Contributions
1,730 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Environmental ProtectionMy right hon. Friend makes an interesting point. It is the intention that the penalties will be put into the water restoration fund and used primarily in that local area and…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionMy hon. Friend is right. By giving our regulators the tools that they have asked us for, we are taking action. Of course, the only reason we know about the storm overflows is the…18 Jul 2023HANSARDClimate Adaptation Reporting: Third National Adaptation Programme and Fourth StrategyYesterday I laid the Third National Adaptation Programme and Fourth Strategy for Climate Adaptation Reporting before the House. The document is available on www.gov.uk. We are…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionOn the farming laws related to water, we normally find that people are not trying to break the law deliberately, so it is about guidance and how we make the fixes, but we have to…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionI am grateful to right hon. and hon. Members for the wide-ranging contributions to the discussion of the regulations that we are bringing forward today. Across the country, people…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionThe purpose of these instruments is to strengthen environmental civil sanctions, so that our environmental regulators can apply an unlimited penalty to companies that break the…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionI beg to move, That the draft Environmental Civil Sanctions (England) (Amendment) Order 2023, which was laid before this House on 12 July, be approved.18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionIndeed. I was planning to explain shortly how the penalties will be used. They will go into the new water restoration fund. It is my decision that that will be localised to the…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionWe are straying somewhat from the purpose of the statutory instruments that we are dealing with today, but I have that same situation whereby Anglian Water covers sewerage and…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionThe water industry in Northern Ireland is not covered by the UK Government. It is a separate system, so with the greatest respect I think the hon. Gentleman will need to follow…18 Jul 2023HANSARD Environmental ProtectionClearly, my hon. Friend is an assiduous constituency MP in raising this issue during our discussion about how penalties can be applied. If he would like to write to me with more…18 Jul 2023HANSARDAir Quality UpdateAir quality in the UK has improved significantly in recent decades. We have seen a decrease in emissions of major air pollutants: for instance, emissions of fine particulate…13 Jul 2023HANSARDCanal & River Trust: Future FundingToday, I am notifying Parliament of our intention to provide additional grant funding from 2027 to the Canal & River Trust. The trust is a charity responsible for 2,000 miles of…10 Jul 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsStealing a pet is already a criminal offence, and we know the devastating impact that pet theft can have. We legislated to require the microchipping of cats, in addition to dogs,…06 Jul 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsMy right hon. Friend the Minister for Food, Farming and Fisheries set out on 25 May how we intend to take through our manifesto commitments. We also have a taskforce working on…06 Jul 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsIndeed, and I want to thank my hon. Friend. I have met her dog Sidney Pickles, who is delightful. As she says, it was purchased from a great breeder. One thing we need to continue…06 Jul 2023HANSARDTree PlantingNo, he didn’t. The more trees that are planted, the better, so let us all take credit for planting trees. It is good for wellbeing, and it is good for the planet.06 Jul 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsIt has been a particularly busy week for DEFRA in a number of different ways, with not only the launch of the designated highly protected marine areas, but the House of Commons…06 Jul 2023HANSARDAnimal WelfareOf course not. I was very sad that the noble Lord chose to leave Government. I pay tribute to him for a lot of what he has done in terms of international nature. The Minister for…06 Jul 2023HANSARDCoastal and Marine BiodiversityMy hon. Friend and I share a feature in that the coast and the sea are a key part of our constituencies. We have just brought into effect our first three highly protected marine…06 Jul 2023