hon. Gentleman’s
constituency.
Livestock Farmers
(Loughborough) (Con)
5. What steps he is taking to support livestock
farmers.(905989)
The Minister for Farming, Fisheries and Food ()
Livestock production is important for food production, the
capture of carbon in pasture and the preservation of some of our
most iconic landscapes. Our new policies—including the new animal
health and welfare pathway and the newly increased farming
investment fund—will support livestock farmers.
What progress has my hon. Friend made on examining the Welsh
compensation scheme for cattle destroyed because of suspected
tuberculosis? I understand that the Welsh model pays the value of
the animal that is destroyed. What plans does she have to replace
the standardised valuations in England, particularly in respect
of prize-winning high-quality breeds?
The Welsh Government intend to move away from their current
practice of individual animal valuation. They are considering and
have recently consulted on moving to a practice of table
valuation, such as we use in England. I understand that my hon.
Friend recently met the Secretary of State, with her constituent
Andrew Birkle, to discuss this important issue.
(Bristol East) (Lab)
Most livestock farmers want to follow the best animal welfare
standards, and consumers need to have confidence in that. I do
not know whether the Minister saw the recent “Panorama” episode,
“A Cow’s Life”, but it shows yet another Red Tractor farm that is
not meeting those standards. What is she doing to ensure better
consumer confidence and to make sure that livestock farmers live
up to the standards that they profess to adopt?
The hon. Lady is a great campaigner for animal welfare and she
and I have discussed these issues many times previously. She is
right to raise the important issue of animal welfare again and I
would be delighted to talk to her about our recently published
animal health and welfare pathway. An annual vet visit to every
farm and direct discussion between the vet and the farmer will
really help at a granular and practical level to bring about the
increases in animal welfare that we all want.
(Penrith and The Border)
(Con)
As with the pandemic, the dreadful situation in Ukraine has
brought food security into sharp relief. Currently, the pig
sector in the UK is still in crisis, with thousands of animals
dammed back on farms and more than 40,000, sadly, having been
culled on farms and not going into the food supply chain,
creating huge health and welfare issues. I know that the
Government have put measures in place and that the Minister is
chairing summits, but can she update the House on what the
Government are doing to avert this human and animal welfare
crisis?
It is fair to say that the dreadful situation in Ukraine means
that food security in the broader sense is uppermost in all our
minds. We must feel very fortunate in this country that we grow
almost all our own grain and are able to be so
self-sufficient—74% self-sufficient in the food that we grow.
That is not to say that we should be complacent. The Government
are working very closely with industry at all levels, with
processors and retailers, and not just in the pig sector.
(Angus) (SNP)
The £150 million impediment to livestock farmers as a consequence
of the New Zealand trade deal is a direct consequence of Brexit,
as are the lack of Northern Irish animals at Stirling bull sales;
the lack of an ability to export seed potatoes to Northern
Ireland and the EU; the tariffs on jute sacks for seed potatoes;
and the nightmare of exporting shellfish. These are direct
consequences of Brexit. Can the Minister give my Angus farmers
just one single benefit of Brexit and make sure that it is not
some nebulous opportunity that has not been realised?
I wish—and I am sure that some of the hon. Gentlemen’s farmers
wish—that the Scottish Government were going with the real
benefits that we are able to make as a result of Brexit in the
agricultural space. In England, we will be able to move towards a
system of paying people for producing public goods. In Scotland,
that option is not yet available to farmers. I will be meeting
NFU Scotland later today to discuss further issues to do with
Scottish farming.
(Cambridge) (Lab)
I note that the Minister did not address the question about the
pig crisis. Pig farmers have been in crisis month after month
after month, and, frankly, the Government’s response has always
been too little and too late. As was said, more than 40,000 pigs
already culled on farms have been completely wasted. It is
becoming apparent that one problem is the failure of the
processors to honour the contracts to farmers. How much more
suffering has to be endured before the Minister does as she has
hinted that she might do and passes this to the Competition and
Markets Authority, so that we can find out what has been going
wrong in what increasingly looks like a broken market?
Only time constraints prevented me from setting out in full what
we are doing with the pig industry. We have been careful to work
with the pig industry in lockstep at all stages and have brought
into play actual schemes that are helping them today. I agree
that the supply chain in pigs is in trouble. I have said that
frequently, and I have started a review of that supply chain—a
serious and systematic review—which may well result in regulatory
change. In the collection of the evidence, we will certainly
refer matters to the Competition and Markets Authority at the
appropriate time, when we have the right evidence. In the
interim, I would be most grateful if any pig farmer or producer
sent me a copy of a contract, which has been very, very hard to
find, as I would very much like to see that.
