Government Response
Introduction
The Government welcomes the Environment Food and
Rural Affairs Committee's report on Tree Health and Plant Biosecurity.
We agree that it is essential to develop a strengthened approach
to plant health through collaboration approach between government,
the international community, industry, NGOs, landowners and the
public. The Plant Biosecurity Strategy which was published on
30 April details the Government's approach to developing an enhanced
plant health programme. The Committee's report makes a timely
contribution to our plans to implement the Strategy.
Enhanced plant health programme
1. Defra must collaborate with all stakeholders
to complete its delivery of all the Taskforce recommendations
by creating a transparent, comprehensive and effective enhanced
plant health programme. The Government must develop its capability
to accurately predict, monitor, control and mitigate the impact
of pests and pathogens in the UK.
The Government agrees that it is essential that we
collaborate with stakeholders in the development of a transparent,
comprehensive, effective and sustainable plant health service
which will deliver the recommendations of the Taskforce. The Plant
Biosecurity Strategy for Great Britain published on 30 April 2014
provides a broad overview of the work we will be undertaking at
home, within the EU and internationally to deliver an enhanced
programme which is flexible to ensure our systems are dynamic,
and constantly evolving to keep pace with changing threats.
The strategy is the result of extensive consultation,
discussion and input from a wide spectrum of interested parties
including devolved administrations, government agencies, representatives
of industry, farming, forestry, the independent Taskforce on Tree
Health and Plant Biosecurity, and conservation organisations.
We will continue to work with stakeholders as we implement the
strategy since a collaborative approach is the best way to reduce
the risks of pests entering GB, mitigate the impact of newly established
pests, and in the longer-term make our businesses and our environment
more resilient to the threats from pests.
The Government agrees that we must enhance and maintain
capability to predict, monitor, control and mitigate the impact
of pests and pathogens in the UK. Ensuring capability and capacity
is an underpinning requirement of the strategy which sets out
details of activity to identify the contribution required from
Government to protect the critical mass of core scientific and
technical capacity and capability, whilst creating opportunities
for a wider community of trained plant health professionals. This
includes recruiting additional plant health inspectors, to undertake
inspections at borders and inland surveillance, and developing
and testing new contingency plans.
Risk register
2. It is essential that the risk register incorporates
sufficient information and detail about relevant mitigation measures,
proposed actions and their potential impacts. Defra must secure
this level of detail in order to enable consistent application
by stakeholders and to ensure that resources are effectively deployed
to manage the particular threat in question. (Paragraph 16)
The Government has developed, with stakeholders and
independent experts, the publicly-available risk register to prioritise
activity to tackle key pests, and agrees that it must contain
sufficient information and detail to ensure that resources are
effectively deployed. The risk register will be a dynamic tool,
which will be maintained, and updated in response to new developments.
Effective horizon scanning will identify potential new additions
to the register and preparedness for specific threats will be
enhanced through improved contingency planning. The risk register
will identify priority actions, such as research and regulation,
in response to specific threats. The next phase of the risk register
project will refine and enhance the risk register, including improving
the robustness of the input data.
Government will continue to carry out Pest Risk Analyses
(PRA), which complement and underpin assessments through the risk
register process. Priority will be given to pests assessed as
being potentially significant on the risk register, but where
there is a lack of knowledge about that pest. PRAs will be carried
out according to prescribed international standards which include
an assessment of spread, potential and socio-economic impacts
etc. These analyses include detail about relevant mitigation measures,
proposed actions and their potential impacts, including costs.
We have already bolstered resources for PRA production and are
developing a centre of PRA excellence.
We share knowledge internationally through collaboration
on risk assessment (including contributing to and making use of
international PRAs where these are available) and will work with
industry to gain trade intelligence, which will feed into the
risk register and PRA process. We will continue to make the risk
register outputs available for public scrutiny and challenge and
will continue to publish all PRAs for comment.
Co-ordination and collaboration
3. We urge the Government to ensure that the Chief
Plant Health Officer role is clearly defined and supported. Responsibilities
should include providing clear co-ordination and integrated delivery
between the different organisations involved in plant health within
the UK and improving the lines of communication between the UK
and EU member states to aid collaboration and the exchange of
pest and pathogen information. (Paragraph 24)
Professor Nicola Spence has been appointed to the
role of Chief Plant Health Officer; her role includes advising
Ministers, industry and others about the risks posed by plant
pests and diseases and working to ensure that measures are in
place to manage those risks and minimise their impact. She is
supported by a team of officials.
The Chief Plant Health Officer has a specific role
in co-ordinating plant health arrangements across the UK, in liaison
with the Devolved Administrations and the Forestry Commission.
This includes taking ownership of the UK Plant Health Risk Register
and responsibility for the outputs of the monthly Plant Health
Risk Group meetings, at which the Forestry Commission and Devolved
Administrations are represented. The Chief Plant Health Officer
is also responsible for ensuring that effective contingency plans
are in place and for taking the lead in any major outbreaks. She
has direct access to Ministers, including through monthly biosecurity
meetings at which she reports on current risks.
The Chief Plant Health Officer has a role supporting
the reporting lines which are already in place to ensure exchange
of information with other EU member states and international organisations,
such as the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization
(EPPO) and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).
We will continue to build relationships and encourage timely and
accurate reporting of developments.
