Every parliamentary written question tabled by Sarah Gibson this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 21–40 of 40 · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to launch a public consultation on the future use of farrowing crates in the UK.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 2 April 2025 to the hon. Member for Birmingham Northfield, PQ 41698.
Food and Rural Affairs, what the average time taken is between suspected incidents of animal cruelty and the receipt of those reports by the Animal and Plant Health Agency in the last 12 months.
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is not keeping records of time between suspected incidents of animal cruelty and the receipt of those reports by the Agency; consequently, this information is not held by Defra. However, over the last 12 months there have been instances where activist groups have been collecting evidence over long periods of time and APHA has not been informed until the exposés were made public. This information is not held by Defra. We urge anyone having concerns of farm animals being neglected, abused, or mistreated to contact APHA immediately and – in all circumstances- without undue delays. For England and Wales, there is a telephone number which is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In Scotland, people can call their local APHA field service office. Guidance on how to report animal welfare concerns in England is available on Gov.uk Report farm animal welfare concerns - GOV.UK; the full list of contact details including Wales and Scotland is available on the following page Contact APHA - GOV.UK.
Food and Rural Affairs, what recent estimate his Department has made of the proportion of sows in the UK kept in farrowing crates in each of the last five years.
Defra does not hold official data, however, for the last five years estimates have consistently maintained that 60% of the UK breeding herd were kept indoors with the vast majority of sows using farrowing crates to give birth. The remaining 40% farrow freely on outdoor units with no option for confinement. Recent industry estimates suggest that the number of sows kept indoors has declined to 50%. Of these, around 8% of the British indoor pig herd were reported to be flexibly farrowed where the sow can be confined on a temporary basis and for a limited period.
Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of long-term water supply resilience in (a) the South West of England and (b) Wiltshire.
South West Water recently received permission from Defra to publish and implement its Water Resources Management plan. Wessex Water and Bristol Water published their plans in 2024. Key to achieving sustainable water resources, will be the development of a range of Strategic Resource Options, and improved water demand management. The plans covering the South West region show companies are planning to build new reservoirs, including new reservoirs at Cheddar and East Mendips. South West Water is currently building a new desalination plant in Cornwall. For Wiltshire, the most significant of these involves the development of a new reservoir in the Mendips, providing confidence in supplies well into the future. Improved investment is allowing water companies to improve drought resilience, and they will be able to cope with a 1:500 year drought by 2040, ensuring a high level of resilience.
Food and Rural Affairs, how many applications have been received under the 2025 round of animal health and welfare grants; and what proportion of these applications have been approved in Wiltshire.
The Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF 25) opened for applications on the 29 May this year and will close at midday on 10 July 2025. The application process is ongoing; therefore, applications have not been approved at this stage.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure timely reporting of suspected animal cruelty incidents to the Animal and Plant Health Agency; and whether guidance is issued to (a) industry and (b) the public on how and when to report.
There is newly published guidance on what and how to report animal welfare concerns in England (Report farm animal welfare concerns - GOV.UK); additional contact details are available at the top of the APHA contact list on GOV.UK. For England and Wales, there is a telephone number which is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In Scotland, people can call their local APHA field service office. People should contact APHA immediately with concerns about farm animals being neglected, abused or mistreated. If the concern about the welfare of farm animals is not urgent, they can email APHA at customeradvice@apha.gov.uk. APHA leads on responding to animal welfare concerns in livestock. For concerns about wild animals or pets, people can contact their local council, private veterinary surgeon or wildlife rescue centre.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support flood resilience in (a) Chippenham and (b) other towns; and whether his Department is taking steps to work with local authorities to develop climate adaptation plans for rural areas.
The Environment Agency (EA) is working with local partners on options to take forward the Chippenham Avon Project. In addition, the EA is working with Wiltshire Council on the Wiltshire Rural Runoff Project to improve understanding of the causes of flooding and to look for potential interventions to reduce the impacts of rural flooding. In 2024, as part of the fourth round of reporting under the Adaptation Reporting Power, we worked with 18 English local authorities to support local reporting of climate risks and adaptation.
Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the availability of grants for farmers to support (a) sustainable and (b) regenerative agricultural practices in Wiltshire.
