theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of training pathways to GP registration in (a) rural areas and (b) general. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme was an initiative that formerly offered a one-off payment of £20,000 to General Practice Specialty Trainees committed to working in a select number of training locations in England that either had a history of under-recruitment or were in under-doctored or deprived areas. It is, however, no longer needed as currently all general practice training places are oversubscribed and, therefore, filled. We will keep the distribution of the workforce, particularly in rural areas, under review.

On 18 February 2025, the Chief Medical Officer and the National Medical Director of NHS England jointly launched a review of postgraduate medical training. The review will cover placement options, the flexibility of training, difficulties with rotas, control and autonomy in training, and the balance between developing specialist knowledge and gaining a broad range of skills. The review will be based on feedback from current resident doctors and students, and locally employed doctors and medical educators, with a series of engagement events around the country starting from this March.
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Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to ensure that waiting times for mental health treatment are no longer than waiting times for treatment for physical health conditions. \p Stephen Kinnock: Too many people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need when they need it, which is why we are committed to ensuring we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.

This includes recruiting 8,500 more mental health workers, introducing access to specialist mental health professionals in every school, rolling out Young Futures hubs, and modernising the Mental Health Act.

We have also committed £26 million in capital investment to open new mental health crisis centres, reducing the pressure on busy emergency mental health and accident and emergency services and ensuring people have the support they need when they need it.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2025 to Question 35425 on GP Practice Lists, whether the Carr-Hill formula has been updated since its introduction. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Carr-Hill formula weightings have not been updated since the introduction of the formula in 2004.
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Sarah Champion:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that policy decisions on children’s mental health provision reflect the full range of evidence-based interventions, including counselling, rather than prioritising only interventions with randomized control trial data. \p Stephen Kinnock: All interventions delivered by National Health Service mental health services are evidence-based and use a range of clinical evidence. This includes counselling services.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines make evidence-based recommendations on a wide range of topics to guide planning, commissioning, and practice across the health and social care system, including for children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing. These recommendations are based on the best available evidence, reflecting a range of evidence and information from scientific research using a variety of methods, to testimony from practitioners and people using the services.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the planned changes to welfare benefits on (a) families, (b) children and (c) families in poverty. \p Alison McGovern: The government's impact assessment regarding Health and Disability Reform is available at Spring Statement 2025 health and disability benefit reforms - Impacts. A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the number of children in poverty as a result of the Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper, published on 18 March 2025. \p Alison McGovern: The government's impact assessment regarding Health and Disability Reform is available at Spring Statement 2025 health and disability benefit reforms - Impacts. A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.
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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the child poverty strategy will consider the potential merits of removing the (a) two-child limit and (b) benefit cap. \p Alison McGovern: The Child Poverty Taskforce is continuing its urgent work and is exploring all available levers, including considering social security reforms, to drive forward short and long-term actions across government to reduce child poverty.
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Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans her Department has to ensure that disabled people who do not receive Personal Independence Payment but have work-related limitations are not adversely impacted by welfare reforms. \p Sir Stephen Timms: We are committed to protecting disabled people who can't and won’t ever be able to work and support them to live with dignity.

As part of making changes to the payment rates in Universal Credit, we are proposing that the incomes of those with the most severe, lifelong conditions who will never be able to work are protected.

We will also protect the incomes of existing claimants, by holding the value of the health element of UC in cash terms and increasing the standard allowance.
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Bobby Dean:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of maladministration payments issued by her Department in the last 12 months. \p Andrew Western: The information requested is published within the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts. Data for April 2024 to March 2025 will be published in the 2024/25 DWP Annual Reports and Accounts in or around July 2025.

The latest published data is for the period April 2023 to March 2024. In the period April 2023 to March 2024, DWP made 10,567 ex-gratia payments totalling £1.3 million for maladministration.

Please note that the total amount of ex-gratia payments for maladministration presented in the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts excludes financial redress paid for loss of statutory entitlement because it is not an extra cost arising from maladministration, but payment of benefit that should have been made anyway.

