Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Secretary of State was asked—
Food Industry
The food industry has a major impact on the environment, accounting for 14 per cent. of energy consumption by UK business and 7 million tonnes of carbon every year. The Government have implemented a number of measures under the food industry sustainability strategy to reduce negative impacts. I can tell the House that I am meeting the supermarkets today to discuss progress.
Tesco is trying to build an 88,000 sq ft supermarket just outside my constituency near to Chorlton town centre, which would lead to even more congestion and pollution in the area, as well as impact on the viability of local shops. Will the Secretary of State commit to urgent discussions with his ministerial colleagues in the Department for Communities and Local Government with a view to protecting our local centres from these environmentally damaging developments?
The way in which the hon. Gentleman poses the question suggests that he knows that planning policy is not something that falls to DEFRA, but I am happy to say that I will look into the case, consistent with the important principle that Ministers do not interfere with planning decisions.
My right hon. Friend will know that some supermarkets, including Tesco, are slowly moving towards a much more positive environmental stance. Will he encourage them to take that aspect much more seriously and to put some serious money into local communities to improve the quality of the environment? Supermarkets are good in one area, and that is transport logistics. If Tesco’s transport logistics expertise could be used, for example, in the waste industry—8 per cent. of truck movements in our country are waste being hauled on our motorways—we could quickly reap some serious economic and environmental benefits.
When I meet the supermarkets later today, I shall certainly ask Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s whether they agree that Tesco provides a model of good practice and see what reaction I get. I take my hon. Friend’s point about transport logistics and waste. I was surprised to find that the supermarkets are on track, following the EU packaging directive, to reduce packaging by between 55 and 80 per cent. It is also worth mentioning—other hon. Members may raise it—the commitment in the energy review to ensure that some 5,000 medium-sized public and private sector organisations are part of a UK emissions trading system to deliver 1.2 million tonnes of carbon reduction every year. That is a major step forward, which I hope will command support throughout the House.
Will the Secretary of State comment on the policy of supermarkets importing cheap food from other regions of the world, such as south America, particularly in respect of the impact on the environment in those regions?
The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. I think that I am right in saying that about 76 per cent. of food bought in the UK is domestically produced, though that is down by 5 or 6 per cent. over the last decade. Ensuring that local supply chains are strong and that local food producers are able to get their goods to market efficiently and effectively while securing a fair price for what they produce is critical. The hon. Gentleman also made the important point that global trade can benefit developing countries, or countries from which we import food, and be an important part of their standard of living. That can be done in either a more or less environmentally sensitive way. From our point of view, it is imperative that it is done in a more environmentally sensitive way.
The Isle of Wight is not entirely devoid of natural resources, but two Tesco-size lorries cross the Solent every year for every man, woman and child on the island to serve its supermarkets. At the same time, we produce a huge amount of agricultural produce ourselves. What can the Secretary of State do to reduce the food miles, to which the hon. Member for South Antrim (Dr. McCrea) referred, that severely damage the environment?
I thought that the hon. Gentleman was about to say that he was one of the natural resources of the Isle of Wight, which would be a point of more contention than the need to reduce food miles. The most important thing is for the Isle of Wight to maximise its agricultural production in ways that local consumers want to buy. In the end, local food producers rather than the Government will be the key to the supply chain. Having said that, it is an important part of our strategy to help support local farmers to diversify and ensure that they are able to serve local markets in the most effective way.
It is good to hear the Secretary of State saying those words, but I remind him that three years ago his predecessor launched the Government’s public sector procurement initiative, saying:
“Sustainable food procurement isn’t just about better nutrition, it’s about where the food comes from, how it is produced and where it ends up.”
Three years later, his Department has said that it does not know how much publicly procured food is of British origin. Given that the Secretary of State is rightly seeking to atone for many of the failings of his predecessor, may we now expect him to get to grips with the whole issue of public procurement? There is £1.8 billion worth of publicly procured food bought in this country: surely that is the way for the Government to set an example to supermarkets and the food industry on how to reduce food miles.
I am trying to build on the successes of my predecessor in a range of important areas, including agriculture and the environment. I am sorry that the hon. Gentleman did not mention the Sims report, because the issues of public procurement that he raises are very important. The report was published just two months ago and was an independent study by an experienced and respected business figure, who examined the whole £150 billion of public sector procurement and how it could be done more sustainably. I am also sorry that the hon. Gentleman did not refer to the commitments made not only by me, but by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to see the report and its recommendations through and deliver some of the gains that the hon. Gentleman wants to see.