We are working closely with farmers and industry stakeholders to design a future Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer that fairly and responsibly directs funding. Further details about the reformed SFI offer will be announced following the spending review in summer 2025. We plan to launch the new Higher Tier scheme later this year; Capital Grants will re-open in summer 2025; we continue to move forward with Landscape Recovery; we are increasing payment rates for Higher Level Stewardship agreement holders to recognise their ongoing commitment to delivering environmental outcome; and we are making £110 million available for new grant competitions to support research and innovation, technology and equipment for farmers.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the interim findings of the Independent Review of the Regulation of the Water Industry in England, published on 3 June 2025.
The Government is clear that transformative change is needed across the water sector, and will be carefully considering Sir Jon’s preliminary conclusions as outlined in the interim report published on 3 June. The Government will respond to the findings in full once the Commission has produced its final report later this summer. Our response will include a detailed transition plan for the water sector, which will form the basis of future legislation to reset the sector and attract the investment we need to ensure its resilience for decades to come.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is considering for improving the ecological health of (a) the River Avon, (b) its tributaries and (c) other rivers in Wiltshire, in the context of the Independent Water Commission Interim Report, published on 3 June 2025.
The Government is clear that transformative change is needed across the water sector, and will be carefully considering Sir Jon’s preliminary conclusions as outlined in the interim report published on 3 June. The Government will respond to the findings in full once the Commission has produced its final report later this summer. Our response will include a detailed transition plan for the water sector, which will form the basis of future legislation to reset the sector and attract the investment we need to ensure its resilience for decades to come.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of the report entitled Independent Water Commission: review of the water sector, published on 3 June 2025, and what steps he is taking to tackle those issues.
The Government is clear that transformative change is needed across the water sector, and will be carefully considering Sir Jon’s preliminary conclusions as outlined in the interim report published on 3 June. The Government will respond to the findings in full once the Commission has produced its final report later this summer. Our response will include a detailed transition plan for the water sector, which will form the basis of future legislation to reset the sector and attract the investment we need to ensure its resilience for decades to come.
Food and Rural Affairs, what contingency plans his Department has in place following the collapse of the proposed equity injection into Thames Water by KKR.
The company remains stable, and the Government is closely monitoring the situation. As the company has set out, it will continue to work with its creditors and stakeholders as part of its equity raise to improve its financial position. The Government is prepared for all eventualities across our regulated industries- including water - as any responsible Government would be, and stands ready to intervene through the use of a Special Administration Regime, should this be required to ensure the continued provision of vital public services. It would be inappropriate to comment further on the financial matters of a private company.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the level of risk of insolvency to Thames Water following the withdrawal of KKR; and whether he has made an estimate of the potential cost to the public purse of this event.
The company remains stable, and the Government is closely monitoring the situation. As the company has set out, it will continue to work with its creditors and stakeholders as part of its equity raise to improve its financial position. The Government is prepared for all eventualities across our regulated industries- including water - as any responsible Government would be, and stands ready to intervene through the use of a Special Administration Regime, should this be required to ensure the continued provision of vital public services. It would be inappropriate to comment further on the financial matters of a private company.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of potential impact of surface water flooding on communities in Wiltshire; and what funding he has provided to help mitigate flooding risks in Wiltshire since 2015.
Lead local flood authorities are required to manage local flood risks from surface water, groundwater and ordinary watercourses. Local flood risks should be identified and managed as part of a local flood risk management strategy. The two lead local flood authorities in Wiltshire are Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council. In the area covered by Wiltshire Council, £38,597,000 of Capital Flood Defence Grant in Aid funding was invested between 2015/16 and 2024/25 by the Environment Agency and other Risk Management Authorities on flood related projects. The most significant of these was the Environment Agency led Salisbury River Park Scheme which spent £35,070,000 to better protect 1,062 properties. These totals exclude maintenance spending, property-level protection schemes, and some projects which cross county borders. In the area covered by Swindon Borough Council, £2,615,993 was invested between 2015/16 and 2024/25 by the Environment Agency and other Risk Management Authorities on flood related projects.
Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the cause of the persistent odour affecting residents in Calne, Wiltshire.
