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To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Deposit Return Scheme, whether (a) local authorities and (b) Material Recovery Facilities operators will receive producer funding for (i) collecting, (ii) sorting and (iii) recycling containers in scope of the scheme but placed in...
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Deposit Return Scheme, whether (a) local authorities and (b) Material Recovery Facilities operators will receive producer funding for (i) collecting, (ii) sorting and (iii) recycling containers in scope of the scheme but placed in...
Where in-scope containers are disposed of through household recycling, local authorities will continue managing these materials through existing waste arrangements. The Deposit Management Organisation will work with local authorities to consider ways they can maximise return of materials, and to ensure effective operation of the scheme.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made any assessment of the financial viability of existing materials recovery facility operators after the implementation of the Deposit Return Scheme.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made any assessment of the financial viability of existing materials recovery facility operators after the implementation of the Deposit Return Scheme.
Where in-scope containers are disposed of through household recycling, local authorities will continue managing these materials through existing waste arrangements. The Deposit Management Organisation will work with local authorities to consider ways they can maximise return of materials, and to ensure effective operation of the scheme.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what level of debt-to-equity ratio and other financial resilience thresholds her Department considers indicative of a water company's failure to manage its affairs.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what level of debt-to-equity ratio and other financial resilience thresholds her Department considers indicative of a water company's failure to manage its affairs.
Ofwat issues clear guidance on efficient debt-to-equity ratios and on higher debt-to-equity ratios which are inconsistent with good financial resilience. It considers that 55% is an efficient ratio and that gearing above 70% may present a risk to long-term financial resilience. Some water companies have significantly higher debt than these thresholds. In the Water White Paper, the Government committed to consider how the regulator can work with companies and investors to ensure companies do not accumulate unmanageable levels of debt.
Agreed to on question.
Agreed to on question.
I genuinely thank the hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington (Gideon Amos) for securing the debate. I really enjoyed listening to his speech. There was so much agreement from the Government side of the House on pretty much everything he said. He described what I would refer to as “pre-pipe”,...
I genuinely thank the hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington (Gideon Amos) for securing the debate. I really enjoyed listening to his speech. There was so much agreement from the Government side of the House on pretty much everything he said. He described what I would refer to as “pre-pipe”,...
I thank my hon. Friend; I was trying remember what the report was, so I very much appreciate the intervention. She is absolutely right. We have some of the best drinking water in the whole world; we have incredibly high standards for the health of our drinking water. The report...
I thank my hon. Friend; I was trying remember what the report was, so I very much appreciate the intervention. She is absolutely right. We have some of the best drinking water in the whole world; we have incredibly high standards for the health of our drinking water. The report...
I am hesitant to agree to something that is not in my brief, but I will certainly mention that to the Farming Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan).
The hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington is right that when we think about water management, we often...
I am hesitant to agree to something that is not in my brief, but I will certainly mention that to the Farming Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan).
The hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington is right that when we think about water management, we often...
On the point about farm reservoirs, my hon. Friend is correct. Today I held a meeting of the national drought group, and we had a focus on agriculture and the impact that drought has had on farmers. We are talking now about potential rain, El Niño and flooding, but drought...
On the point about farm reservoirs, my hon. Friend is correct. Today I held a meeting of the national drought group, and we had a focus on agriculture and the impact that drought has had on farmers. We are talking now about potential rain, El Niño and flooding, but drought...
This is like geeks united—we love our SUDS! They are brilliant.
The hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington is right: the point about the maintenance of SUDS has been raised a few times. It is okay to build them—I actually think most are built and designed in a very effective way—but...
This is like geeks united—we love our SUDS! They are brilliant.
The hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington is right: the point about the maintenance of SUDS has been raised a few times. It is okay to build them—I actually think most are built and designed in a very effective way—but...
I thank the hon. Gentleman for the expertise he brings to this House from his previous occupation. That is one of the things we are trying to work through with industry and MHCLG. We all agree that SUDS are a really good thing. Where they may not be as effective...
I thank the hon. Gentleman for the expertise he brings to this House from his previous occupation. That is one of the things we are trying to work through with industry and MHCLG. We all agree that SUDS are a really good thing. Where they may not be as effective...
Absolutely; the more we can all do collectively, the better. We are coming up to Flood Action Week, beginning on 12 October, when I will be calling on every single Member in this House to do what they can to get the message out to their constituents about being prepared...
Absolutely; the more we can all do collectively, the better. We are coming up to Flood Action Week, beginning on 12 October, when I will be calling on every single Member in this House to do what they can to get the message out to their constituents about being prepared...
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increased funding for the Environment Agency on tackling (a) large-scale organised waste crime and (b) fly-tipping.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increased funding for the Environment Agency on tackling (a) large-scale organised waste crime and (b) fly-tipping.
Under the Waste Crime Action Plan, published in March 2026, the Government committed to giving the Environment Agency £45 million in additional funding to cover enforcement activities. This department will review the additional spending for the Environment Agency to ensure that investment is focused on effective action to tackle waste crime, including serious and organised waste crime and fly-tipping. Defra is working with the EA to develop improved measures for the scorecard, as well as considering an evaluation approach for the package of measures announced in the government’s Waste Crime Action Plan and the Prime Ministers recent announcement to crackdown on criminal gangs.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the answer of 12 March 2026, to Question 118223, on Water Charge, whether the cost of WaterSure is borne by (a) taxpayers, (b) water firms profits or (c) households not in receipt of Watersure.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the answer of 12 March 2026, to Question 118223, on Water Charge, whether the cost of WaterSure is borne by (a) taxpayers, (b) water firms profits or (c) households not in receipt of Watersure.
