James Cartlidge MP: written questions
4 Jul 2025–3 Jul 2026
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Our reporting years run from 4 July to 3 July, starting with the 2024 general election. They are not official parliamentary sessions. Office costs keep IPSA’s April–March financial years. Records may cover only part of a year; a missing record does not mean no work was done.
Read what this MP said, asked and contributed in Parliament.
29 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Biodiversity: Property DevelopmentDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13514More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to implement the proposed exemption from mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain for developments of less than 0.2 hectares by the end of July 2026.
Answer: Defra will bring forward secondary legislation in due course.
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordFood: ProductionDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 17 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 10690More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has a target for the percentage of food consumed in the UK that is produced domestically.
Answer: The department has set no target for domestic production or consumption, in percentage or volume terms. However, in the recently published Land Use Framework, the Government made a clear, long-term commitment to maintain overall food production in England...
Answered 26 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordFood: ProductionDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 17 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 10689More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has a target percentage for UK food production required to support national food security.
Answer: The department has set no target for domestic production or consumption, in percentage or volume terms. However, in the recently published Land Use Framework, the Government made a clear, long-term commitment to maintain overall food production in England...
Answered 26 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordFood: ImportsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 8 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 7532More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that overseas imports of agri-food do not adversely impact British a) farmers and b) standards on animal welfare.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the response given on 27 February 2026 to PQ UIN 113859.
Answered 16 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordSewage: South SuffolkDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 24 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 123362More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce sewage discharged by water companies into rivers and estuaries in South Suffolk.
Answer: A record £104 billion of private sector investment has been secured to accelerate the cleaning up of our rivers, lakes and seas. This includes over £10 billion to improve about 2,500 storm overflows in England over the next five years. The Environment Age...
Answered 1 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordFlood Control: South SuffolkDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 18 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121779More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 11 December to Question 97538 on Flood Control: South Suffolk, when her Department plans to publish plans for the additional funding at Long Melford and Glems
Answer: The Environment Agency (EA) has previously confirmed £50,000 of additional investment for Long Melford and Glemsford in December 2025, which was provided through other environmental funding. That £50,000 has now been fully spent. The EA works to enhance u...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: National Fire Chiefs CouncilDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 24 Feb 2026AnsweredUIN 115589More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason were no minutes taken at her Department’s meeting with the National Fire Chiefs Council on 26 June 2025.
Answer: Policy officials and I met with representatives from the National Fire Chiefs Council (the NFCC) and Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) in June 2025, to discuss concerns raised in their consultation response. The officials present were those responsible for t...
Answered 4 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: National Fire Chiefs CouncilDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 24 Feb 2026AnsweredUIN 115588More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who from her Department met with the National Fire Chiefs Council on 26 June 2025.
Answer: Policy officials and I met with representatives from the National Fire Chiefs Council (the NFCC) and Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) in June 2025, to discuss concerns raised in their consultation response. The officials present were those responsible for t...
Answered 4 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordControlled Burning: Health and SafetyDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 24 Feb 2026AnsweredUIN 115587More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the National Fire Chiefs Council’s 23 May 2025 consultation response that reducing preventative burns of
Answer: Policy officials and I met with representatives from the National Fire Chiefs Council (the NFCC) and Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) in June 2025, to discuss concerns raised in their consultation response. The officials present were those responsible for t...
Answered 4 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordPlanning Permission: BiodiversityDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 16 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 106351More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she plans to take to help ensure that the proposed changes to Biodiversity Net Gain requirements do not delay the development of planning applications.
Answer: The Government recently announced its intention to introduce a new 0.2 ha area exemption to ease burdens on small developers and local authorities whilst maintaining nature recovery at scale. A full consultation response is coming shortly, along with an e...
Answered 21 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPlanning Permission: BiodiversityDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 16 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 106350More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes to the Biodiversity Net Gain regulations on the workload for local planning authorities.
Answer: The Government recently announced its intention to introduce a new 0.2 ha area exemption to ease burdens on small developers and local authorities whilst maintaining nature recovery at scale. A full consultation response is coming shortly, along with an e...
Answered 21 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPlanning Permission: BiodiversityDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 16 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 106349More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to provide certainty for people with (a) proposals currently in the planning process and (b) planning permission already granted where Biodiversity Net Gain requ
Answer: The Government recently announced its intention to introduce a new 0.2 ha area exemption to ease burdens on small developers and local authorities whilst maintaining nature recovery at scale. A full consultation response is coming shortly, along with an e...
