Every parliamentary written question tabled by Stella Creasy this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 1–3 of 3 · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Food and Rural Affairs, how many civil servants in her Department have been assigned to preparations for a EU-UK agreement on a common sanitary and phytosanitary area.
Negotiating and delivering an SPS Agreement with the EU is a whole of Government effort. It is a big priority for the department. We are working very closely with the Cabinet Office. Defra’s trade staff work flexibly across trade deals according to demand.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her department has made of the number and scope of regulations in which there has been (a) active and (b) passive divergence between UK and European Union sanitary and phytosanitary rules; and whether her Department intends to prevent further divergence while EU-UK negotiations on a common sanitary and phytosanitary area are in progress.
When it has been deemed appropriate for GB policy to actively diverge from EU regulations, steps have always been taken to consider how a change could impact businesses looking to sell into UK, NI and EU markets, and if they will be required to adhere to different regulations and systems for each. The Government has begun negotiations with the EU on the SPS agreement. It is too early to assess the nature of the workloads which will result should an agreement be reached, but it is expected to be substantial.
Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the yellow legged Asian hornet on UK (a) pollinators and (b) food security; and what the role is of the National Bee Unit in helping to tackle the potential impacts of that hornet.
Over £500 million a year is contributed by bees and other pollinating insects to UK agriculture, through improvements to crop quality and quantity. If Asian hornet (also known as Yellow Legged Hornet) were to become established in the UK, this could have a major impact on pollinators. With respect to food security the impact would be greatest on crops which are dependent on insects for pollination such as apples, strawberries, field beans and oilseed rape. Since 2016 the Animal and Plant Health Agency’s National Bee Unit (NBU) have responded to incursions of Yellow Legged Hornet (YLH) into Great Britain. The NBU has developed a fine-tuned and effective response which allows them to find and destroy nests to prevent YLH establishing.