Speeches by Blake.

“Very good. Thank you.”

“Thank you. Moving on, and back to the Secretary of State, assessments of the Government’s progress towards achieving the 30 by 30 targets under the Kunming-Montreal global biodiversity framework suggests that we are significantly off track. What will you be doing between now and COP17 to turn this situation around so t…”

“Yes.”

“I have a quick question for Ms Randall, if that is okay, about the terms of reference of the cross-governmental delivery board, which I believe you chair. Would it be possible for the terms to be published so that we can see how the environment and nature issues figure in cross-Government decision making?”

“The agricultural sector will be very influential in reaching our targets, but how would you say relations are with the farming sector now, and how involved were you in the decision to increase the agricultural property relief in particular?”

“Thank you, Chair, and thank you, Secretary of State, for joining us today. How has your approach differed from that of your predecessor?”

“Is that civil service summer? Finally, you mentioned the OEP and the reaction and response to its report on protected sites in England. It is obviously quite critical. Do you intend to do anything differently as a result of its views on protected sites?”

“Alongside the EIP, can I ask when the 30 by 30 action plan will be published?”

“I declare an interest: I chair the all-party parliamentary group on SEND, and my partner is training to be a teacher. I thank the Front Benchers for the way in which they have conducted this review. I have been pleasantly surprised to see in policy many of the things that constituents have raised with me. How will we e…”

“T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.”

“The shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith), would do well to remember the measly £60 million that the previous Government spent on community projects, and the fact that they were opposed to GB Energy, whereas today’s plan clearly sets out the £1 billion for community projects coming throu…”

“I welcome the Secretary of State’s leadership in restoring momentum on net zero. Will he outline how the Government’s energy and climate strategies will be underpinned by clear delivery plans, milestones and transparent reporting to Parliament?”

“I have a final question on self-monitoring. The EA relies on self-monitoring in a range of different areas, water being one. Are you confident in that as a regime for monitoring or you do think that the EA should monitor more things and issues directly?”

“That is a very helpful and comprehensive answer, but coming back to resources, that is a key question here. It sounds like you are having to use what capacity you have quite sparingly at the moment, given the size of the sectors involved. What support does the Environment Agency need to enforce limits on PFAS emissions…”

“First, to Ms Parkes, I have a couple of questions around permitting. Could you outline the Environment Agency’s current approach to PFAS discharge limits in environmental permits?”

“Sorry, I want to know how the Department is influencing other Departments to fund this area—to put money up front to fund the biochemical, biomedical and public health research that we need.”

“I just want to ask a quick question. I should probably declare an interest in that I used to be a research scientist. What cross-departmental discussions have you had about funding biomedical, biochemical and public health research into the health impacts not only at a cellular level but at population levels, as well a…”

“Do you have a priority for any order in which these recommendations should be taken? You mentioned farming but there is protected sites in there, the marine environment, all these other ones that have been repeated.”

“Is it less about banging your head against a brick wall and more about the time it is taking to tackle these challenges?”

“Yes.”