The Environment Agency (EA) has received a significant number of reports of odour in the Calne area throughout April. EA officers have attended and substantiated odour, believed to be landfill gas from regulated activity in Compton Bassett. While landfill activity will on occasion give rise to a level of odour, the odour substantiated by the EA indicates an unacceptable level of pollution and the EA is actively investigating potential sources. As part of their investigations, the EA has carried out surface emission surveys to detect landfill gas at two landfill sites in Compton Bassett. These inspections have highlighted several points on the site infrastructure at Lower Compton Landfill where improvements are required to reduce emissions of landfill gas; the EA has required the operator to make these improvements. While these works will reduce the level of odour from this site, it is unlikely that in isolation the issues identified are the sole cause of the recent complaints. The EA is considering multiple potential sources. Further inspections of both regulated landfill sites are planned, to confirm the improvements required at Lower Compton Landfill have been completed and to continue investigations into other potential sources.
Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with (a) Wiltshire council, (b) operators of waste management and sewage facilities (c) residents and (d) the Environment Agency on the persistent poor odour in Calne.
As the independent regulator for major industry and waste, the Environment Agency (EA) is investigating sites which fall under its regulation in the Calne area to determine whether they are potential sources of the odour currently being experienced. Investigations into other potential sources are being carried out by Wiltshire Council. The EA is sharing information and updates on its ongoing investigation into the source of odour complaints in Calne with stakeholders via briefing notes. An initial briefing note was circulated on 3 April 2025, with an update issued on 28 April 2025. Further briefings will be issued as the investigation progresses. The briefings are being issued to members of the public who have contacted the EA to report the issue, Wiltshire Council, waste site operators, UK HSA, Local Councillors, and the honourable member for Chippenham.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the reduction in the Rural England Prosperity Fund for 2025/26 on rural businesses.
The Department announced on 4 March that it would be providing an additional £33 million for the Rural England Prosperity Fund in financial year 2025-26. This announcement continues funding beyond the lifetime of the original scheme providing new money for new projects in rural areas. The Autumn Statement on 30 October confirmed Defra’s budgets for 2024-25 and 2025-26. Funding allocations for individual programmes have been determined through the departments business planning exercise. Future funding decisions remain subject to the Government spending review.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of adopting World Health Organisation Air Standards.
The Government is committed to meeting current legal targets for air quality, including the targets recently set under the Environment Act 2021, and will review the policy measures needed to achieve them. We will deliver a comprehensive Clean Air Strategy, including a series of interventions to reduce emissions so that everyone’s exposure to air pollution is reduced. The World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guidelines are intended to inform the setting of air quality standards and are not ready-made targets for direct adoption as they do not consider achievability or individual countries’ circumstances. However, we will consider WHO guidelines as part of an evidence led process when considering future targets.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the (a) effectiveness of the Pfand recycling system in Germany and (b) potential merits of adopting a similar approach in the UK.
Defra officials have worked closely with international partners to learn lessons and consider best practice when developing the scheme design of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) in the UK. This includes teach-ins with the German scheme administrator, as well as a visit earlier this year to observe the recycling system in Germany. This Government remains committed to delivering the DRS for drinks containers in October 2027, as agreed with the devolved Governments of the UK, and in accordance with the Joint Policy Statement published in April 2024. Defra intends to lay the DRS regulations for England and Northern Ireland before Parliament later this year, assuming Parliamentary time allows. The regulations would come into force in early 2025 before the Deposit Management Organisation, who will run the scheme, would be appointed in April 2025.
Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to investigate the cause of floods in (a) Calne and (b) other areas that have not experienced flooding for decades.
Over 300 properties flooded across 50 communities in Wiltshire alone during the winter of 2023/24, which was the wettest since records began 1871. These same areas of Wiltshire also experienced heavy rainfall in September 2024. The rural catchments that have seen numerous floods during this period are sensitive to both rainfall intensities and durations. It is understood that it has been a combination of both high intensity and prolonged durations during these storm events combined with saturated catchments resulting in localised flooding. Wiltshire Council are in the process of undertaking Flood & Water Management Act 2010 Section 19 flood reports investigating the flooding issues experienced across the county last winter. We will input information and evidence into these reports. We are working with flood risk management authorities, through a Wiltshire Rural Runoff project, to improve understanding of the causes of flooding, and it will look for potential for interventions to reduce the impacts of these types of flood events. The Calne catchments is in one of the five focus areas, and the evidence and understanding is being gathered this winter with support of the Wildlife Trusts and local landowners and farmers. As these types of rainfall events are expected to become more frequent with climate change, The Environment Agency are exploring how they can make our flood warning service more effective for these types of rural catchment, that respond quickly to heavy intensity rain.