Defra is committed to offering job applicants who are ex-offenders equal and fair opportunities. This commitment is supported through membership and operation of the Business in the Community ‘Ban the Box’ scheme. Following the principles in this scheme, appropriate pre-appointment checks, including a basic criminal record check, are not made until later in the recruitment process.

However, Defra does not retain details centrally that would allow us to identify employees with unspent convictions so the information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Leaving the EU provides us with an opportunity to redesign our agricultural policy so that it works for the UK, making farming more profitable, competitive and environmentally sustainable.

Defra officials are currently undertaking analysis on future implications for farming. To support this, we will be holding a series of events in the coming months to hear as many views as possible across the country.

Any commercial buyers that source fish directly from the fishing industry must be registered, comply with the obligation to submit to the UK authorities a sales note, identifying the specific vessel that caught the fish, and must comply with ongoing requirements on traceability. Failure to comply with these obligations constitutes as a criminal offence that includes an unlimited fine.

Defra is committed to offering job applicants who are former offenders equal and fair opportunities. This commitment is supported through membership and operation of the Business in the Community ‘Ban the Box’ scheme. Following the principles in this scheme, appropriate pre-appointment checks, including a basic criminal record check, are not made until later in the recruitment process.

However, Defra does not retain details centrally that would allow us to identify former-prisoners so the information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

The intention, as I understand it, is to extend the maximum term of the lease from 31 years to 150 years, and several leases may be granted, as the hon. Member for Wolverhampton South West pointed out—there could be several leases on different properties. The crucial thing, however, is that in my reading of the Bill, to answer the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for The Cotswolds, the grant would be for a lease of a maximum term of 150 years in the normal way of other leases. My hon. Friend also asked whether, in 150 years’ time, that could be considered again and a future Minister 150 years from now could decide to grant a new 150-year lease. I do not see anything in the Bill to prohibit that. The crucial thing, however, is the maximum, which is 31 years but will move to 150 years, subject to the approval of the Secretary of State at the time.

If the hon. Gentleman will allow me to intervene again, I can perhaps deal with that point. As the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for North Tyneside, pointed out, we have given quite a generous spending review settlement to Kew, with increases in resource and capital spend. This proposal will release additional funds to help it invest in its estate. It comes on top of what is already quite a generous settlement for the spending review period.

Perhaps I can add some clarity. We are aware that there are approximately six properties around Kew Green that are part of the Kew Gardens estate, some of which are rented. Some are, I understand, in a state of disrepair, so they need to be renovated. Those are the types of property that could be brought back in under a different lease and generate a better income stream than is currently possible.

To answer a point that was raised earlier, Kew Gardens itself does not have a lease; it operates under ministerial direction and occupies Crown land, so that is a different matter. The Bill is about giving Kew trustees the ability to grant leases, subject to approval by Ministers, to other parties for a period of up to 150 years.

I am delighted to rise in support of the Bill. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Bridgwater and West Somerset. As he says, this is an important issue. The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew is globally renowned for its scientific expertise, as well as being a world-famous botanic garden and world heritage site. RBG Kew is a DEFRA non-departmental public body. We have allocated significant funding to Kew over this spending period to conserve its built infrastructure, as the shadow Minister pointed out.

A large proportion of Kew’s estate is historic in nature and requires careful management. To create world-class infrastructure, Kew would like to be able to enhance its estate. It would like to get additional investment into its infrastructure through leveraging Government investment to achieve philanthropic and private commercial investment. The Government fully support Kew in that aim, as part of its ambitions to further increase its self-generated income and become more financially self-sufficient.

My hon. Friend has explained what the two-clause bill will do. It will remove unnecessary restrictions on leases at Kew Gardens. Currently, the Crown Lands Act 1702 limits leases at Kew Gardens to 31 years. The Bill modernises those provisions, allowing leases of up to 150 years, which brings it into line with the approach taken in the Crown Estate Act 1961. The change will enable the release of value from non-core land and property at Kew Gardens. It will enable income to be generated from Kew Gardens that can be reinvested into the maintenance and development of the site. That will enable Kew’s infrastructure to be brought up to a standard that fully supports its ambitions and mission. Income generation will help enable Kew to achieve its core objectives and enhance its status as a UNESCO world heritage site.

Kew’s trustees are committed to ensuring that Kew has an estate that meets the needs of the botanic gardens, its visitors and Kew’s world-beating science. The trustees support the Bill, as the Government intend that the proceeds that result from it will provide additional income to Kew.

Examples of situations in which long leases might be granted include for the replacement of outdated catering and visitor facilities within the gardens and the renovation of properties just outside the gardens for residential use. All proposals for granting long leases will be in line with Kew’s world heritage site management plan. Proposals will be subject to scrutiny by Kew trustees and DEFRA, as well as through the planning process with local residents and businesses.