Uncropped Field Margins
I thank the Minister for that short answer. I am sure that he would wish to enhance and augment the rural environment, but I am not sure that that is the best way to do it. It tends to penalise farmers who have retained their hedges and helps farmers who have bulldozed them. If the Minister took the opportunity to inspect some of those field margins, he would see that they are choked with pernicious weeds such as soft broom, sterile broom, wild oats and, in the east of the country, blackgrass. When the combine harvesters spread those around the fields, it results in the need for much higher levels of pesticide usage on arable farms. Can the Minister think of some more imaginative ways of utilising the same amount of land to stimulate farmers to do something to make a positive impact on the rural environment?
It is interesting to be asked whether one has made an assessment and, when one says that one has, not then to be asked what it was before one gets the Opposition view. It is clear that cross-compliance measures impose a minimal burden on farmers, calculated to be of the order of only 2 per cent. of the single payment that they receive. That was for farmers who were not previously using what are generally accepted as good management practices. The fact is that most farmers did leave the 2 m margin, measured as it is from the centreline of the hedge. In respect of the environment and biodiversity considerations, the hon. Gentleman will know that as much as 70 per cent. of all the wildlife and biodiversity of a field is estimated to live in the hedgerow margin. Protecting them in that way is an essential part of delivering our 2010 targets.
It is important that farmers should do their bit to promote biodiversity. Will my hon. Friend the Minister therefore do more and go further to encourage environmentally friendly stewardship of the land by farmers?
We are looking at all sorts of ways to improve the management of our countryside and incentivise farmers to do so. There is a general consensus in the Chamber that cross-compliance and all the moves that have been made from pillar one to pillar two are ones that we would all support. We are moving in the right direction, which is paying farmers to provide public benefits, instead of the old system of paying for production, which disconnected farmers from their markets and was an inefficient way of doing things. However, it is essential that we have the flexibility to take into account the distinctive features of the English countryside, of which the hedgerow is one. I make no apology for protecting it.
Does my hon. Friend agree that with 71 per cent. of British butterflies and 44 per cent. of British moths in decline, hedgerows and field margins are critical to ensuring diversity? Those creatures, which are important to the farmer for the fertilisation of his crops, should be protected.
My hon. Friend makes the important point that biodiversity should be seen in terms of the whole ecosystem. The pollination services provided by butterflies and other insects that inhabit hedgerows and the margins of fields are essential. Our 2010 biodiversity targets state that we must increase the number of farmland birds. There is a severe decline in the food that they depend on and that they feed to their chicks—butterflies, caterpillars and so forth—which is part of the problem. It is essential that we look at this issue as part of the whole environment, and that we address it in the way that my hon. Friend suggests.
Ivory Trade
The United Kingdom Government will not have a vote at the standing committee in October. The UK will be represented as part of the European region, but the UK’s position continues to be that we support the international ban on trade in ivory.
I welcome that answer. Any reopening of the ivory trade—by stockpile sales or more widely—would simply create a smokescreen and trigger further poaching of elephants for their ivory, especially in central and west Africa and Asia, where resources for enforcement of anti-poaching measures are at their thinnest. Will the Minister ensure that such points are vigorously made at the CITES conference, and will he involve the International Fund for Animal Welfare in tackling what is becoming a very serious problem?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for those remarks. He highlighted stockpile sales, which is a critical issue to address. As he knows, there already is an international ban on the commercial trade in ivory, and the UK will not support any reopening of that trade. In 2002, the CITES parties drew a distinction between a general return to commercial ivory trade and one-off sales of legally acquired stockpiled ivory. The UK’s position is clear: we will not agree to the one-off sales going ahead unless all the conditions to prevent a damaging rise in elephant poaching and any increase in the illegal trade have been fully met. I can assure my hon. Friend that I have already met IFAW and discussed this subject. I have asked it to help me look at the statistics that will under-gird those decisions and to prepare a response for me. I look forward to receiving it.
Local Environment Quality
The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 has given local authorities and others important new tools to improve the quality of people’s local environment. Other measures will ensure that the quality of air and water—already better than at any time since the industrial revolution—will continue to improve.
I hope that both you, Mr. Speaker, and the Minister can at some point—perhaps over the summer—visit the beautiful constituency of Colne Valley and see how our environment has been enhanced by the hard work of community groups such as the Friends of Beaumont Park, which is trying to create an eco-park. Would it not therefore be a great pity if the 2005 Act was not used to its fullest extent by local authorities to ensure that the hard work of community groups is not undermined and that the area is not inundated with fly-tipping, litter and graffiti?
Yes, and I will look at my diary to see whether I can fulfil my hon. Friend’s invitation during August, when I intend to spend quite a bit of time travelling the country extolling the benefits of the 2005 Act and encouraging local authorities—as she is rightly doing—to use the new powers that they have been given.