Food Prices
(Jarrow) (Lab)
6. What recent assessment his Department has made of the impact
of food price rises on household budgets. (905992)
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
()
International commodity prices are heavily influenced by factors
such as energy costs and exchange rates. Recent pressures have
been sustained and we have seen food price inflation rise to 4.4%
in January, up from 4.2% in December. Events in Ukraine and the
effect of that on energy prices are likely to have further
impacts, which we are monitoring closely. Our UK food security
report, published in December, included analysis of food security
at household level.
The cost of living is rocketing and the price of food has risen
by 3.9% year on year. Food banks such as Hebburn Helps and Bede’s
Helping Hands in my constituency tell me that they are as busy as
ever, as more and more people are being driven into poverty,
having to choose between eating and heating. Does the Minister
agree that the time has now come for the Chancellor to commit to
ending food poverty in the UK by including in his forthcoming
spring statement all the measures set out in the “Right to Food”
campaign of my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, West Derby
() to achieve the permanent
eradication of hunger in the UK?
The hon. Lady will be aware that the Government have put in place
a number of measures to help households, particularly with the
sharp increase in energy costs that they face. The Chancellor and
the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial
Strategy have set those out previously. In addition, we have
other schemes such as the holiday activity programme to support
those suffering from food insecurity and additional food costs,
and we have given local authorities additional measures to help
them with those struggling to afford food.
(Tiverton and Honiton)
(Con)
With Putin’s murderous regime wreaking havoc on Ukraine and
murdering innocent women and children, there is a direct impact
on food and grain prices. Ukraine has stopped exports, as have
many other countries. What will the Secretary of State do to
protect grain supplies in this country? Secondly, what talks will
he have with the retailers to ensure that we can share some of
the pain of the costs, which pig and poultry just cannot stand?
Thirdly, how are we going to create greater food security and
grow more grain in this country, which we are in need of?
On my hon. Friend’s final point, we published a highly
comprehensive analysis of our food security, including a focus on
the production to supply ratio, which showed that we produce
roughly three quarters of the food that we are able to grow and
consume here. On his specific point, we were aware of the risk of
these events in Ukraine and set up a dedicated group within DEFRA
at the beginning of January to do contingency planning for the
possible impacts on food. We do not import wheat from Ukraine, or
only very small quantities; we are largely self-sufficient in
wheat and we import the balance from Canada. However, we are
looking at the cost of inputs, particularly for the livestock
sector, such as poultry.
(Ceredigion) (PC)
The Secretary of State will be aware of widespread concern that
the rising cost of fertiliser will add further inflationary
pressures to the price of food. Indeed, I have been told by one
farmer of a quote for £930 a tonne plus VAT for a shipment that
last year cost about £280. What steps can the Government take to
address this crisis and ensure that our food security is not
undermined?
The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. Fertiliser prices
had spiked even before current events in Ukraine, because the
cost of ammonium nitrate is heavily dependent on the cost of gas,
as he knows. We have been working closely with our own domestic
producer in the UK to ensure that it maintains production. Most
farms will now have purchased their fertiliser and have it on
farm for the current growing season or the beginning of it, but
we are setting up a special group with industry to work on this
challenge and to identify better long-term solutions that rely
less on the price of gas.
(Sleaford and North
Hykeham) (Con)
Price rises are having an adverse effect on the household budgets
of people across my constituency, perhaps none more so than those
people who are off the gas grid and must buy heating oil or gas
in bulk. They are not protected by the Government’s energy cap.
Can my right hon. Friend tell me what he is doing and what work
he is doing with BEIS and the Treasury to help to protect my
constituents from bills that may have more than doubled?
I have had conversations with the Business Secretary on this
matter. The disruptions we are seeing, particularly following
events in Ukraine, are having some impact on the supply of
household heating oil for those who are not on the grid. I know
he is well aware of these issues and his Department is working
closely on it.
(Edinburgh North and Leith)
(SNP)
Russia’s appalling invasion of Ukraine clearly drastically
affects Ukraine’s ability to produce grain and many other
foodstuffs, threatening not only price increases, but global
famine and disease spread. Domestically, our farmers are
experiencing increased seed, fertiliser and transport costs, and
the UK, lacking the leverage it once had as part of the EU, is
now a small player on the global market. The Secretary of State
mentioned a food security review and summits. Exactly what
actions is his Department taking to ensure food security in the
UK and stabilise food prices, and what plans are the Government
making to assist developing countries to meet their needs?
