Edward Morello MP: written questions
832 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Special Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32859More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her polices of recent trends in the (a) adequacy of SEND provision in mainstream schools, (b) availability of specialist school places and (c) numb
Answer: For too long the education and care system has not met the needs of all children, particularly those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), with parents struggling to get their children the support they need and deserve.The department wan...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: CurriculumDepartment for EducationTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32858More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to integrate agricultural education into school curriculums.
Answer: Cooking and nutrition are mandatory in the design and technology curriculum for key stages 1 to 3. At GCSE, pupils can choose to study a food preparation and nutrition course. The subject content requires pupils to demonstrate knowledge and understanding ...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordFarms: West DorsetDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32857More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote the distribution of cost-effective technological innovations to the farming community in West Dorset.
Answer: We are committed to supporting technological innovation on farm so all farming sectors can maximise their levels of productivity whilst increasing their sustainability and resilience. As announced at the NFU Conference, the next window of the Farming Equi...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: TechnologyDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32856More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding is allocated for research into affordable precision agriculture technologies suitable for small-scale farmers.
Answer: The Farming Innovation Programme funds research across a range of technologies in agriculture including precision agriculture. Almost £150 million has been committed to projects of which over £84 million has been committed to small businesses. From 2025 /...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: SubsidiesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32855More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he has taken to support farmers with changes in agricultural subsidies following the UK's departure from the EU.
Answer: As we carry on the transition away from payment for land ownership and towards paying to deliver public goods for the environment, the Government is working with farmers to deliver a profitable farming sector and unlock rural growth. Environment Land Mana...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Trade AgreementsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32854More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of post-Brexit trade agreements on UK farmers' access to international markets.
Answer: Local authorities have a critical role in responding to the impacts of climate change in their areas. The Government is currently reviewing its approach to Climate Adaptation, including the tools and support we give to Local Authorities. in terms of finan...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: TechnologyDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32853More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to facilitate access to low-interest loans for agribusinesses investing in sustainable technologies.
Answer: Previous support has been offered primarily in the form of grants. For example, the Farming Equipment & Technology Fund (FETF) has helped ensure technologies supporting both productivity and sustainability can be adopted by UK farmers. We are looking ...
Answered 27 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Government AssistanceDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32852More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial support schemes are available to assist small and medium-sized agribusinesses in expanding their operations.
Answer: Defra has committed £1.8 billion, the largest figure ever, to Environmental Land Management schemes in 2025/26, including the Sustainable Farming Incentive. These schemes offer funding streams for farmers who have been often ignored such as small, grassla...
Answered 2 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordBluetongue Disease: Disease ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32851More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent the symptoms on the Bluetongue virus alongside vaccinations.
Answer: Defra’s approach to bluetongue virus (BTV) considers the latest scientific evidence and veterinary advice and aims to limit the spread of infection through proportionate and evidence-based control measures where appropriate, including movement controls on...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordBluetongue DiseaseDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32850More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support his Department is providing for farmers impacted by the Bluetongue virus.
Answer: This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England and Wales only. This Government recognises the importance of tackling rural crimes such as Hare Coursing. The previous Government made changes to address illegal hare cou...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Pollution ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32849More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding is available for farmers to implement (a) buffer zones and (b) other measures aimed at preventing agricultural pollutants from entering rivers.
Answer: Levels of water pollution are unacceptable, and water pollution is a crime. We are working with farmers through a suite of measures to reduce agricultural pollution. Defra’s Environmental Land Management schemes pay farmers for the delivery of environment...
Answered 28 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: Pollution ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32848More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what initiatives are in place to support farmers in reducing nutrient run-off into waterways to protect aquatic ecosystems.
Answer: The levels of pollution in our waterways are unacceptable. We are working with farmers through a suite of measures to reduce agricultural pollution and protect our waters. We regulate the agricultural activities that could cause environmental harms and re...
Answered 27 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: SoilDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32847More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help farmers adopt soil management practices that enhance moisture retention during hot and dry conditions.