Will the Minister accept that the quality of our countryside is critical to the environment of the United Kingdom? Will he further accept that if we are to maintain the quality of our rural areas and our countryside, farmers need to be able to make a profit from what they produce on the land, and land has to be farmed? Currently, farmers are under huge pressure—dairy farmers in particular—not least from the major superstores. Will the Government take steps to protect the rural environment to ensure that our farmers, who work hard seven days a week—particularly if they are livestock farmers—are able to make a proper living and can maintain the countryside for the people of the United Kingdom?
The hon. Gentleman refers to lots of very important issues to do with rural areas and agriculture that are not strictly related to local environment quality. However, if you will bear with me, Mr. Speaker, I shall do my best to answer.
I agree that it is important that agriculture is put on a profitable footing, and that is the aim of the Government’s sustainable food and farming strategy. It is also very important that farmers are rewarded for the public benefits that they provide, and we are changing the way that agriculture is supported in this country to ensure that that happens. We accept that problems in certain sectors, such as the dairy sector, are making life very difficult for people. I know that the hon. Gentleman represents a lot of dairy farmers, and I am sure that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will take on board what he has said before speaking to the supermarkets later today.
The Local Government Act 2003 provided that local authorities employing litter wardens to enforce the litter laws could use the proceeds from fixed-penalty fines to pay them. Some authorities use those powers with great success, but many—including my own—do not use them at all. As a result, streets remain dirtier than they need be, or council tax payers have to pay enormous amounts of money to get litter cleared away. Will my hon. Friend write to the authorities that are not using the powers and encourage them to do so?
Yes, I shall be happy to do that, and to take the matter up with my hon. Friend’s local authority. It is a terrible shame when legislation that gains very strong support in this place, and which gives local authorities powers that they have asked for over many years, is not used. The powers in the 2003 Act enable authorities to deal with the sort of local environmental issues that really matter to people, but my hon. Friend is right to say that the fact that they are not used indirectly piles more costs on council tax payers as a whole.
Will the Minister look at the impact on the London environment of helicopter noise? It is probably the number one issue in my post bag at the moment. No one seems to know why there has been such a big increase in helicopter traffic over London, which does not appear to be monitored by any Government agency. The London assembly has conducted an inquiry, but it has barely scratched the surface. Will he speak to other Ministers about setting up a proper monitoring system for helicopter noise over London?
I suspect that the Leader of the Opposition might be making some contribution to the increase in helicopter noise, given his penchant for helicopter travel. However, I shall be delighted to investigate the matter and get some answers to the hon. Gentleman’s question. I have a London flat, and I have noticed exactly the phenomenon that he has described, with helicopters disturbing our peace and quiet by hanging in the air for hours on end. I have no idea what they are doing, and I shall be delighted to find out for the hon. Gentleman.
Yesterday, the Secretary of State made a speech that began with a reference to the great stink—not the one that is increasingly emanating from this discredited and sleaze-ridden Government, but the one in 1858 that led to the creation of the London sewer system. What action is the Department taking to improve the local environmental quality of the Lea valley in east London, where hundreds of thousands of tonnes of raw sewage are pumped into the Thames basin every year? Two years ago, a former Environment Minister said that doing nothing about the scandal was not an option. What has been done since, and what discussions has the Minister had with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, bearing in mind the possible impact that that remnant of the great stink could have on the London Olympics?
I am informed that my hon. Friend the Minister for Climate Change and the Environment, who is sitting on my left, has had such a meeting recently, and also that the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Brent, North (Barry Gardiner), who is sitting on my right, has had a meeting with British Waterways on the matter. I am sure that both of my colleagues are determined to ensure, between them, that the development to which the hon. Gentleman refers is carried out in a sustainable way, and that the problems that the hon. Gentleman describes are addressed.
Local environment quality depends crucially on the Department’s expenditure on policing environmental crime and on flood defences. However, there have been reports recently that the Secretary of State has asked for expenditure cuts in the environmental parts of his budget in order to offset overruns in other areas, perhaps particularly single farm payments. Will the Minister say whether the Department is asking environmental budget holders, including the Environment Agency, to reduce their budget allocation? Will he tell the House the implications for the understanding that the Department reached with the Association of British Insurers to continue to provide insurance cover for more than 100,000 home owners at risk of flooding? Will he assure them that the allocations for flood defences will not be cut?
On the hon. Gentleman’s latter point, my hon. Friend the Minister for Climate Change and the Environment met the ABI recently. On his more general point, like all Departments, ours is constantly looking for ways of spending our money more effectively and efficiently. Inevitably, things come up such as the recent preparations to deal with the possible outbreak of avian flu and the problems of the single farm payment but, since we have been in power, the Government’s grant in aid to the Environment Agency, another issue to which he referred, has increased substantially from about £160 million to over £600 million a year.
