Julian Smith MP: written questions
4 Jul 2026–16 Oct 2026 · year in progress
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Read what this MP said, asked and contributed in Parliament.
19 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Water Companies: StandardsDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 20011More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure the improvement of water companies’ developer services.
Answer: For the current Price Review period (PR24) Ofwat introduced a new incentive of ‘developer services measure of experience’, and water companies now face financial and reputational penalties for underperforming in this area.https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/wp-conte...
Answered 3 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordWater Supply: InfrastructureDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 20010More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that water companies do not delay (a) housing developments, and (b) commercial developments as a result of a failure to upgrade relevant infrastructu
Answer: The Government is ensuring water infrastructure supports housing delivery and environmental resilience. Water companies have a statutory duty to maintain secure water supplies and must plan for future housing through their Water Resources Management Plans...
Answered 3 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordPeatlands: Controlled BurningDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 20000More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of including controlled burning for wildfire prevention as part of the definition of favourable conservation status for blanket b
Answer: The 2025 Definition of Favourable Conservation Status for Blanket Bog describes conditions in which blanket bog thrives across its natural range. It states that both prescribed burning and wildfire can damage blanket peat hydrology. Fully functioning blan...
Answered 8 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordHeather and Grass etc. Burning (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2025Department for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 19999More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will review the licencing system under the Heather and Grass etc. Burning (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2025.
Answer: This Government is committed to protecting moorlands. In September 2025, we amended the Heather and Grass Burning (England) Regulations 2021 to improve the resilience of our moorlands. The Regulations reflect the latest available evidence to guide sustain...
Answered 4 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordPeatlands: Controlled BurningDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 19998More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many enforcement visits relating to suspected breaches of heather burning regulations have been undertaken in the last 12 months; what the average cost to the Department was of con
Answer: The Government is committed to protecting England’s peatlands. The Heather and Grass Burning Regulations establish a licensing regime for burning on protected peatland with a peat depth of more than 30cm. Suspected breaches of the Regulations are subject ...
Answered 4 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordPeatlands: Controlled BurningDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 19997More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the scientific evidence on the environmental impacts of managed heather burning on deep peat; and whether it has commissioned any inde
Answer: This Government is committed to protecting moorlands. In September 2025, we amended the Heather and Grass Burning (England) Regulations 2021 to improve the resilience of our moorlands. The Regulations reflect the latest available evidence to guide sustain...
Answered 4 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordPeatlands: Controlled BurningDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 19996More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact on land managers of the change in the peat-depth threshold used for regulating heather burning from 40 centimetres to 30
Answer: This Government is committed to protecting moorlands. In September 2025, we amended the Heather and Grass Burning (England) Regulations 2021 to improve the resilience of our moorlands. The Regulations reflect the latest available evidence to guide sustain...
Answered 4 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordPeatlands: Controlled BurningDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 28 Aug 2026AnsweredUIN 19995More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance her Department provides to officials conducting inspections of land subject to allegations of unauthorised heather burning; and how many cases in the last two years have
Answer: The Government is committed to protecting England’s peatlands. The Heather and Grass Burning Regulations establish a licensing regime for burning on protected peatland with a peat depth of more than 30cm. Suspected breaches of the Regulations are subject ...
Answered 4 Sept 2026
Original Parliament recordMoorland: FiresDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16419More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will conduct a review of the Heather and Grass Management Code 2025 and assess the impact of a) grazing, b) mowing, and c) controlled winter burns on i) the prevalence and ii) t
Answer: This Government is committed to protecting moorlands. In September 2025, we amended the Heather and Grass Burning (England) Regulations 2021 to improve the resilience of our moorlands. The regulations are supported by the Heather and Grass Management Code...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordFire PreventionDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16418More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to reduce wildfires.
Answer: Defra with its executive agencies, ALBs and through the Protected Landscapes, encourage landscape scale land management to help increase wildfire resilience, including through the adoption of good quality wildfire management plans. We are also working clo...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordAmmunition: LeadDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16417More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of derogations from proposals to restrict the use of ammunition containing lead for commercial purposes on levels of domestic deman
Answer: In developing its UK REACH restriction proposal for lead in ammunition, the HSE assessed the risks posed by lead ammunition to the environment and human health, as well as the socio-economic impacts of their proposal and the availability of alternatives. ...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordAmmunition: LeadDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16416More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of her Department's proposals to restrict the use of ammunition containing lead for commercial purposes on domestic demand for ammu
Answer: The UK REACH Restriction on lead in ammunition is based on extensive scientific evidence and analysis by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Environment Agency. In developing their proposal, the HSE assessed the risks posed by lead ammunition to...
Answered 13 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordAmmunition: LeadDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16415More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has had discussions with a) the Ministry of Defence, and b) the Home Office, on plans to restrict the use of ammunition containing lead for commercial purposes a
Answer: Defra officials have engaged with the Home Office and the Ministry of Defence on the restriction of lead in ammunition under UK REACH.
Answered 13 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordFertilisers and Red Diesel: PricesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16407More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to encourage greater transparency for farmers on the price of fertiliser and red diesel.
Answer: Food security is a priority for the Government, and Defra are taking the impacts from the Middle East conflict seriously. The Government has increased the frequency of official fertiliser price reporting, now published by the AHDB on a weekly basis. This ...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: SubsidiesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16406More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure an integrated approach to agricultural payment scheme timelines and application windows.
Answer: In the recently published Farming Roadmap, this Government committed to transforming how farming services are designed and delivered, bringing them together into a single, coherent service that reflects how farmers manage their land and businesses, and pr...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordAgriculture: SubsidiesDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16405More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the transition away from direct payment schemes for farmers on a) food production and b) business viability.
Answer: Delinked payments are not linked to any action taken by farmers and do not support the environment or food production. This government is backing farmers with the largest nature-friendly budget in history to support farmers and land managers to help resto...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordRural Areas: CrimeDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16404More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to tackle rural crime.
Answer: This Government is committed to tackling rural crime and safeguarding rural communities. That is why Defra has worked closely with the Home Office and the National Police Chiefs’ Council to deliver the 2025-28 Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy which was p...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordFertilisersDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16403More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure the availability of nitrogen fertilisers.
Answer: The UK supply is sufficient for this season. The UK sources fertiliser both domestically and through diverse imports, helping to keep supply chains flexible and maintain a diverse nutrient supply. Fertiliser prices have stabilised and slightly reduced in ...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordFertilisers: UK Carbon Border Adjustment MechanismDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled 7 Jul 2026AnsweredUIN 16402More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the introduction of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on the availability of fertiliser.
Answer: The Government remains committed to implementing CBAM from 1 January 2027. This will support UK decarbonisation efforts to lead to a true reduction in global emissions and give industry confidence to invest in the UK knowing their decarbonisation efforts ...
Answered 14 Jul 2026
Original Parliament record
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4 Jul 2026–16 Oct 2026. One record per UIN and tabled date; the named department is not a measure of answer quality.
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