The average value of maladministration payments in the period April 2023 to March 2024 was £120. This value has been calculated based on the unrounded total payments and unrounded number of payments, rounded to the nearest £10.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people reliant on Personal Independence Payments to access employment opportunities. \p Sir Stephen Timms: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 24 March 2025 to Question UIN39344.
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Neil O'Brien:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the total cost to the public purse of universal credit payments to households containing at least one claimant with a non-Common Travel Area nationality that passed a habitual residence test in each year since 2015. \p Andrew Western: The Department has no current plans to make such an estimate.
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Kim Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what delegated flexibilities are available to her Department for calculating (a) working hours and (b) actual hours worked. \p Andrew Western: Terms and conditions of employment outside the Senior Civil Service are delegated to departments but must be managed in the public interest and in accordance with the Civil Service Management Code, and through consultation with the Cabinet Office and His Majesty's Treasury.

Where a term of employment is contractual, like working hours, it cannot be changed for existing employees other than with their expressed agreement or through collective bargaining with the trade unions.
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Kim Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to support staff in her Department who are employed on Skilled Workers Visas and whose salary is below the new salary threshold. \p Andrew Western: All staff employed in the department on a skilled worker visa have a salary above the skilled worker minimum salary threshold introduced in April 2024.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2025 to Question 38383 on G4S: Fines, what steps she is taking to (a) highlight and (b) report on steps taken by her Department to (i) monitor the performance of and (ii) impose financial penalties on G4S in relation to its key performance indicators. \p Andrew Western: The Department has an established robust contractual performance management regime in place that reviews G4S achievement against KPIs monthly.

The top 3 KPIs achievement are published quarterly in line with Cabinet Office transparency guidelines.

In terms of fines, I refer the honourable member to PQ 38383.
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Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on what basis her Department decided which aspects of the proposed reforms to the benefits system would be subject to consultation. \p Sir Stephen Timms: This consultation sets out plans and proposals to reform health and disability benefits and employment support. We are committed to putting the views and voices of disabled people and people with health conditions at the heart of everything we do.

We urgently need this reform to stop people from falling into inactivity, restore trust and fairness in the system and promote the interests of disabled people. This means we need to take decisive action to tackle a situation in which PIP claims are set to double from 2 million to over 4.3 million this decade. We are consulting on how best to support those affected by the changes. We will also consider improvements to the PIP assessment. We will launch a wider review of PIP, which I shall lead, and we will bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience to consider how best to do this. We will provide further details as plans progress.

We will rebalance payments in Universal Credit, reducing the health top up for new claims and delivering the first ever permanent, above inflation rise to the standard allowance of UC, offering help for people to get into work as quickly as possible.

We will be bringing forward changes in a Bill so Parliament can fully debate and vote on them.
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Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure changes to the eligibility of Personal Independence Payments don't disproportionately impact individuals with fluctuating conditions. \p Sir Stephen Timms: Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, with some information published here alongside the Spring Statement.

A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.

The proposal in the Green Paper that assessments for Personal Independence Payment should be recorded will help assure that the assessments reach the right conclusion for people with fluctuating conditions
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Neil O'Brien:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the total cost to the public purse of universal credit payments to households where (a) one and (b) both claimants are refugees in each quarter since 2017. \p Andrew Western: The Department has no current plans to make such an estimate.

However, the Department is exploring the feasibility of developing suitable official statistics related to the immigration status of non-UK / Irish Universal Credit customers.
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Neil O'Brien:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse of (a) personal independence payments and (b) disability living allowance payments to households containing at least one claimant that passed a habitual residence test in each year since 2015. \p Andrew Western: The Department has no current plans to make such an estimate.
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Neil O'Brien:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the total cost to the public purse of Employment and Support Allowance payments to households containing at least one claimant that passed a habitual residence test in each year since 2015. \p Andrew Western: The Department has no current plans to make such an estimate.
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Louise Haigh:To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will publish the most recent data on the number of (a) unemployed benefit claimants and (b) job vacancies by Jobcentre. \p Alison McGovern: A) Claimant count data for the UK is published and available at: Nomis - Official Census and Labour Market Statistics.

Data on the number of people claiming out of work benefits is published and available at: Stat-Xplore - Home.

B) There are no published statistics on job vacancies by job centre. However, the number of online job adverts by local authorities can be found here: Labour demand volumes by Standard Occupation Classification (SOC 2020), UK - Office for National Statistics
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on steps to ensure that offences of (a) reckless and (b) negligent behaviour which causes harm to wildlife are appropriately dealt with. \p Mary Creagh: The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Ministry of Justice colleagues on a range of issues.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has plans to introduce soil management requirements for solar farm developments. \p Mary Creagh: Defra has no plans to introduce soil management requirements for solar farm developments. However, Biodiversity Net Gain and other mechanisms will influence how the soil/land is managed over the lifespan of the panels after construction.