Scallop Dredging (Lyme Bay)
English Nature has advised that increased scalloping is having a significant impact on important reef features and it has recommended the closure of 60 square miles of Lyme bay. I would prefer, and am still hoping, to find a voluntary solution to the problem, but if that proves impossible I am prepared to introduce compulsory measures to protect the local marine environment.
I am extremely delighted to hear that response. I hope that the Minister will reach a conclusion soon on that matter because the damage that is being caused to the reef system is having both an environmental and an economic impact on sea angling and diving, which are major factors for the tourism industry in south Devon.
I accept the point that the hon. Gentleman makes. I, too, want to reach a decision on the matter as soon as possible.
The northern Devon fishing industry is struggling at the moment to create and to promote itself as a sustainable fishery off Lundy and around the north Devon cost. There is worrying evidence that Belgium beam trawlers are changing to otter trawlers and hoovering up fish in the Bristol channel in a way wholly contrary to it remaining a sustainable fishery. Will the Minister look into that and do something about it if he finds that that practice is happening?
I will happily look into that, although I am not quite sure what it has to do with the English Nature's recommendation on Lyme bay.
I did not feel that that answer was very helpful from the Minister. I want to know how long it will take him to decide whether to support what Devon Wildlife Trust and English Nature have asked for, which is the enforcement of a no-dredging zone covering 10 per cent. of Lyme bay, although when I googled DEFRA and indecision, I got 699 hits on badger culling, TB in cattle, partial payments, coastal access, greyhound welfare, delaying the marine Bill—
Order. That is quite wide of the question.
Emissions Trading Schemes
Thanks to strong UK leadership during our G8 and EU presidencies, the international framework is now in place to deliver actions such as emissions trading that are needed to combat climate change.
I have already announced the UK’s proposal for the next period of the EU’s emissions trading scheme, delivering additional savings of 8 million tonnes of carbon each year. Emissions trading is here to stay and the Government are committed to making it work and to extending it to new sectors, as well as exporting its benefits to other parts of the world that may be interested. Our actions to date have given us leverage as we press for a new international agreement on stabilising carbon emissions.
It is obviously welcome that some progress was made at the G8 summit in St. Petersburg on issues that were on the agenda, but what are the prospects of getting countries outside the European Union involved in such a scheme? There has been talk about a wider international scheme for some time, and Britain has been taking the lead on the issue, but matters are moving forward fairly slowly—they need to be brought forward much more quickly. I would be grateful if the Minister indicated what progress has been made outside Europe as well as within the European Union.
I share wholeheartedly my hon. Friend’s commitment to the urgency and importance of moving forward. I can say two things. First, Australian states, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Switzerland, Norway and a number of US states are introducing emissions trading schemes, which is interesting evidence of the progress of the idea. Secondly, I can assure him that in the Gleneagles dialogue that will continue in Mexico in October and then at the Nairobi conference of the United Nations in November, the Government will be pushing hard to build consensus on the importance of the international stabilisation goals in respect of carbon dioxide and to take forward the agenda on the global mechanisms, which include all the major players, for finding the most cost-effective ways of reducing emissions, which we must do sooner rather than later.
The Secretary of State will recognise the importance of persuading the US Administration to engage positively on the issues of climate change and emissions trading. Given that we have discovered this week that the special relationship seems, shall we say, a little one-sided, how confident is he that British efforts to persuade the Bush Administration to take a responsible lead in global emissions trading will be met by more than a shrug and a yo?
I have to say that, even for a sleepy Thursday before a summer recess, that was pretty hard work. I say three things to the hon. Gentleman. First, it is important that we keep up the pressure at all levels—at governmental level, and, as I said in the Environmental Audit Committee yesterday, at business level and state level. He will know that 240 US cities are now party to the Kyoto agreement, covering 45 million citizens. Secondly, in respect of the intergovernmental level, we are working hard as part of the Gleneagles dialogue—[Interruption.] The hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle (Gregory Barker) keeps on shouting from a sedentary position, “How?” He obviously does not know that Governments speak to each other and that they have a process that leads to decisions being made at a certain time. It would be foolish of me to announce decisions in advance of meetings—[Interruption.] If the hon. Gentleman listened, he might learn something. It would be foolish of me to announce decisions now that will be taken at meetings in October and November.
Thirdly, the hon. Member for East Surrey (Mr. Ainsworth) asked about confidence. I am confident that there is a growing global recognition of the urgency of this problem and that every part of the world will have to be part of the solution. Obviously, it is up to individual politicians to make the final decision about how they participate, but I am confident that the UK Government are exercising maximum leverage in every way to ensure that we get the change that we need.