Tomorrow, I will attend a special session of the G7 where, with
other like-minded countries, we will discuss some of those issues
and the impact on international commodity prices. It is
inevitable that when a country such as Russia under Putin takes
such steps, there will be some turbulence in the market. It is
essential that the world community shows solidarity in taking
tough action on sanctions, which we will do. It is inevitable
that there will be some collateral damage to our own interests
and prices, but nevertheless we must see that through and impose
those sanctions where they are needed in order to bring the
regime to its senses.
Coastal Communities
(Southend West) (Con)
7. What steps he is taking to support coastal communities.
(905994)
(Eastbourne) (Con)
10. What steps he is taking to support coastal communities.
(905997)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs ()
Coastal communities are key to our levelling-up agenda, supported
by the UK shared prosperity fund, the coastal communities fund
and the £100 million UK seafood fund. Up to 2027 we are investing
a record £5.2 billion in coastal erosion risk management. That
will be invested in about 2,000 schemes and approximately 17% of
it is expected to better protect against coastal and tidal
flooding. It includes a £140 million coastal project on defences
at the Eastbourne and Pevensey coast. We are putting coastal
communities right at the heart of this flood protection
landscape.
I welcome my hon. Friend’s comments. In Southend, we are blessed
with a wonderful coastline, and I am sure she agrees that the
best support coastal communities can have is a healthy marine
environment allowing our fish and marine life to flourish, thus
supporting Southend West’s fishing industry. I would therefore be
very grateful to know what is being done to monitor and improve
the water quality around the English coast, particularly
regarding the reduction of heavy metals, sewage and other
pollution, especially around the north Thames coast adjacent to
Southend West.
I thank my hon. Friend for that question and welcome her to her
seat. How wonderful that she has chosen DEFRA orals to ask her
first question. That is very fitting, because I think the
wonderful never missed DEFRA questions.
She is going to be a great spokesman for her area on this front.
She makes a good case for the importance of keeping our waters
healthy. In terms of fishing, an inshore survey programme of the
outer Thames and the south coast is under way so that we can get
data on the fishing stocks to better inform and help our
fishermen. A recent survey showed that, remarkably, the Thames
estuary, having been declared virtually dead not very long ago,
has made a fantastic ecological recovery to the point that we can
now see seahorses, eels and seals there.
Who knew we had seahorses off the coast of Eastbourne? This is my
perfect moment. I thank my hon. Friend for her answer on the
excellent work that is being done on water quality—that is
clearly of massive significance to me—and on the coastal defence
scheme; Eastbourne is set to potentially receive £100 million to
protect the town for 100 years. But my question is about sewage
and waste treatment. The sea, and all it affords, is our greatest
visitor asset in Eastbourne and highly valued by local people. I
recently met my local swimmers—a very hardy crew that includes
one cross-channel swimmer. They are concerned about waste
treatment because they so enjoy their swimming. What reassurance
can my hon. Friend give them about the new powers in the
Environment Act 2021 that will address this, but equally about
Government-sponsored local action that will improve storm
overflows and surface water, and help to take us from “good” to
“excellent” status for our bathing water?
I am tempted to ask whether my hon. Friend joined the swimmers
with her bathing costume on. I thank her for her work in
campaigning on this matter, which she constantly talks about with
me. I am delighted that we recently confirmed funding for East
Sussex County Council’s Blue Heart project, which she was very
proactive about, to help to reach “excellent” bathing water
status. That very much focuses on what to do about the surface
water and how to separate it from the sewage. That fits fully
with all the work we are doing, as a Government, to make a
game-changing difference on improving our water quality.
(Strangford) (DUP)
In the past, central Government have helped the Northern Ireland
Assembly to address some of those issues, through finance but
also through physical help. Has consideration been given to
undertaking a UK-wide survey of coastal erosion with a view to
taking a UK-wide approach and reinforcing coastal roads and homes
on those roads that are unable to withstand these storms, which
appear to happen more regularly than ever?
We take coastal erosion extremely seriously, which is why 17% of
our flood protection budget is going to be devoted to coastal
areas and coastal erosion. We work very closely in advising and
liaising with the devolveds, which we are always happy to do. We
are updating our shoreline management plans, which will help
inform us, and we are happy to share information with our
colleagues in the devolveds.