When considering development proposals that affect agricultural land and soils, the Government also encourages developers and local planning authorities to refer to relevant Government policies and guidance that aim to protect all soils by managing them in a sustainable way.
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Alex Easton:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the Extender Producer Responsibility fee structure on the glass packaging industry; and whether he has considered adopting a units-based metric. \p Mary Creagh: Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging (EPR) will move the cost of dealing with household packaging waste away from taxpayers and onto the packaging producers (applying the ‘polluter pays principle’). This will give producers responsibility for the costs of the packaging they use throughout its life cycle, encouraging businesses to reduce their use of packaging and use packaging which is easier to recycle and reuse.

The Government is not currently considering the adoption of a units-based metric for EPR fees. Extender Producer Responsibility disposal fees for packaging are calculated in £ per tonne of household packaging placed on the market in accordance with the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024. Whilst producers report the packaging they supply on a weight basis, the costs for managing different material types, such as glass, are apportioned according to relevant cost drivers for their collection and management, including the volume of the container in bins and collection vehicles. This ensures the fair apportionment of costs between material types in line with the regulations.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of launching a review of animal testing in the UK. \p Daniel Zeichner: The Government is committed to supporting the uptake and development of alternative methods to the use of animals in science.

The Labour Manifesto includes a commitment to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”, which is a long-term goal, and will likely take many years of scientific and technical advancement and validation to reach this point. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is leading on the delivery of this commitment.

Our current approach is to support and fund the development and dissemination of techniques that replace, reduce and refine the use of animals in research (the 3Rs), and to ensure that the UK has a robust regulatory system for licensing animal studies and enforcing legal standards.

In line with the Government’s Manifesto commitment, DSIT is currently engaging with partners from sectors with interests in animal science and on a cross-Government level as to how we will take this commitment forward, including the publishing of a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods. The Government expects to publish this strategy later this year.
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Patrick Spencer:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with the (a) Country Land and Business Association, (b) National Farmer's Union, (c) Tenant Farmers Association and (d) other industry bodies to help support working farms. \p Daniel Zeichner: The Government is working to ensure farming becomes more profitable. That is the best way to make farming businesses viable for the future and ensure the long-term food security this country needs.

We regularly meet and discuss Defra’s policies with a range of farming stakeholders, including the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), the National Farmers Union (NFU), and the Tenant Farmers Association (TFA). Since appointment, the Secretary of State has spoken at 4 farming conferences, and had 5 meetings with the CLA, 7 with the NFU and 13 with other organisations.

We will continue to listen to farmers’ concerns to ensure their views are heard.
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Dan Norris:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with authorities responsible for local nature recovery strategies on the land use framework consultation. \p Mary Creagh: The consultation on Land Use in England is underway and the outcome will inform the publication of a Land Use Framework planned for later this year. Many of the authorities responsible for Local Nature Recovery Strategies were involved in discussions that informed the proposals and questions in the Land Use Consultation

During the consultation period, Government officials will be consulting with a wide range of respondents, including authorities responsible for Local Nature Recovery Strategies.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2025 to Question 26637 on Food: Insects, what his policy is on the use of insect-based novel foods for human consumption to deliver net zero goals. \p Daniel Zeichner: Defra is currently undertaking research on the insect bioconversion industry, including a life-cycle assessment to better understand the environmental impacts of using insect protein in pig and poultry feeds.
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Tim Farron:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people have applied for the Improving Farming Productivity Grant; how many of those applications were successful; and how much has been paid out per (a) grant category and (b) round. \p Daniel Zeichner: The total number of full applications received for Improving Farm Productivity to-date is 413. Of those appraised, 204 have been offered a grant to the value of over £23 million, 84 applications have been rejected or withdrawn, and 125 are currently in appraisal. A total of over £11 million has been paid out from the scheme to-date across both rounds; £9.4 million from Round 1 applications, and £1.6 million from Round 2. All applications in Round 1 were for robotic equipment, whereas in Round 2 £1.5 million has been paid out for solar projects, and £31,000 for robotic and automatic equipment. We do not currently categorise applications in any greater detail. Successful applicants can make up to three claims once they have a Grant Funding Agreement in place but can claim as soon as parts of a project are completed.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has a policy on the introduction of insects into the human diet. \p Daniel Zeichner: Defra does not have a specific policy on insects in the human diet, but continues to monitor the research in this area. In Great Britain, edible insects are considered novel foods. Novel foods require authorisation before they are permitted on the market. As part of the transition in leaving the EU, the following products can continue to be sold whilst they go through the British novel foods authorisation process run by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS):