My right hon. Friend will be aware that a variety of options have been applied under the EU emissions trading scheme. For example, the Germans have chosen a fuel and technology-specific option, which has stimulated 11GW of investment in new clean coal technology. Has my right hon. Friend seen the paper provided by the clean coal task group, which suggests that the option in Britain will be biased in favour of gas? Will he look at that paper and meet the group with a view to bringing in an even playing field so that we get the investment in clean coal technology that is required?
My hon. Friend raised an important point. I have not seen the paper, but I will make sure that it is in my box this weekend. I will look carefully at the best way of taking this forward. My hon. Friend will know that the energy review made strong commitments both to clean coal and, critically, to what is known as carbon capture and storage technology. After all, the Chinese are opening one new coal-fired power station every four days. It is essential, given the global nature of the problem, that technological developments such as carbon capture and storage, which offer the prospect of clean-coal energy production, are taken forward, not at the expense of energy efficiency measures, which are also critical, but as a complement to them.
As the Government’s plans for new nuclear power hinge on an attractive carbon price, how does the Secretary of State propose to reform the emissions trading system to ensure that there is a guaranteed floor price?
The hon. Gentleman knows that, although there were predictions of doom when the figures for the first year of operation of the ETS were announced, it is significant that those predictions have not come to pass in respect of the carbon price. It has been relatively stable. The key is obviously phase 3 of the scheme after 2012. The United Kingdom Government will work closely with environmental groups and the business sector, which I have met already, to ensure that we have an independent, properly monitored and effective system for the EU ETS. In that context, it is significant that the European Commission has said that no caps for phase 2 will be below the current level of emissions. So scarcity will be built into the system. All caps will need to be consistent with the Kyoto protocol, which is also important.
Environment Agency (Grant in Aid)
The agency spent £9.8 million of its grant in aid in England and Wales on fisheries and £7 million on navigation in 2002-03, and is currently intending to spend £9.4 million and about £12 million respectively in 2006-07. For the same periods, income from rod licences was £16.1 million and £20 million respectively, and income from navigation registrations was £3.3 million and £4.2 million.
The Minister will be aware that the wholly unwelcome cut of £400,000 in the fisheries budget threatens adversely to affect the ability of the Environment Agency to combat the spread of lethal fish diseases such as the koi herpes virus, several outbreaks of which have occurred in the UK recently. On behalf of Britain’s 3.5 million anglers, may I ask the Minister what action he proposes to take to prevent the spread of KHV, which is the aquatic equivalent of foot and mouth disease?
My hon. Friend, who is a champion in the House for the angling community, is absolutely right. The situation with carp herpes is serious, and in view of the latest developments it is my intention, subject to discussions with the devolved Administrations, to make KHV a notifiable disease.
In view of the current drought and extremely high temperatures, what measures is the Minister taking to ensure that abstraction is kept at a manageable level and that our rivers are able to retain a healthy invertebrate and aquatic environment for the fish, mammals and birds that rely on it?
The hon. Gentleman makes an important point about some of the environmental effects of the current hot weather, which include carp herpes, which becomes a problem only above a certain temperature. As the temperature of lakes and rivers in the UK is rising above that temperature for the first time this year, there are some challenging situations. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right; water companies have a duty, especially in weather conditions such as these, to think carefully about levels of abstraction so that they do not make the already challenging environmental situation in rivers and lakes worse.
Biomass Task Force
The Department, in close liaison with the Department of Trade and Industry, is actively engaged in driving forward the implementation of all the actions in the Government’s response to the Biomass Task Force report.
I thank the Minister for his answer, but are the Government seriously committed? What serious capital grant is available for the biomass supply chain, whether from crops, trees or waste?
Yes, the Government are seriously committed to increasing biomass production. Our biomass capital grant scheme is allocating between £10 million and £15 million over the next couple of years; £66 million has been allocated to develop markets in biomass combined heat and power electricity generation and £80 million is available for microgeneration, which will include biomass technologies. There is a range of projects that we believe can come on stream. We would like to see the prediction in Ben Gill’s report that biomass could actually meet 6 per cent. of heat and electricity generation by 2020 fulfilled.
Biomass has greater potential to replace fossil fuels than biofuels, in the short term at least, yet it attracts little attention and less publicity. Have the Government made an assessment of the establishment grants paid to farmers and landowners to plant biomass, such as short-term coppice crops and miscanthus? Although I understood that the bio-energy infrastructure scheme was taking no further applications, the Government have stated that they might take a further round of applications. Will the Minister make a statement about that?
I have already outlined a number of schemes that the Government are introducing to help to encourage the growth of the biomass sector. The hon. Gentleman is right to point out the importance of biofuels, too. We need an increase on the current generating figures of 1 per cent. of heat and 1.85 per cent. of electricity from biomass sources, and we can achieve that by helping to stimulate the market through Government measures.
