Contributions
1,483 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDHorticultural PeatThe noble Baroness is absolutely right, which is why we are bringing forward this mandatory ban. I am aware of the voluntary requirement from 2011 to find an alternative because I…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatThe noble Baroness asks a very important question. We could act unilaterally, which would result in the export of jobs, skills and benefit to our economy to countries which are…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatThe right reverend Prelate accurately sums up the difficulty for some growers. We have learned, through detailed engagement with the industry, that the alternatives have not been…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatMy noble friend is absolutely right, and there is a very good partnership in dealing with this. He comes from a part of the world where there is a lot of peat, but it is a…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatThe noble Lord makes a very good point: in every policy area, there is an unintended consequence unless we fully consider it. In producing alternative media, there is sometimes a…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatIn our environmental improvement plan we have set clear targets for the restoration of peat, both in uplands and lowlands. With lowland peat this involves re-wetting and assisting…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatThe noble Baroness has made the point that I am about to make rather better than I will, and that is that we need to do all of these things. We need carbon capture and storage,…09 May 2023HANSARDHorticultural PeatI did not see that one coming. I may have been on a different side to my noble friend but I can tell him that, on environmental issues, I am enjoying the freedom that I have, both…09 May 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesMy Lords, we support Ofwat’s new measures, which were made possible by new licence modification powers that this Government gave to Ofwat via the Environment Act 2021. The…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesMy Lords, that is just part of a great many things that the Government are doing. The new power that the Environment Agency has to link the companies’ licences to ring-fence…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesIt is not just up to the company; it is up to the regulators, Ofwat and the Environment Agency. We are currently considering this, and there is a proposal to lift the cap on fines…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesMy noble friend is absolutely right: this was a key recommendation of the Pitt review following the floods in 2007. The Government are implementing it. It is complicated, because…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesThere was no information on this until 2013, when I required water companies to publish a full list. We now have—or will have in a matter of weeks—100% of all the monitors. The…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesMy noble friend raises a key point. The Government give direction to the regulators of utilities such as water companies, and we have given very clear direction, which has been…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesIt allows us to make comparisons between good and bad performers and to ensure that they are able to operate in the open market and borrow on the capital markets in a regulated…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesWe have set out dates by which we will expect to see different levels of improvement. We are requiring water companies to spend £56 billion, and most of that is being…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesThese are issues that require us to work across government, such as sentencing, but where a crime has been committed and it can be proved that an individual in a senior position…24 Apr 2023HANSARDWater Companies: LicencesThe Environment Agency has a suite of enforcement actions it can take in those circumstances, including criminal prosecution. Last year it reported 30 monitors that were not…24 Apr 2023HANSARDMicrochipping of Cats and Dogs (England) Regulations 2023That the draft Regulations laid before the House on 13 March be approved. Relevant document: 35th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee. Considered in Grand…24 Apr 2023HANSARDEcology Bill [HL]My Lords, I pay huge tribute to the noble Lord, Lord Redesdale, for tabling this Private Member’s Bill and for the passion, knowledge and understanding of this issue that he…21 Apr 2023