Where the above are present, they would need to be included in labelling just like any other ingredient. No other insects can currently be sold for human consumption in Britain at present.
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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to facilitate access to low-interest loans for agribusinesses investing in sustainable technologies. \p Daniel Zeichner: Previous support has been offered primarily in the form of grants. For example, the Farming Equipment & Technology Fund (FETF) has helped ensure technologies supporting both productivity and sustainability can be adopted by UK farmers. We are looking to explore alternative means to improve access to finance for both the development and adoption of new agri-technologies, including opportunities to collaborate with public finance institutions.
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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what initiatives are in place to support farmers in reducing nutrient run-off into waterways to protect aquatic ecosystems. \p Emma Hardy: The levels of pollution in our waterways are unacceptable. We are working with farmers through a suite of measures to reduce agricultural pollution and protect our waters.

We regulate the agricultural activities that could cause environmental harms and require farmers to take steps to reduce and prevent diffuse pollution. The EA have checked compliance against the Reduction and Prevention of Agricultural Pollution (England) Regulations 2018. All the actions the EA requires from farmers will result in a reduction of diffuse pollution, through run-off or leaching, whether this is from investment in slurry storage to regulating herd density in a nitrate vulnerable zone.

The Catchment Sensitive Farming programme provides farmers one-to-one advice about how to produce food in a way that protects water and the wider environment. The EA’s advice led regulatory approach has produced excellent results, however regulatory powers are used when required.

Where farmers want to go further, Environmental Land Management schemes pay them for the delivery of environmental benefits that include activities to improve water quality.
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Charlotte Nichols:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) increase recycling rates and (b) reduce littering of containers not included in the Deposit Return Scheme. \p Mary Creagh: The Simpler Recycling reforms will make recycling easier and ensure there is a comprehensive, consistent service across England, so that all households and workplaces can recycle plastic, metal, glass, paper & card and food waste, with garden waste for households upon request. Simpler Recycling is estimated to increase the municipal recycling rate from around 42% to around 56% between 2024 and 2035. This project is one of the three core pillars of the Government’s ambitious Collection and Packaging Reforms, alongside the forthcoming Deposit Return Scheme and the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme for packaging.

Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local authorities are generally best placed to respond to issues such as littering and this Government is considering what further steps are needed to help local authorities reduce litter and keep their streets clean.
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Dr Neil Hudson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in response to the hon. Member for Epping Forest during the Oral Question on Flood-prone Communities: Cumbria of 20 March 2025, Official Report, column 481, whether the £500,000 for rural mental health is new funding. \p Daniel Zeichner: farming and agriculture.

Since 2024, Defra has funded the Farmer Welfare Grant, which supports projects that improve the mental health and wellbeing of farming people in England.

The fund was allocated through an open competition process to the following organisations: the Farming Community Network, You Are Not Alone (YANA), Lincolnshire Rural Support Network (LRSN), and a consortium of organisations led by the Farmer Network which includes Field Nurse, Upper Teesdale Agricultural Support Services (UTASS) and the Yorkshire Agricultural Society (YAS).

The projects are all designed to offer tailored support to farmers and their families as well as prevent further cases of poor mental health by helping to build resilience within farming communities and deliver a range of essential services including the development of new online resources, provision of workshops, training events and networking opportunities, and one-to-one support.

To date we have paid out £325,355, and we expect to pay out a further £174,999 in FY25/26. This is in line with the individual funding agreements.

In the Autumn Budget, this Government committed to support the farming sector through a farming budget of £5 billion over two years (2024/25 and 2025/26). Spending on farming in future financial years, including for Mental Health, will be subject to decisions made as part of the Chancellor’s upcoming spending review.
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Dr Neil Hudson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of the recent outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease in Hungary. \p Daniel Zeichner: In response to the outbreak of FMD in Germany, this Government took decisive and rapid action to protect the UK by suspending the commercial import of susceptible animals and certain untreated products of animal origin from Germany and restricting personal imports of animal products from across the EU. Following the outbreak in Hungary, these border control measures were immediately extended to cover imports of these products from Hungary and Slovakia (given the close proximity of the Hungarian FMD case to the Hungarian Slovakian border).
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Mr Will Forster:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an estimate of the cost to the brewing industry of extended producer responsibility fees on glass beer bottles. \p Mary Creagh: It is the responsibility of producers to estimate the cost of their fees. Producers are required to submit the next round of 2024 data by 1 April 2025. Following this and pending satisfactory regulatory checks, Defra intend to use these data to publish pEPR base fees by June 2025.
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Navendu Mishra:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote sustainable flood management practices in (a) flood-prone and (b) other areas. \p Emma Hardy: Natural flood management (NFM) is a key part of our approach to mitigating flood risk and provides wider benefits for the environment and society, such as carbon reduction, environmental enhancement, improving water quality and water resources.