As for the grant schemes for the growing of, for instance, miscanthus and short rotation coppice, they have been part of the rural development programme. We are negotiating and agreeing with the Commission a new rural development programme and we want to see encouragement for biomass as part of that programme.
Following on from the earlier question, are the Government now looking more favourably at wood coppice rather than miscanthus? Is that the Government’s policy? There are some fears among growers that that is the way that the Government are going.
As a Government, we do not particularly take a view on whether miscanthus or short-rotation coppice or other biomass sources—for instance, woodchip—are favoured. We have a regime in place that will encourage the further development and growth of the biomass sector in the future. We believe that there is a lot more that the Government can do to encourage and stimulate the growth of renewables in this country and that renewables must be a vital part of our future energy mix.
Will the Minister join me in paying tribute to the work of Ben Gill, who is a constituent of mine in the Vale of York? Will he recognise that that work must now progress with some urgency, given that the British Sugar factory in York is due to close next year? The issue is not just about willow coppice—as the hon. Member for Selby (Mr. Grogan) said—but about exploring ways of turning sugar beet into bioethanol. That work must now proceed with some urgency.
I certainly pay tribute to the work of Sir Ben Gill. I had the pleasure of taking part in a meeting at the Royal show, which Ben chaired. In his typical, robust manner, he explained the importance of biomass to the future of agriculture across the United Kingdom. There are strong opportunities for the farming community to do more in the biomass sector. The hon. Lady mentioned sugar beet. She will probably be aware of a current project in Norfolk that is looking to grow sugar beet to produce bioethanol. That should come on stream in the near future. With the renewable transport fuels obligation coming into force from 2008 to 2010, there will be big opportunities for growers to contract supply to people who will generate biofuels.
I agree with the Minister’s comment that there is a lot more that the Government can do in this area. On reflection, is not the Minister slightly embarrassed that the energy review made only the briefest mention in passing of small and medium-scale biomass and bioenergy generation, despite increasingly clear evidence that that smaller-scale generation offers a more efficient, economical, decentralised and secure renewable source? It has huge potential, as the Biomass Task Force rightly identified. Is it not true that in the area of biocrops and bio-energy, even the United States under George Bush is doing more on the ground than this Government?
If the hon. Gentleman looks in detail at the energy review, he will see that biomass features in the section on renewables and the section on transport. I repeat that the Government are taking forward a wide programme of action when it comes to biomass. We have identified some 65 actions that we need to take as a Government in response to Sir Ben Gill’s report. We are getting on with it. We believe that the biomass market is growing and we have in place a package of measures to ensure that we help to stimulate further that demand.
Supermarket Carrier Bags
We have regular discussions with colleagues about incentives for more sustainable living. The Treasury has assessed the Irish plastic bags tax, following its introduction in 2002, and has concluded that there is no clear evidence that a tax would be effective on environmental grounds.
The Labour-led Scottish Parliament is undertaking a major review of the suitability of introducing a plastic carrier bag tax to reduce the number of the bags that are used and wasted each year. Given that the report is due in October 2006, and that the Irish carrier bag tax is completing its fourth year, will my hon. Friend commit to examining again the arguments in favour of a carrier bag tax when we come back from the summer recess?
I am not waiting until I come back from the summer recess. I spend a lot of time with officials discussing the merits or otherwise of a plastic bag tax. Indeed, we are working closely with colleagues in the Scottish Executive, who are still unconvinced of the environmental merits. The Irish Government are yet to conduct a proper review of the effectiveness of their plastic bag tax. Although we all share my hon. Friend’s desire to reduce the unnecessary number of plastic bags that people use and discard when they shop, the whole life cycle analysis of the environmental efficacy of a plastic bag tax shows that it would not be as convincing as one might superficially think.
Will the Minister be bold enough to tell colleagues in the Treasury that although there might not be environmental benefits, a tax on plastic bags would be broadly welcomed by people in this country and would send a real signal that we were serious about waste and the environment? Just go and tell the Treasury that!
I am very grateful for my hon. Friend’s advice—[Hon. Members: “Career advice.”] Yes, perhaps his career advice was not as sound as his advice about other things usually is. I agree with him that some kind of measure to deal with the profusion of plastic bags in circulation would be popular. The women’s institute, before which we should all genuflect, recommended such a thing just a few weeks ago. However, I repeat my point that was so well received by the hon. Member for Macclesfield (Sir Nicholas Winterton). We can examine the overall economic benefits of the tax as it has been introduced in Ireland, where people have started to use more black bin liners and paper bags as substitutes. In the overall scheme of things, the impact on the environment has not necessarily been positive, but we keep the matter under review, and I accept the point that my hon. Friend the Member for Sherwood (Paddy Tipping) makes about the tax’s possible popularity.
