Tag: Rachael Maskell

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-07-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to ban the culling of chicks in the poultry industry.

George Eustice

The alternatives to culling chicks at one-day old are currently being explored. Research is well underway at the University of Leipzig in Germany, who are developing a new method for in-ovo gender identification, so that eggs identified as male can be sorted and used for purposes other than hatching. I also raised this issue at the G7 in Japan in April, and gave my support to the development of this new technology. We will look carefully at the results of this work and how it can be applied.

In the UK, all four of the laying hen hatcheries use argon and CO2 gas techniques as a method of euthanising chicks and not maceration.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information his Department holds on the number of (a) assistance dogs that are in service and (b) people who are waiting for assistance dogs; and if he will take steps to ensure that demand for assistance dogs is met.

Justin Tomlinson

We do not hold any information on either the number of assistance dogs in service or the number of people waiting to receive an assistance dog. Assistance dogs are trained and provided to those that need them, primarily through assistance dog charities. I will shortly be hosting a round table event with assistance dog charities and users, to discuss a variety of issues they have raised.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-07-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals on banning microbeads and microplastics in all personal care products, washing powders, household cleaners and industrial blast media.

George Eustice

The UK and all other EU Member States have called for the European Commission to come up with proposals to ban microbeads in cosmetics at EU level, as part of the EU Circular Economy Action Plan. These proposals, which we expect to be developed as part of the 2017 Plastics Strategy, will inform the UK’s approach to introducing a ban on microbeads in cosmetics and personal care products. However, we are also open to the possibility of the UK acting unilaterally if necessary.

In addition, the UK, in association with neighbouring countries in the Oslo and Paris Convention for the Protection of the North East Atlantic (OSPAR), has developed a Regional Action Plan (RAP) on marine litter. This RAP includes an action to evaluate all products and processes that include primary microplasti­cs (including microbeads) and act, if appropriate, to reduce their impact on the marine environment. This programme of work will help to inform the UK’s approach to other sources of microplastics, such as washing powders, household cleaners and industrial blast media.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-07-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect of the outcome of the EU referendum on future levels of migrant labour from other EU countries in the farming industry.

George Eustice

Workers from other EU countries are an important and valued part of our workforce. Over the next two years whilst we negotiate a new relationship with the EU, nothing changes.

This will be one of the issues that will have to be resolved as part of our exit negotiation and future relationship with the EU.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how net pay deductions from the salaries of Ministry of Defence fire fighters and fire officers are calculated.

Mark Lancaster

The Net Pay Deduction (NPD) for Fire Officer grades, or abatement in the case of Fire-fighters, is the adjustment to the salaries of DFRS personnel to allow for the differences between their pension arrangements and those of Local Authority Fire and Rescue Service (LAFRS) employees. Ministry of Defence (MOD) Fire-fighter and Fire Officer grades are members of the Civil Service Pension Schemes and the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS), whereas LAFRS staff belong to Local Authority Fire Pension Schemes (LAFPS).

The MOD Fire-fighter abatement is a single blended abatement figure based on a weighted comparison of member contributions rates between the PCSPS and the LAFPS. The abatement calculation makes allowance for the impact on the value of pension benefits which arises because the MOD Fire-fighter pension is based on an abated salary. The calculation of the abatement ignores differences in pension benefits between the schemes being compared.

The pay abatement level for Fire-fighters is calculated on behalf of the MOD by the Government Actuary Department (GAD). The current abatement of 7.1% is being reviewed by GAD to take account of the introduction of the new Civil Service Pension Scheme on 1 April 2015 and the Local Authority Fire-fighters Pension Scheme 2015.

For Fire Officer Grades the NPD has been calculated primarily by considering the differences in member contribution rates between the different pension schemes. The current NPD was implemented in 1993 and according to available information the calculation ignores differences in pension benefits accrued between the schemes but may have taken account of wider pay issues. The current NPD is 5.9% of pre-tax basic pay. In practice, an adjusted NPD, equal to 3.54% of pre-tax pay, is applied to Fire Officer salaries. This does not reduce the tax payable by the officer. For Fire Officers the NPD does not affect the salary used for pension purposes, so both pension benefits and member contributions are calculated based on salary before application of the NPD.

The MOD is currently reviewing the rate of the NPD for Fire Officer grades.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-07-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to improve air quality.

Rory Stewart

The national air quality plan for nitrogen dioxide, published in December last year, set out a range of measures that we are implementing to improve air quality. In the plan the Government announced that we will be mandating the introduction of Clean Air Zones in five key cities (Birmingham, Derby, Leeds, Nottingham and Southampton). We will be consulting later this year on a Clean Air Zone framework, to provide consistency and certainty, together with draft secondary legislation to mandate the implementation of Clean Air Zones.

Later this year, Defra will also consult on proposals to reduce pollution from electricity generating plants with high nitrogen oxide emissions that are not currently regulated. The proposals would extend set emission limit values on relevant air pollutants, with a view to having legislation in force no later than January 2019, and possibly sooner.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse of reviewing the level of net pay deductions from the salaries of Ministry of Defence fire fighters and fire officers was in each year since 2008-09.

Mark Lancaster

The cost to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) for work commissioned from the Government Actuary Department (GAD) to review the abatement and Net Pay Deduction level for MOD Fire-fighters and Fire Officers since 2009 is £139,000 plus VAT. This figure represents costs for wider advice provided by GAD on Pension issues for Defence Fire and Rescue Service (DFRS) personnel and is not specifically related to abatement reviews. It has not been possible to itemise the costs in the time available, and neither has it been possible in the time available to confirm costs in 2008.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-07-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to take steps to rebalance inland water quotas for smaller locally-based fishing communities.

George Eustice

The Government regularly reviews its quota allocation policy. In recent years, it has permanently realigned unused quota from Producer Organisations to the small-scale fleet and allocated the first 100 tonnes, plus 10% of any remaining uplift in quota resulting from the introduction of the Landing Obligation, to the small-scale fleet.

These changes equate to over 1500 tonnes, or an additional £3 million worth of fish, for the small-scale fleet in 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total amount of pay deducted from the salaries of Ministry of Defence fire fighter and fire officer grades through net pay deductions was in each year since 2008-09.

Mark Lancaster

The requested information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-07-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress she has made on publishing the Natural Environment Plan.

George Eustice

Government remains committed to developing a long term, 25 year plan for the environment. Following the decision to leave the EU, we now have a real opportunity to shape a long-term vision for the type of environment we want in this country. To deliver this vision, we will develop a fresh and striking new approach that includes a fundamental review of our environmental policy framework.

Development of this new approach to the environment will need to be informed by significant input from interested parties across many sectors. Everyone’s input into this process will be vital. Further information on the next steps and timings will be provided in due course.