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for introducing the Bill, which will free up Kew to generate significant revenue to improve the quality of its estate and support its world-class science. The Government fully support Kew in that aim as part of its ambitions to further increase its self-generated income. I confirm that the Government are happy to work with my hon. Friend to ensure the good passage of the Bill through Parliament.

A reply to your letter has been sent to you on 22 February 2017.

I refer the hon. Member to the previous reply given on 14 February 2017, Written Question 63262.

We work in partnership with the Irish and French governments, as well as the devolved administrations in Wales and Northern Ireland, on the development of an oral bovine TB vaccine for badgers.

I represented the United Kingdom at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 23 January in Brussels.

Council opened with a presentation by the Maltese Presidency on their work programme for the next six months.

This was followed by an update from Commissioner Hogan on the progress of EU trade talks, including a discussion of the findings of the Commission’s report on the cumulative economic impact of future trade agreements on EU agriculture. The UK intervened to point out the benefits of an ambitious approach to future EU free trade agreements.

The Council then discussed the dairy market situation and the recent report on the EU Milk Package, along with ongoing outbreaks of Avian Influenza. Member States including the UK welcomed the fragile recovery of the dairy market. Commissioner Hogan stressed that the release of supplies of skimmed milk powder held in public intervention would be handled carefully to avoid any negative impact on the market. On Avian Influenza, the UK joined with several other Member States to raise concerns about the impact of necessary disease control measures on free-range egg producers. Commissioner Hogan agreed that the Commission would examine policy options and report back quickly.

A number of other items were discussed under ‘any other business’:

- The Slovakian delegation provided information on the conclusions of the 40th Conference of Directors of Paying Agencies;

- The Commission responded to a request for information regarding the scope of the Commission’s powers to adopt delegated acts for exceptions from the rules on protected designations of origin for wines.

Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. The outcome of these negotiations will determine what arrangements apply in relation to EU legislation in future once the UK has left the EU.

The countries from which dogs were imported into the UK in 2016 for non-commercial reasons under the Pet Travel Scheme, as indicated in data provided by carriers, are listed in part (a) of the attached Annex. Countries from which dogs were imported into the UK for commercial reasons are listed in part (b).

Defra officials have met colleagues from the administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales several times a week over the last 3 months to discuss the disease control policies and options for controlling and preventing outbreaks of avian influenza. This is in addition to formal monthly meetings of the four U.K. Chief Veterinary Officers.

We have not commissioned research on trends in international trade for agriculture and the environment. However, there are a number of international organisations which look at prospects for trade in agricultural goods, and we make use of this evidence in our own work. The OECD-FAO Medium-Term Outlook gives an authoritative overview of plausible future developments in international agricultural markets and conveys the importance of future demand from emerging economies.

My Department does not have a business or security need to separate the information between these defined categories therefore we do not record them in this way. Strict processes are followed before a pass is authorised and ultimately revoked.

Passes are issued to contractors, secondees, public sector workers (e.g. from Non Departmental Public Bodies) or Crown Servants such as Police or Military forces as well as to Civil Servants where it is necessary and appropriate to do so. This enables teams to work flexibly and effectively to best support the business need. Use of all security passes are underpinned by strong physical security focus, access control procedures and technologies, clear processes and assurance mechanisms that enable an integrated workforce to operate in a secure manner.

The number of prosecutions in respect of non-compliant dogs and puppies entering England and Wales are set out below.

Year

Number of Prosecutions *

2012

7

2013

5

2014

5

2015

4

2016

5

*It is not possible to know from the returns where these non-compliances were identified (e.g. at Dover or Eurotunnel or elsewhere - including by air).

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) does not gather, collate or hold this data for Scotland or Northern Ireland.

Defra invests a significant amount in agricultural and environmental research to underpin policy development and implementation. Much of this is relevant to the development of future policy in the context of EU exit.

However, research specifically to inform agricultural and environmental policy once the UK leaves the EU, which is distinct from the department’s on-going research programmes, has not been commissioned in the last 6 months.

As we prepare to leave the EU, we are looking at removing the rules that are unnecessarily burdensome, focusing instead on what works best for the UK. We want to free our farmers to grow more, sell more and export more British food, whilst upholding our high standards for the environment and animal health and welfare.

The Secretary of State announced on 4 January that we will be looking to remove such rules, including the three crop rule at the earliest opportunity once we have left the EU.

The table below shows the total and per capita male and female pay bill in 2015-16. Pay bill includes base salary, allowances, employer pension contributions and National Insurance costs.

Pay bill

Male

Female

Total

£52,522,528

£46,130,760

Per Capita

£47,190

£45,315

Pay bill figures for men and women in each department can vary significantly based on representation at different grades and how many staff in the Department are in full or part time work.

A more meaningful way of considering existing pay disparities amongst men and women would be to look at each department’s gender pay gap. The Civil Service has been publishing mean and median gender pay gaps for each department since 2008 as part of the annual release of Civil Service Statistics by the Office for National Statistics. The latest gender pay gap data (published in October last year) can be found on the Office for National Statistics website.