To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list (a) the members of the Board of Directors of the Environment Agency and their declared party political affiliations and (b) appointments made to the Board of Directors of the Environment Agency since 1 May 1997 and their declared party political affiliations. [111105]

The current Board members are:

• Sir John Harman (Chairman)
• Barbara Young (Chief Executive)
• Councillor Colin Beandwood
• Mr. Ted Cantle
• Mr. Andrew Dare CBE
• Mr. John Edmonds
• Professor Richard Macrory CBE
• Mr. Gerald Manning OBE
• Professor Peter Matthews
• Professor Jacqueline McGlade
• Ms Sara Parkin OBE
• Professor Donald Ritchie
• Dr. Lyndon Stanton
• Mr. Gareth Wardell
• Professor Lynda Warren

Members of the Environment Agency's Board are required to complete questions in their application form about political activity, and not their political affiliation unless they are politically active. These application forms are held by my Department, and four reflect political activity at the time of appointment. Sir John Harman has declared his affiliation to the Labour Party, but resigned his party political positions after being appointed as Chairman of the Agency's Board. In her application for the post of Chief Executive, which carries with it automatic membership of the Board, Baroness Young listed her position as working Labour peer, but she resigned the Whip upon her appointment. John Edmonds has declared membership of the Labour Party National Policy Forum and Commission, and Councillor Colin Beardwood has declared that he is a member of the Labour Party and serves on Worcestershire County Council and West Midlands Regional Chamber.Gareth Wardell, who was the Labour MP for Gower until May 1997, was appointed by the then Secretary of State for Wales.No other Board member who has been appointed since 1 May 1997 has declared any party political activity. The only appointments made to the Board since 1 May 1997, excluding the above, were Mr. Alan Dalton and Mr Chris Hampson, the latter on his appointment as Deputy Chair of the Board. They have completed their appointments and are no longer on the Board.

Consent reference number	Consent holder and crop	Nearest village, town or parish	Grid reference of release site
99/R21/6	Novartis Seeds Ltd	Stone, Worcestershire	SO 853 748
	(now Syngenta)	Ramsey, Cambridgeshire	TL 293 877
	Fodder beet	Bradenham, Narfolk	TF 933 084
		Raynham,Norfolk	TF 887 258
		Banham, Norfolk	TM 072 889
00/R33/6	Aventis CropScience UK Ltd	Bramham, North Yorks	SE 446 418
	(now Bayer CropScience UK Ltd)	Shellingford, Oxon	SU 306 945
	Oilseed rape	Thorganby, Lincolnshire	TF 192 965
		Sand Hutton, North Yorks	SE 675 583
		Meden Vale, Notts	SK 604 706
		Felton, Herefordshire	SO 561 486
		Melbourn, Cambrifgeshire	TL 389 428
		Piccots End, Hertfordshire	TL 049 095
		Banham, Norfolk	TM 088 883
01/R8/4	IACR Rothamsted	Harpenden, Hertfordshire	TL 124 136
	(now Rothamsted Research) Wheat
01/R29/3	John Innes Centre Barley	Colney, Norfolk	TG 179 077
02/R4/12	Advanced Technologies (Cambridge) Ltd. Potato	Thornhaugh, Peterborough	TF 074 009
02/R36/01	IACR-Long Ashton	Harpenden, Hertfordshire	TL 124 136
	(now Rothamsted Research) Wheat
01/R33/11	Aventis CropScience Ltd.	Little Bolligton, Cheshire	SJ 714 872
	(now Bayer CropScience Ltd.)	Great Moulton, Norfolk	TM 165 902
	Oilseed rape	Alveston/Loxley, Warks	SP 231 535
	Farm Scale evaluations	Piccotts End, Hertfordshire	TL 048 098
		Bincombe, Dorset	SY 692 841
		Narfferton, East Riding of Yorks	TA 015 620
		Burdon, Tyne and Wear	NZ 205 367
		Oakenshaw, Durham	NZ 205 367
		Hinton Waldrist,Oxon	SU 379 993
		Smarden, Kent	TQ 882 397
		Throganby, Lincolnshire	TF 213 972
		Burgh on Bain, Lincolnshire	TF 227 876
		Bagley, Shropshire	SJ 398 268
		Kilnwick Percy, East Riding of Yorks	SE 841 497
		Laxton, East Riding of Yorks	SE 792 276
		Lowthorpe, East Riding of Yorks	TA 087 602