Landfill
From 1997 to 2005, we landfilled an estimated total of 100.8 million tonnes of biodegradable municipal waste. From 2001-02, which is the first year for which we have reliable figures, to 2004-05, we reduced the amount of that waste sent to landfill from 15.7 million tonnes to 13.9 million tonnes, thanks to the considerable efforts of the Government, local authorities and the public to recycle more waste.
It is welcome that the amount of landfill is being reduced due to an increase in recycling. Conservative local authorities consistently top the league of recycling rates. Why are there such big discrepancies between regions, with the north-east recycling 16 per cent. and the east recycling 29 per cent.? Will the Minister confirm that the Government are still committed to their target of reducing landfill to 75 per cent. of the 1995 production levels by 2010? Will they achieve that not by cheating—by having to export recyclables to China and other places—but by encouraging more close-to-home recycling in this country, less waste and less packaging in the first place?
Yes, we want to do all those things. We are confident, although I acknowledge that the landfill targets that we have to meet in 2010 are extremely challenging and will require local authorities, the public and the Government to play their part. However, I was disappointed that the hon. Gentleman made a party political point because his Conservative local authorities are very poor performers on recycling. With the exception of one, they have all failed to meet their recycling targets, and we have had to intervene with one of them to discuss why.
Will my hon. Friend join me in congratulating Wakefield’s Labour council on its magnificent 28 per cent. recycling target? The council is in discussions with his officials about the financing of a new private finance initiative facility to help us to drive further the recycling target to 50 per cent. Will he do everything in his power to ensure that we get the new facility, which is desperately needed for the entire Wakefield district?
Yes, I am happy to congratulate my hon. Friend’s Labour-controlled authority, which, in contrast to the Conservative-run local authorities mentioned by the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton), exceeded its recycling targets this year. It has done extremely well, and officials from my Department will meet officials from my hon. Friend’s local authority next week to discuss the issue that she raises. I think that she will appreciate, too, that the Government have provided considerable support not just to her authority, but to many local authorities across the country, to help them to meet those admirable recycling targets.
Significant progress has been made by local authorities in recycling domestic waste, but there is a complete blind spot with regard to trade waste, for which they do not have any responsibility. There are disincentives for companies to separate their waste at source. Companies in the restaurant and bar trade produce huge amounts of recyclable material that simply goes into the normal waste stream, and that is not sensible. Will the Under-Secretary address that problem as a matter of urgency?
The hon. Gentleman has raised an important matter, which is one of the critical issues that we will address when we publish our revised waste strategy in the autumn, as a result of the consultation that we are carrying out. However, it would be wrong to give the impression that trade and commercial waste is not recycled, as a greater proportion of trade and commercial waste is recycled or reused than municipal waste. Although we want to raise levels for both, it would be wrong to suggest that all commercial and business waste simply goes into landfill—it does not. Again, the amount going into landfill has fallen dramatically.
Despite progress, we still lag far behind the rest of Europe in minimisation, reuse and recycling. Less waste is going to landfill, but under Government direction, in the next few years, there will be a massive increase in incineration across the country. Was it not deeply disappointing that the energy review, which is so timid and lacking in substance in its support for renewables, simply paid lip service to energy from waste, which was discussed in only one small box? It did not have anything new to say, and it did not make a single new proposal on the subject. Does not that depressing policy vacuum on progressive EFW confirm what we already suspected—that Government thinking on waste and incineration is still dominated by a backward-looking, outdated, unambitious, burn-and-be-done-with-it mentality?
I am trying to work out the point the hon. Gentleman was trying to make. If it was about the need for extra energy from waste capacity, yes, the Government accept that. If he was trying to make the opposite point, I have to tell him that I am often lobbied by Opposition Members who want more energy from waste. He is quite wrong to suggest that we did not feature energy from waste as a potential renewable energy source in the energy review—we did so, and our Department made darned sure that we did.
Carbon Emissions
The agriculture and forestry sector accounts for approximately 1 per cent. of carbon dioxide emissions. Farmers are contributing to the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions through the growing of dedicated energy crops, the planting of new trees, and the growing of crops for the production of biofuels.
I thank my hon. Friend for that answer, but is he aware that many of my farmers can no longer afford the capital investment needed to put a windmill on top of their house to generate power for their property? Oil prices are rising across the world, so is it not about time that the Government took biofuels seriously and started to invest capital in the marketplace, in order to expand it? Are any grants available to my farmers that would allow that switching process to take place rapidly?