WaterSure is funded through a cross-subsidy within each water company area, with the cost met by customers of that company who do not receive WaterSure support. Cross-subsidy payments differ company to company because each supplier's local operational costs and regional demographics.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding from the Flood and Coastal Risk Management Investment Programme 2026-2029 will be spent in the Huntingdon constituency.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding from the Flood and Coastal Risk Management Investment Programme 2026-2029 will be spent in the Huntingdon constituency.
Flood and coastal risk management projects within the Huntingdon constituency have been allocated £840,000 grant-in-aid (GiA) funding for the current financial year (2026/27) (There may be county-scale projects that are not recorded at constituency level). This is part of the Government’s 3-year investment (April 2026 to March 2029) of £4.2 billion to reduce risk from, and increase resilience to, flooding and coastal erosion.
The indicative GiA allocations for future years are currently being reviewed and prioritised and are subject to Regional Flood and Coastal Committee review and consent.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the No10 press release entitled PM orders crackdown on the criminal gangs profiting from illegal waste and blighting communities, of 19 August 2026, whether additional funding is being provided to (a) police, (b) regulators and...
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the No10 press release entitled PM orders crackdown on the criminal gangs profiting from illegal waste and blighting communities, of 19 August 2026, whether additional funding is being provided to (a) police, (b) regulators and...
The Prime Minister's announcement of 19 August 2026 strengthens the Government's response to waste crime, including by providing the Environment Agency with additional powers to support it in fulfilling its regulatory and enforcement duties. The package also provides funding to support the development of Regional Waste Crime Partnerships, bringing together local authorities, regulators, police and other partners to coordinate action against waste crime.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Press release “PM: Farmers should not carry the risk of a changing climate alone” published on 14 August 2026, how will up to £15 million for on-farm reservoirs be made available to eligible farmers.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Press release “PM: Farmers should not carry the risk of a changing climate alone” published on 14 August 2026, how will up to £15 million for on-farm reservoirs be made available to eligible farmers.
As part of the drought support package announced on 14 August 2026, the Government committed £15 million to support investment in on-farm reservoirs. We are currently developing the detailed delivery arrangements for a further round of the Water Management Grant. Further information on eligibility criteria, application processes and timing will be published in due course. The aim of this funding is to help farmers improve water storage capacity and strengthen resilience to drought and future climate pressures.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will conduct a comparative assessment of the level of grants provided to horticultural growers and the costs of modern horticultural water infrastructure.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will conduct a comparative assessment of the level of grants provided to horticultural growers and the costs of modern horticultural water infrastructure.
The Government recognises the importance of resilient water infrastructure for horticultural growers and continues to support investment through available grant schemes. We keep all our schemes under review and engage regularly across different sectors to ensure support remains effective.
Defra also engages closely with horticultural stakeholders, including through the development of the sector-led Horticulture Growth Plan, to understand the challenges growers face and ensure our support meets the sector’s needs.
While we have no current plans to undertake a separate comparative assessment, we will continue to consider evidence from growers on investment needs.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Partnership Funding formula adequately reflects the economic and strategic value of Grade 1 agricultural land in the Fens; and whether he has considered introducing additional weighting factors for flood defence...
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Partnership Funding formula adequately reflects the economic and strategic value of Grade 1 agricultural land in the Fens; and whether he has considered introducing additional weighting factors for flood defence...
Last October, the Government announced major changes to its flood and coastal erosion funding policy, including removing the old partnership funding formula.
Our funding rules will support farming and rural communities and improve resilience against flood risk across the country.
The previous rules gave higher payment rates for properties than agricultural or environmental benefits. We are now giving equal weighting to all different types of benefits – a positive change for rural areas.
We will review the new policy in 2028 to assess its effectiveness in managing flood and coastal erosion risk, allowing us to see if policy adjustments are needed.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of timelines for Local Authorities to distribute Property Flood Resilience grants; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce waiting times for those grants.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of timelines for Local Authorities to distribute Property Flood Resilience grants; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce waiting times for those grants.
The Government routinely reviews flood recovery support following significant activations of the Flood Recovery Framework. Following the activation of support after Storms Babet in 2023 and Henk in 2024, a formal post-activation review identified opportunities to streamline administration, improve communication with local authorities and speed up the identification of eligible areas.
Defra routinely reviews the Property Flood Resilience Grant following activations, and has undertaken a formal evaluation to assess its effectiveness and identify improvements to delivery. These reviews help ensure that recovery support remains effective, proportionate and responsive to the needs of flood-affected communities.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to enable small rural communities to access funding for flood prevention from the proceeds of the Regional Flood and Coastal Committee Levy.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to enable small rural communities to access funding for flood prevention from the proceeds of the Regional Flood and Coastal Committee Levy.
Regional Flood and Coastal Committees (RFCCs) which include locally elected members, can use their Levy to fund flood resilience projects that are locally important, guided by local priorities and business plans. This includes projects that benefit small rural communities.
Recently, RFCCs have heavily supported Property Flood Resilience (PFR) projects, particularly in smaller rural communities where investment in larger engineered solutions is not always viable.