Answer: Healthy soils have improved resilience to extreme weather, and soil moisture is an important factor in soil health. Our Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes include actions that support healthy soil. This includes payments for actions to improve so...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: IrrigationDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32846More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support is available to farmers for implementing water-efficient irrigation systems.
Answer: We are committed to supporting all farming sectors to increase levels of productivity whilst increasing their sustainability and resilience. We are looking carefully at how to position further investment and support to enable the delivery of this Governme...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordCrops: DroughtsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32845More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has commissioned research into developing cereal crop varieties more resilient to prolonged periods of drought.
Answer: Defra’s flagship crop breeding programme, the crop Genetic Improvement Networks (GINs), funds research to develop crop varieties that are more productive; sustainable; and have greater resilience against a changing climate, including drought tolerance. Th...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordBovine Tuberculosis: Disease ControlDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32844More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of (a) vaccinations and (b) culling practices in tackling the spread of tuberculosis.
Answer: The new Government has started work on a comprehensive new bovine TB strategy, to continue to drive down disease rates to save cattle and farmers’ livelihoods and to end the badger cull by the end of this parliament. The CattleBCG vaccine, when coupled wi...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDairy Farming: ContractsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32843More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help encourage the adoption of forward contracts between dairy producers and processors.
Answer: Farmers should always receive a fair price for their products, and the Government is committed to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists. Central to this is the Government’s commitment to improving contractual practices across the agri...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDairy Farming: Supply ChainsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32842More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to help promote integrated supply chains within the dairy industry.
Answer: Farmers should always receive a fair price for their products, and the Government is committed to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists. Central to this is the Government’s commitment to improving contractual practices across the agri...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordMilk: PricesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32841More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure dairy farmers receive a fair price for their milk, in the context of recent trends in production prices.
Answer: Farmers should always receive a fair price for their products, and the Government is committed to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists. Central to this is the Government’s commitment to improving contractual practices across the agri...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: VacanciesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32840More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle the recent decline in the number of agricultural workers.
Answer: We recognise that it is vital that the agricultural sector have the labour they need to harvest great British produce and grow their businesses. For this reason, Defra regularly monitors agricultural labour numbers, with the most recent assessment for 1 J...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: ProductivityDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32839More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of available agricultural labour on agricultural productivity.
Answer: We recognise that it is vital that the agricultural sector have the labour they need to harvest great British produce and grow their businesses. For this reason, Defra regularly monitors agricultural labour numbers, with the most recent assessment for 1 J...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordFood Banks: Rural AreasDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32802More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of trends in food bank use in rural areas over the last 12 months.
Answer: The latest statistics on food bank usage including data at a national and regional level can be found in the household food security tables located here: Family Resources Survey: financial year 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK
Answered 27 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordUkraine: Guided WeaponsMinistry of DefenceTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32801More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Gravehawk air defence system recently supplied to Ukraine in countering Russian aerial threats.
Answer: Gravehawk is a bespoke air defence system rapidly developed for the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and jointly funded by the United Kingdom and Denmark. Designed to be capable of engaging air threats in Ukraine, it was tested in the UK prior to transfer to...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordRoads: Rural AreasDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32800More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve the (a) accessibility and (b) maintenance of rural roads.
Answer: This Government takes the accessibility and condition of both rural and urban roads very seriously and is determined to help local authorities tackle the maintenance backlog that results from years of underinvestment by the previous Government. The Govern...
Answered 25 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHoliday Accommodation: TaxationTreasuryTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32799More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions her Department has had with farming representatives on the potential impact of the Furnished Holiday Lettings tax scheme on farmers who have diversified into holiday accommodations.
Answer: The Government will abolish the Furnished Holiday Lettings (FHLs) tax regime from April 2025. This will equalise the tax treatment of FHL and non-FHL landlords’ income and gains. Draft legislation to abolish the FHL tax regime was published on 29 July 202...
Answered 27 Feb 2025
Original Parliament record
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