Water Quality
(Huddersfield)
(Lab/Co-op)
8. What steps he is taking to improve water quality.(905995)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs ()
We are the first Government to set out our expectation that water
companies must reduce storm sewage overflows, and our Environment
Act includes a raft of powers to support that expectation. We
have almost doubled the funding available for our catchment
farming advisers and have taken action to ban microbeads and
microplastics in personal care products. We are currently seeking
views on further actions we could take in relation to wet wipes,
and will shortly be setting targets under the Environment Act to
further improve water quality and drive action in the coming
years.
Mr Sheerman
The Secretary of State and his team are a very nice bunch of
people, and we have heard a lot of warm words this morning, but
what my constituents want is action on clean water. My
constituents want clean air and clean water. I spoke to Thames
Water yesterday. Leading academics from the University of Reading
tell us that the cuts to the Environment Agency mean that the
agency is no longer measuring how much pollution is in our
rivers. That is a shameful fact. Not one river in our country is
safe to swim in—that is the truth. What is the Minister going to
do about it?
Action is happening on this side of the House, and if the hon.
Gentleman followed it, he would know exactly how much we are
doing. Through our Environment Act, we have taken a game-changing
move to cut down on the harm caused by storm sewage overflows.
Your party, in fairness, never did any of these things. I have
inherited—.
Mr Speaker
Order. We have had enough now. I think 12 years is too long ago
in history.
Topical Questions
(Carmarthen East and
Dinefwr) (Ind)
T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental
responsibilities.(906000)
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
()
The harrowing events following the invasion of Ukraine have
touched us all. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs has received inquiries from many farmers, food producers
and water companies that want to offer help to the people of
Ukraine. We are co-ordinating with the Foreign, Commonwealth and
Development Office and aid agencies to ensure we target those
offers through the right channels.
There has also been some turbulence in international commodity
markets, with agricultural commodity prices strongly correlated
to the price of energy. My Department established a dedicated
team to plan contingencies for this eventuality early in January.
While the UK is largely self-sufficient in wheat and imports
some, predominantly from Canada, we do import certain vegetable
oils from Ukraine. Tomorrow, I will attend a special meeting of
the G7 to discuss these issues further.
The amount of meat imported to the UK as a result of the trade
deals with New Zealand and Australia will vary considerably,
depending on whether it is in carcass form or deboned. Are there
any nuances in those trade deals stipulating that the meat coming
in should be in carcass form, which will not only limit the
amount of meat imported but ensure that the added value of the
produce is obtained here?
There is a convention in the sheep meat sector that these
international agreements are based on something called the
carcass-weight equivalent. That does not always apply to beef.
However, the special agricultural safeguard that operates from
years 10 to 15 will be based on a carcass-weight equivalent
mechanism.
(Wimbledon) (Con)
T3. My hon. Friend the Minister knows how important the Animal
Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill is for animal sanctuaries. Could she
update the House on the progress of that Bill and its timeline in
this Session?(906003)
The Minister for Farming, Fisheries and Food ()
The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill was introduced in June and
completed Committee stage in November. We continue to work on the
Bill, and have added a new pet abduction offence and extended the
primates measures to Wales. We have also consulted on puppy
smuggling. Work continues and I will keep my hon. Friend
posted.
(Oldham West and Royton)
(Lab/Co-op)
It has been two weeks since I submitted this parliamentary
question. Russia and Ukraine account for 29% of global wheat
exports and are significant in fertiliser supply. Cereal, bread
and pasta are household staples for millions of homes across this
country. Even before the war in Ukraine began, we were in the
midst of a supply chain and cost of living crisis, with gaps on
the shelves and food left rotting in the fields. Labour has a
plan to buy, make and sell more of our great British produce, but
what is the Secretary of State’s plan to address our weakening
food security?
As the hon. Gentleman will know, we are working on a food
strategy that will address all these issues across the food
supply chain and some of the other challenges around the food
industry, too. On his specific question, as I have said, we are
largely self-sufficient in wheat production. We import some wheat
from Canada. Most of our bread manufacturers therefore have
British or Canadian wheat in their bread. We have modelled the
impact of the increase in commodity prices on the price of a loaf
of bread, and because wheat only represents about 10% of the cost
of a loaf of bread, the impact is actually quite modest. A much
bigger impact is likely to be the increase in fuel costs, since
the cost of delivering bread is the biggest cost they face.
Many food banks have raised concerns that they may face having to
turn away hard-working families struggling to get by. Some have
reported that donations are down as families feel the cost of
living squeeze, but demand for services is rocketing. It cannot
be left to charities and retailers such as the Co-operative and
others to fight this alone. What will the Government do to step
up and deliver food justice, especially given that this cost of
living crisis originated in Downing Street?