The floods investment programme delivers a range of schemes, including NFM. In addition, the Government’s ongoing investment in the environment will also support NFM measures.

The Government inherited an outdated funding formula for allocating money to proposed flood defences. Established in 2011, the existing formula slows down the delivery of new flood schemes through a complex application process and also neglects more innovative approaches to flood management such as NFM and sustainable drainage. A consultation will be launched this spring which will include a review of the existing formula.
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UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_119

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with Thames Water on the use of their emergency loan. \p Emma Hardy: The Government and Ofwat – the financial regulator for the water sector – are carefully monitoring the situation, and Ofwat is working closely with the company to strengthen their long-term financial resilience within the context of its license and broader statutory obligations.

Fundamentally it is for the company to solve their issues of financial resilience. It is not for the Government to tell a private company how to manage their finances.

It would be inappropriate to comment on ongoing legal proceedings. We prepare for a range of scenarios across our regulated industries – including water – like any responsible Government would.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_120

Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if the Minister for Water and Flooding will meet with the hon. Member for West Dorset to discuss solutions for the water quality of the River Lim. \p Emma Hardy: My Defra private office handles all meeting requests. Please contact them directly to request a meeting.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_121
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_121

Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of AXA UK's report entitled Extreme weather risks: An analysis of England’s vulnerability to flooding and heat, published on 27 November 2024. \p Emma Hardy: The UK has a legal framework for managing climate risks under the Climate Change Act 2008. This includes preparing a UK Climate Change Risk Assessment every five years, followed by a National Adaptation Programme, setting out actions by government to address the risks identified. While Defra coordinates this work, this is a whole of government effort. Each department is responsible for managing the risks that apply to their sectors and responsibilities. Defra has a Minister responsible for the cross-government coordination of climate change adaptation, who works with Ministers across Government to build the UK’s climate resilience.

Defra also has overall national responsibility for policy on flooding and coastal erosion.

The Environment Agency recently published its updated National Assessment of Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk. It shows that 6.3 million homes and businesses in England are at risk of flooding, which could increase to 8 million by the middle of the century.

Combined with the fact that this Government inherited flood defences in their worst condition on record, it is vital we invest in protecting our communities.

That is why we have committed £2.65 billion over the next two years to maintain, repair and build flood defences.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_122
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_122

Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the Government's Flood Resilience Taskforce has made on improving flood resilience in high-risk areas. \p Emma Hardy: The Floods Resilience Taskforce is a new approach to preparing for flooding which brings together representatives from national, regional and local government, the devolved Governments emergency services, businesses and environmental interest groups.

The first meeting on 5 September provided all organisations with a shared understanding of the flood risk for the autumn and winter, to inform preparatory action. The second taskforce meeting on 5 February looked at lessons from the winter flooding and informed the forthcoming consultation on long-term investment reform.

The Taskforce is developing Action Groups on flood warnings, flood recovery and insurance services to drive work on these issues.

This Government inherited flood assets in their poorest condition on record, as years of underinvestment and damaging storms left just 92% of the Environment Agency’s 38,000 high-consequence assets at required condition, meaning approximately 60,000 properties are at a higher risk.

As part of the Government’s Plan for Change, a record £2.65 billion will be invested over two years in building, maintaining and repairing flood defences, better protecting 52,000 properties by March 2026. Around 1,000 projects will receive funding in 24/25 and 25/26.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_123
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_123

Munira Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of testing water quality under the water framework directive annually instead of every three years. \p Emma Hardy: The Environment Agency (EA) samples and analyses local water body information continuously throughout the year. Under the Water Framework Directive, the EA must publish the sample results at least every six years as a national classification inform River Basin Management Plans. The EA also publishes an interim updates every three years. This is the best use of resources given the natural environment takes time to respond to changes.