Answered 21 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPlanning Permission: BiodiversityDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 16 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 106348More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the changes to Biodiversity Net Gain requirements on nature recovery in South Suffolk.
Answer: The Government recently announced its intention to introduce a new 0.2 ha area exemption to ease burdens on small developers and local authorities whilst maintaining nature recovery at scale. A full consultation response is coming shortly, along with an e...
Answered 21 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordPlanning Permission: BiodiversityDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 16 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 106347More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the evidential basis is for the proposed 0.2-hectare exemption from mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain.
Answer: The Government recently announced its intention to introduce a new 0.2 ha area exemption to ease burdens on small developers and local authorities whilst maintaining nature recovery at scale. A full consultation response is coming shortly, along with an e...
Answered 21 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordFood: LabellingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97540More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure food and drink sold in the UK is labelled according to RSPCA standards.
Answer: We remain firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and want to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards. The RSPCA Assured scheme is an animal welfare assurance initiative which sets standards which go beyond the ...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordFlood Control: FinanceDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97539More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that sufficient funding for flood prevention is distributed evenly.
Answer: As part of the Plan for Change, this Government is investing at least a record £10.5 billion until 2036 – the largest flood programme in history which is projected to benefit more than 890,000 properties. The Government recently announced major changes to...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordFlood Control: South SuffolkDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97538More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to boost flood defences in South Suffolk constituency.
Answer: The Environment Agency (EA) is actively managing flood risk in South Suffolk through routine maintenance, strategic projects and provision of warnings and advice. Since April 2025, over 2,200 hours and a budget of £15,440 have been spent operating and mai...
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordLivestock: Animal HousingDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 5 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 97537More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to prevent the use of cages and other confinement systems for farmed animals.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 29 April 2025 to the hon. Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole, PQ UIN 47556.
Answered 11 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordCountryside: FiresDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 27 Nov 2025AnsweredUIN 95122More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many hectares of the English countryside have been burnt by wildfires in the last twelve months; and what the cost was in terms of (a) fighting the fires, (b) loss of economic acti
Answer: Defra does not hold details on how many hectares of the English countryside have been burnt by wildfires in the last twelve months.MHCLG is responsible for fire policy and operations.
Answered 14 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordElectronic Training Aids: RegulationDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 14 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 81907More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to ban the use of electric shock collars.
Answer: The Government is currently considering available evidence around the use of hand-controlled e-collars and their effects on the welfare of animals. We will be outlining more detail on next steps in due course.
Answered 21 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordPalm OilDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 78357More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to reduce the use of palm oil in food products sold in the UK.
Answer: The Government is committed to supporting sustainable production, trade, and use of palm oil, not reducing it. Leading by example, The Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services (GBSF) require in-scope public sector procurers to ensure tha...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordPalm OilDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 78356More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the levels of palm oil used in food products sold in the UK on farmers in South Suffolk.
Answer: The Government is committed to supporting sustainable production, trade, and use of palm oil, not reducing it. Leading by example, The Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services (GBSF) require in-scope public sector procurers to ensure tha...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordPalm OilDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 10 Oct 2025AnsweredUIN 78355More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance her Department has provided to food manufacturers on local alternatives to palm oil.
Answer: The Government is committed to supporting sustainable production, trade, and use of palm oil, not reducing it. Leading by example, The Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services (GBSF) require in-scope public sector procurers to ensure tha...
Answered 22 Oct 2025
Original Parliament recordSustainable Farming IncentiveDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 70803More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason his Department selected 12 January 2025 as the deadline for the started but not submitted applicant group for the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme.
Answer: When farmers started an application and saved without submitting, they were shown a message that said "Your application will be available for 2 months for you to continue. If you have not submitted your application by then, we will delete it". T...
Answered 5 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBiotechnologyDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 29 Aug 2025AnsweredUIN 70720More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect UK sovereign innovation on gene editing in (a) current and (b) future trade deal discussions.
Answer: Defra has been clear, including in initial SPS agreement discussions with the EU, on the importance of supporting the use of new and innovative technologies such as precision breeding. Defra remains committed to the Precision Breeding Act 2023, and the se...
Answered 19 Sept 2025
Original Parliament record
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4 Jul 2025–3 Jul 2026. One record per UIN and tabled date; the named department is not a measure of answer quality.
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