The big drivers of household financial insecurity are energy
costs, housing costs and so on, and that is why the Chancellor
and the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial
Strategy have already announced schemes to try to help households
with the cost of energy. When it comes specifically to food, we
have a household support fund worth around £500 million, and at a
DEFRA level we support projects such as FareShare.
(Gedling) (Con)
T5. Breathing clean air is an essential ingredient in living a
long and healthy life. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is
important that residents, particularly in our urban areas, are
breathing as clear air as possible? What support are the
Government offering local authorities to tackle air
quality?(906005)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs ()
I could not agree more with my hon. Friend. It is a basic right
to have clean air. That is why yesterday we announced more than
£11 million in grants across local authority projects to improve
air quality. We have made £880 million in funding available to
support local authorities to tackle their nitrogen oxide
exceedances and to get compliance. That is on top of the £2
billion investment in cycling and walking and a further £4
billion for making the switch to cleaner vehicles, showing a
cross-Government approach. The Environment Act 2021 ensured that
local authorities have the powers necessary to tackle this
issue.
(Ealing Central and Acton)
(Lab)
T2. I know that as an animal lover, Mr Speaker, you are one of
the seven in 10 who think that breeding mammals just for the fur
on their backs to end up on a coat is immoral, and the figure is
even higher for those against force-feeding ducks and geese for
foie gras, so why are the Government even entertaining the idea
of lifting the proposed ban on these completely unnecessary
so-called luxuries? Can they be true to their Brexit
opportunities and put that rumour to bed?(906002)
We are considering the evidence to inform potential action as far
as fur goes and we are being guided by the evidence. We will come
forward with further information in due course.
(Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
(Con)
According to Southern Water’s own figures, between 27 December
2021 and 6 January 2022, for 236 hours untreated wastewater was
discharged from the Lidsey sewage treatment plant into the Lidsey
Rife en route to the sea. That is 24 hours a day for 10
consecutive days. The final draft of “The government’s strategic
priorities for Ofwat” states that the Government expect water
companies to
“significantly reduce the frequency and volume of sewage
discharges from storm overflows.”
Can the Minister confirm—
Mr Speaker
Order. The right hon. Gentleman has been here a very long time.
In topicals, you cannot just ask the question that was missed out
previously. You have to shorten the question so it is short and
punchy. Otherwise, nobody is going to get in.
Ofwat is legally required to act in accordance with the policy
statement that my right hon. Friend referred to, and the
Government expect Ofwat to take serious action against water
companies. He might be aware that Ofwat called in five water
companies just yesterday to look at what they are doing and their
data, and our new system will tackle the issue.
(Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)
T4. Residents of Newcastle’s west end are sick and tired of
wading through litter. Despite swingeing cuts to Newcastle City
Council’s budget, it found extra money for street cleaning, but
council tax payers should not bear the whole burden. The
producers of litter should also pay, so why has the extended
producer responsibility scheme been delayed? Has the Minister
looked at the impact on Newcastle streets and will she compensate
the council?(906004)
We will be hearing the response to the extended producer
responsibility consultation very shortly. I also highlight that,
within a week, we have the Keep Britain Tidy and Clean for the
Queen campaigns. That is about everyone taking on part of the
responsibility and the extended producer responsibility scheme
will help everyone to do that.
(Newcastle-under-Lyme)
(Con)
I know that the Minister gets regular updates on the situation at
Walleys Quarry in Newcastle-under-Lyme. She knows that the
problem is not yet solved and people are still having to live
with it. What update can she give me? What hope can she give to
my constituents? Can she update me on the work of the chief
scientific adviser’s team?
DEFRA’s chief scientific adviser has been talking to independent
external scientific experts about Walleys Quarry and site
capping, gas management, air dispersal and leachate. My officials
keep me regularly updated and my hon. Friend knows that I take it
very seriously. I get weekly updates and I will keep on applying
the pressure to ensure that we get the result.
(Orkney and Shetland)
(LD)
T6. I remind the House of my entry in the Register of Members’
Financial Interests. I say to the Secretary of State that farming
faces a moment of existential crisis with massively increased
input costs, especially for fuel and fertiliser, which could
seriously reduce productivity in the long term. Will he use his
office to bring together the unions, the supermarkets and other
stakeholders in farming to find a way through so that farming has
a long-term future?(906006)
Yes, we are doing that in fertiliser. We are also exploring
options to identify alternative sources of animal protein.
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