We are making significant improvement to our monitoring to give a fuller, more accurate picture of our water bodies. The flagship Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment programme will provide a statistically robust baseline assessment of the health of waters at a national scale.

The independent commission into the water sector regulatory system was launched by UK and Welsh Governments in October 2024. The commission is reviewing the Water Framework Directive and the associated monitoring system. The Commission will report to the UK and Welsh Governments by the end of June 2025.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_124
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_124

Dame Harriett Baldwin:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether their Department offers its staff shared parental leave from their first working day. \p Daniel Zeichner: No. The Civil Service Management Code sets out that, ‘Departments and agencies may only grant shared parental leave in accordance with the statutory requirements governing eligibility for this category of leave.’ However, some staff could qualify for statutory shared parental leave on their first day of service with a particular department because they already have service with another department.

As with any changes to employment legislation, internal policies and processes will be updated as appropriate in preparation for when the Employment Rights Bill 2024 comes into effect.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_125

Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of requiring water companies to report on the volume of sewage discharged into rivers in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Emma Hardy: This Government believes that it is important that we invest in the most appropriate type of monitors to ensure we gain valuable information on sewage discharges. Installing the type of monitor required to accurately measure the volume of a discharge is much more costly and provides limited additional insight into the impact of a discharge. It is important that we invest in reducing sewage discharges, as opposed to increasingly costly monitoring.

Since 1 January 2025, water companies have been required to publish data related to discharges from all storm overflows within one hour of the discharge beginning. The Secretary of State has authorised Ofwat to carry out enforcement action for this duty, in accordance with the powers conferred under sections 18 and 141DA (4) of the Water Industry Act 1991. Ofwat’s enforcement powers provide for a wide range of enforcement activity, including substantial penalties.

Ofwat is monitoring compliance with the duty to report relevant data in real time. Where it detects non-compliance, it will take appropriate enforcement action. In addition to this, the Water (Special Measures) Act 2025 has introduced an equivalent duty for water companies to publish data related to discharges from all emergency overflows within one hour of the discharge beginning. Once commenced, this duty will be enforced in the same way.

This will create an unprecedented level of transparency, enabling the public and regulators to see where, and how often, overflows are discharging, and hold water companies to account.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_126
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_126

Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure value for money for water bills. \p Emma Hardy: It is Ofwat's responsibility to independently scrutinise water company business plans and ensure the prices water companies charge their customers are fair and proportionate, alongside ensuring companies are only funded for new projects and customers don’t pay twice for projects companies have already been funded for.

During its first week in office, the government announced that funding for vital infrastructure investment is ringfenced and can only be spent on upgrades benefiting customers and the environment. Ofwat will also ensure that when money for investment is not spent, companies refund customers, with money never allowed to be diverted for bonuses, dividends or salary increases.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_127
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_127

Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of reinvesting fines collected from water companies in reducing water bills. \p Emma Hardy: The Water Restoration Fund, which launched in April last year, is reinvesting funding based on water company environmental fines and penalties into projects to improve the water environment.

Up to £11 million of funding was made available on a competitive basis to support a range of water restoration projects.

Following a rigorous assessment process, I am pleased to say that current applicants to the Water Restoration Fund have been contacted regarding the outcome of their application. Further details regarding which projects have been successful will be shared in due course once funding agreements have been finalised.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_128

Richard Tice:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support his Department plans to provide to assist with the environmental clean-up of beaches in Boston and Skegness constituency following the recent North Sea oil tanker collision. \p Emma Hardy: Now the overall situation has stabilised, the response has moved from a Major Incident Response into the recovery phase. Both ships remain afloat and normal maritime traffic has resumed. Though the situation is stable, recovery work will continue with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency continuing to coordinate operational partners and maintaining their vigilance of the situation to ensure a safe resolution.

Defra is working with multiple organisations, including the Centre of Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) and the PREMIAM (Pollution Response in Emergencies: Marine Impact Assessment and Monitoring) has been activated to assess the impact of this incident on water pollution and the marine environment. No chemical pollution from the initial fuel spill has been detected.

Pollution in the form of nurdles and burnt plastic has shown up on beaches in NW Norfolk, Lincolnshire and at sea in The Wash. Vessels have been recovering the nurdles at sea and the ongoing beach clean-up in Lincolnshire is being co-ordinated by the relevant local authority. There has been no sign of any other pollution. The four Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) are working together in a Joint East Coast Recovery Management Group to lead counter-pollution activities.