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30 Nov 2009 : Column 382W—continued
Biofuels
Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will publish a table showing the emissions profile of the fuel B30K other than for carbon. [300404]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 20 November 2009]: I have been asked to reply.
We are unable to produce a table showing the emission profile for the fuel B30K, as we do not have access to all the necessary detailed emissions information. We are able to extract the methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions arising from combustion of B30K, the biodiesel and fossil components, and upstream emissions. However, the information we hold on the constitution of the biodiesel, FAME (fatty acid methyl ester), is expressed in term of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents and we are unable to unravel the individual component greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the emissions profile is also influenced by the type of engine in which the fuel is burnt.
Cetaceans: Japan
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Japan on the treatment of whales, dolphins and porpoises; and if he will make a statement. [302836]
Huw Irranca-Davies: On 24 October I wrote to the Japanese Fisheries Minister expressing the UK's continued opposition to the killing of whales in the southern and northwest Pacific oceans and to the hunting of small cetaceans in Japanese coastal waters. At this year's International Whaling Commission meeting in June, I raised concerns over the animal welfare implications of small cetacean hunts. The UK also highlighted the plight of the Dall's porpoise in Japan and the high levels of toxic chemicals found in cetacean meat.
The UK Government will continue to make our position known to Japan at every appropriate opportunity and argue that Japanese whaling operations undermine the credibility of the IWC as an effective organisation for the conservation of cetacean stocks world-wide.
Departmental Meetings
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which (a) individuals other than Ministerial colleagues and officials of his Department and (b) organisations he met in an official capacity in the week commencing 9 November 2009. [301159]
Dan Norris: In its response to a report by the Public Administration Select Committee "Lobbying: Access and influence in Whitehall", the Government agreed to publish on-line, on a quarterly basis, information about ministerial meetings with outside interest groups. Information for the period 1 October to 31 December 2009 will be published by Departments as soon as the information is ready.
Departmental Plants
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been spent by his Department on (a) cut flowers and (b) pot plants in 2008-09. [301013]
Dan Norris: The costs in 2008-09 for cut flowers and pot plants was £25,309.76. It is not possible to split the costs between cut flowers and pot plants as requested.
Departmental Working Hours
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many and what proportion of staff of his Department, its executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies work flexibly or part-time; and what his Department's policy is on making jobs available on a job-share or flexible basis. [301325]
Dan Norris: DEFRA staff work in a variety of flexible ways. These include:
part-time working;
job sharing;
compressed hours;
staggered hours;
term-time working;
working from home.
Some 1,693 staff in DEFRA and its agencies work part time as of 31 March 2009. This represents 16 per cent. of the work force. This is an increase of 6 per cent. in three years.
Information on other forms of flexible working is not held centrally. Many arrangements for flexible working, within contracted hours, may be made informally between managers and staff at a local level and will not therefore be recorded on central systems.
Information on flexible and part-time working patterns and practices for DEFRA's non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally.
EU Grants and Loans
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the current underspend is on funding from the (a) European Regional Development Fund and (b) European Rural Development Fund which is administered by his Department; and what the total underspend was on European Regional Development Fund allocations in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [301067]
Dan Norris: The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) is administered by the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG). CLG has advised that the underspend on the 2000-2006 ERDF programmes in the English regions will not be known until after the final declarations are submitted to the European Commission on 31 March 2010.
For the 2007-13 ERDF programmes, the 2007 allocation must be spent by 31 December 2009. The operational programmes appear to be on track to meet their spending targets.
Funds from the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development are allocated over the seven-year period of the Rural Development Programme for England. Unspent funds may be rolled forward under European Commission rules to be spent in future years. DEFRA is working closely with the rural development delivery bodies to re-profile future budgets to realise the environmental and rural outcomes planned for the programme.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many claimants have (a) applied for and (b) been awarded funds under the (i) European Regional Development Fund and (ii) rural development programme for England for (A) the purposes of storing water to prevent flooding down stream and (B) other purposes in the last 18 months. [301069]
Dan Norris: The European regional development fund is administered by the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG). CLG does not routinely collect the data requested; however it is currently doing so. I will write to the hon. Member for Vale of York with the information when I receive it.
Under the Rural Development Programme for England, DEFRA has not, to date, funded any projects for the purpose of storing water to prevent flooding downstream.
Under the socio-economic elements (axes 1 and 3) of the Rural Development Programme for England, in the last 18 months there have been approximately 2,550 applications for funding, of which, approximately 1,950
have been approved. These figures do not include agri-environment schemes and the English woodland grant scheme under axis 2.
Floods
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many (a) flood watches, (b) flood warnings and (c) severe flood warnings have been issued by the Environment Agency in each county in each of the last 10 years. [301716]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The following table shows the number of flood warnings issued by the Environment Agency in each of its regions from 2006. The warnings are defined as either flood watches, flood warnings or severe flood warnings depending on the likelihood of flooding occurring.
| Flood watches issued | |||||
| Environment agency region | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009( 1) | Total |
| Flood warnings issued | |||||
| Environment agency region | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009( 1) | Total |
| Severe flood warnings issued | |||||
| Environment agency region | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009( 1) | Total |
| (1) Figures as of 23:59 on 23 November 2009. | |||||
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