Every parliamentary written question tabled by Jim Shannon this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 81–90 of 90 · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of recent rends in the level of butterfly numbers, in the context of the results from the recent Big Butterfly Count 2024.
The recently published Butterflies in the United Kingdom and in England: 2023 provides statistics on UK butterfly abundance and includes an assessment of population trends for different groups of species, and habitat type as well as the major drivers of d...
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of salmon stocks in the last 12 months.
The latest assessment of Atlantic salmon stocks in England and Wales, produced by the Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales and the Centre for Fisheries, Environment and Aquaculture was published on 7 October and can be found here.
Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland on changes in the level of rural crime in Northern Ireland.
There is regular engagement with the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland on a range of issues and we will explore opportunities to discuss this shared challenge and options for future collaboration.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had discussions on using farm effluage and sewage for anaerobic digestion instead of importing wood chippings as biomass.
There are anaerobic digestion plants across the UK that generate electricity through the combustion of biogas produced through the breakdown of sewage or agricultural waste. Biomass generators, in contrast, generate electricity through the combustion of s...
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to ensure that Northern Ireland is included in the free tree scheme this year.
Forestry is a devolved matter. Responsibility for tree planting in Northern Ireland is led by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA). Defra regularly coordinates with DAERA. There are a number of tree planting schemes in Nort...
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to discontinue the use of the pesticide thiamethoxam, in the context of its alleged toxicity to bees.
Pesticides are strictly regulated based on the risks and benefits of use. The Government will always take decisions according to these legal requirements and with full consideration of the evidence. This government recognises that nature is at a crisis point across Britain. We will therefore change existing policies to prevent the use of those neonicotinoid pesticides that threaten our vital pollinators.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential future impact of the H5N1 virus on dairy projects.
Through our bulk milk testing, wider surveillance and monitoring of past infections in cattle, we are confident the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) virus strain B3.13 that has been responsible for incidents of influenza of avian origin in cattle in the USA has not been detected in Great Britain. Our national reference laboratory at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) Weybridge laboratory has also confirmed that temperatures used in pasteurisation would be effective in destroying any live virus. The APHA has assessed the risk to livestock in Great Britain from this outbreak of Influenza A (H5N1) of avian origin in livestock in the USA, as very low (event is very rare but cannot be excluded) (Avian influenza in cattle in USA (publishing.service.gov.uk). The Food Standards Agency (FSA) have assessed the risk to UK consumers from HPAI strain B3.13 in imported milk, dairy products, colostrum and colostrum-based products originating from US dairy cattle as very low with medium uncertainty (Rapid Risk Assessment: Risk to UK consumers from Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5N1 B3.13 in US dairy products | Food Standards Agency). The Human Animal Infections and Risk Surveillance group (HAIRS) consider that the HPAI B3.13 strain presents at most a very low risk with regard to spread from animals-to-humans in the UK HAIRS risk statement: Avian influenza A(H5N1) in livestock - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). We do not currently anticipate any impact of influenza of avian origin on the dairy sector in the UK, nor on the supplies of milk. However, whilst the responsibility for animal health is devolved, all four UK administrations work closely together to consider and respond to animal disease threats. We remain vigilant and will continue to use our established systems to monitor for changes in risk through both HAIRS and our Veterinary Risk Group.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with the Secretary of State for the Home Department to help prevent dog attacks on postal workers.
Responsibility for dog control is devolved in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In England and Wales, owners whose dogs are dangerously out of control are breaking the law and the maximum penalty is a custodial sentence of up to 14 years. This includes in relation to attacks on postal workers. Defra is working with the Home Office, police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to help prevent attacks by encouraging responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we will continue to consider whether the current dog control rules are sufficient to ensure communities are protected.
Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of instances of fly tipping in the last six months.
Local authorities in England are required to report fly-tipping incidents and enforcement actions to Defra, which are published annually at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-england. This excludes the majority of private-land incidents. Data for the 2023/24 reporting year will be published later this year.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps with the European Commission to allow the Northern Ireland Executive to allocate state aid to fisheries projects in the same manner as other UK nations.
A key aim for this administration is to reset the UK government’s relationship with devolved governments in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland and EU and therefore look forward to discussions on a range of issues relating to the Windsor Framework, including State aid.