My hon. Friend is absolutely right to say that we have to encourage farmers—and, indeed, everyone—to make that transition. He will have heard the remarks that the Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr. Bradshaw), made earlier about the biomass capital grant scheme. In addition, the EU’s annual €45 per hectare energy aid payment is available to farmers for purpose-grown energy crops that are grown on non-set-aside land. The Government do, in fact, take the issue extremely seriously, and in order to develop further the supply of biofuels, a renewable transport fuels obligation will be introduced in 2008. It will require 5 per cent. of fuels sold in the UK to come from a renewable source by 2010. I hope that that offers my hon. Friend and farmers in his constituency the encouragement that they need.
Many farmers have been encouraged to have wind farms on their land on the basis that it is environmentally friendly, but of course it is not carbon-free. Has the Minister made any assessment of the carbon emissions caused by onshore wind farms?
No, I have not made any assessment, but I am sure the Department has and I would be happy to send the hon. Gentleman the statistics that we have on the matter. I am glad to hear support for wind farms coming from all parts of the House, because the Leader of the Opposition is famously known for referring to them as “bird blenders”, which does not exactly encourage people to adopt the technology.
Biodiversity
We are encouraging people throughout the country to do their bit for biodiversity. Reducing household pollutants and disposing of them properly makes water cleaner and protects aquatic habitats. Recycling rubbish reduces landfill and the pressure on surrounding land. Volunteering and gardening encourage native wildlife. These are small actions, but they can make a big difference.
I am sure my hon. Friend knows that the general population are unaware of the small things that they can do to help biodiversity. In a press statement, he challenged people to do their bit for biodiversity. Unfortunately, the measures suggested will not reach the general population. Will my hon. Friend consider what additional steps he can take to ensure that the general public realise the small things they can do to help the environment?
Yes, absolutely. I am happy to take up that challenge from my hon. Friend because it is important not just that we know what can be done, but that we publicise that and help people to become aware of the small incremental steps that they can take in their own lives. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State recently spoke about the fact that the personal carbon footprint accounts for 40 per cent. of the country’s carbon footprint. We must be able to communicate to people the impact of their actions, so I shall take up my hon. Friend’s challenge.
The Minister mentioned gardens. Does he agree with the pop star Kim Wilde, who said this week that gardens have become a refuge for threatened wildlife? Given that our 15 million gardens represent a greater area than all our nature reserves put together, is it right that gardens are first in line for development?
I want to take up the serious point that the hon. Gentleman makes, without straying, as he tempts me to do, into planning matters, which are not properly my domain. The point that he makes is of fundamental importance. All of us who are privileged to have gardens have a responsibility to consider what we can do to generate habitats for wildlife and to make our gardens as environmentally friendly as we can. That is the important message that the hon. Gentleman is trying to get across, and I wholeheartedly agree with him.
Bovine Tuberculosis
We launched our 10-year strategy in March last year. My hon. Friend may be interested to know that the latest figures show a 34 per cent. reduction in cattle TB in Gloucestershire, his county, in the first five months of this year.
I thank my hon. Friend for his optimistic approach. It is fair to say that the problem will not go away. We have taken farmers up the hill in the expectation that there will be a new strategy, and there has been a massive consultation, which resulted in overwhelming opposition to a large-scale cull. We cannot leave it at that, but it is pleasing to hear that there are changes afoot. Perhaps that is to do with the nature of the testing, or perhaps it is to do with cattle-to-cattle transfer. The Government must say something about what their strategy will be, and I hope that will be not long delayed.
I did not mean to sound optimistic. I was simply stating a fact to my hon. Friend, and I am well aware of the potential for the figures to go back up again. Until we get a better understanding of what has caused the sudden and dramatic fall in new bovine TB cases, it would not be reasonable for him to expect the Government to make a decision one way or another on badger culling.
May I inform the Minister that in the part of my constituency near the Welsh border—Minsterley and Pontesbury—there has been a huge rise in the number of bovine TB cases among the cattle of my local farmers, who are extremely concerned about it? Will he meet a delegation of Shrewsbury farmers to give them an opportunity to express their concerns to him?
Yes, I would be happy to meet a delegation of his constituents, although I would be extremely surprised if his area was unique in not having experienced a significant fall in bovine TB in the first five months of this year. I will check the figures, which I do not have to hand, and let him have them. There has been a 20 per cent. fall nationally, and the fall has been even more dramatic in some of the worst hot spots.
May I ask my hon. Friend not to rush into a decision on this very important issue? I do not think that there is any support in this House or among the general public for a mass cull. Where are we as regards developing a vaccine for this terrible disease?
We are already conducting field trials of a badger vaccine, and we are working out the best way of conducting similar trials on cattle. I do not think that my hon. Friend is right when he says that there is no support in this House for a cull of badgers. That is the official policy of the Conservatives and of the Liberal Democrats, but they have not quite explained how they would do it in an effective and sustainable way.