4. We invite Defra to indicate which EU member
states provide the most useful and comprehensive information to
the UK to assist with combating plant disease. (Paragraph 25)
There is a high level of collaboration among all
Member States in sharing information on outbreaks of pests and
diseases which is underpinned by formal reporting obligations
both within EU law and more widely under the International Plant
Protection Convention and through the European and Mediterranean
Plant Protection Organisation. We also engage regularly with representatives
of other Member States at relevant EU working groups and other
fora. These arrangements help to ensure that information is made
available between Member States, which assists with horizon scanning
and preparedness.
There is however inconsistency in how information
is presented and the Commission is currently working on a draft
proposal to improve the timeliness and consistency of format of
outbreak reports. UK has been an active participant in this work;
we are pressing for greater openness and cooperation in sharing
information as part of the review of the EU regime.
Review of legislation
5. We recommend that Defra supports the extension
of the plant passport system during the review of the EU regime
so that it applies to all commercially traded plants.
The Government agrees that the plant passporting
system should be extended and improved. The Plant Biosecurity
Strategy states that Government will work with other Member States
to extend the range of species covered by plant passports as necessary.
While negotiations are at an early stage initial indications suggest
a majority of Member States are likely to favour extending the
scope of the plant passporting system to planting material. We
will continue to press for this outcome.
6. We expect Defra to provide us with regular
updates on its progress on negotiating the new EU plant health
regime, including the specific EU proposals it is seeking to influence
and any substantial conflicts between the EU proposals and the
UK strategy. (Paragraph 32)
The Government would be very pleased to provide the
Committee with regular updates as requested and would propose
to do this in parallel to the updates already being provided to
the European Scrutiny Committee. The original Explanatory Memorandum
(which includes an analysis of the proposed changes) and the update
already provided can be found at: http://europeanmemoranda.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/memorandum/proposal-for-regulation-regulation-of-the-european-parliament-of-the-council-on-commission-staff-working.
Negotiations are still at an early stage and much will depend
on subsequent detailed implementing measures but we believe that
the proposal offers the opportunity for securing a strengthened
regime better able to address plant health risks.
7. In its response to this report, we expect Defra
to identify the plant health regulations which it is proposing
to revoke and to confirm that each of its proposals will be subject
to full consultation to allow for proper scrutiny of the revocations
and their effects. (Paragraph 34)
Plant health regulations are updated frequently,
to implement national priorities or changes which have been agreed
for the EU as a whole. In many cases, this involves adding new
pests or commodities into the regulatory system, to reflect new
risks that have been identified, but in some cases deregulatory
action is also taken. For instance, a package of EU legislation
recently agreed includes deregulation of camellia flower blight,
at the specific request of the UK. Where there are proposals to
introduce or revoke regulations, we consult with stakeholders
to ensure their views are taken into account. The Plant Health
& Seeds Inspectorate and the Forestry Commission work closely
with the industry, including through a number of taskforces, to
keep the regulatory burden of complying with plant health legislation
to a minimum and ensure that inspection and other official processes
operate as efficiently as possible.
8. In the period before the new EU plant health
regime is implemented, we recommend that Defra consider strengthening
the protection afforded to the UK by using existing legislative
mechanisms, such as requesting protected zones for pests that
are already present in Europe but not the UK or implementing new
regulation where appropriate. (Paragraph 37)
The Government agrees that action should be taken
using existing measures whilst we await the outcome of the EU
review. The Plant Biosecurity Strategy sets out plans to build
upon and enhance the work already undertaken by the plant health
services within the current legislative framework whilst we seek
to negotiate an enhanced regime at the EU level.
The most effective way of the protecting the UK is
by keeping pests out of the EU, which is why we are fully engaged
with the EU process and pursuing more proactive and timely decision
making. For pests which are already in the EU there are certain
actions we can take under the current EU system, principally the
Protected Zone arrangements, which we already make use of. We
have recently agreed new EU legislation to recognise or strengthen
Protected Zone requirements on plane wilt, sweet chestnut blight,
oak processionary moth and oriental gall wasp. Consideration is
being given to seeking Protected Zone status for Chalara in Northern
Ireland and other areas which fall within the UK's jurisdiction
as regards EU plant health law (e.g. Channel Islands).
There is also scope to take national action in certain
cases, as we did in response to Chalara and then for plane wilt
and sweet chestnut blight. We will continue to make use of the
relevant EU and national powers as appropriate, using the Risk
Register outputs to help direct our actions.
Capacity and capability
9. We invite Defra to provide us with an estimated
overall cost of ash dieback disease to both the Government and
private owners in the UK, including management, removal, replacement
and protection costs. (Paragraph 39)
It is likely that most of the impact, and hence the
cost, of ash dieback is yet to be incurred. Work that has been
undertaken to model the potential spread and impact of the disease
shows that, in a manner similar to other EU countries, the disease
will eventually spread across the country. However, we cannot
be certain about the pace at which this will happen and the last
year has seen relatively modest rates of spread across much of
the country. Given what the recent modelling is predicting and
our current knowledge of the pathogen's biology, the Government
continues to believe there is benefit in seeking to reduce the
rate of spread of the disease where it remains cost effective
to do so, and whilst our scientific understanding is still evolving.
10. In line with Defra's key priority to safeguard
plant health, it is essential that ring-fenced funding is provided
for long-term research and development work that focuses on preparation
for future plant health threats in order to ensure an effective
response in the UK. This work should include monitoring; the development
of control measures; developing a greater understanding of resistance;
and researching other risk areas such as soil, untreated wood
and insect pests. (Paragraph 42)
The Government agrees that long-term, strategic and
proactive research is essential. The Plant Biosecurity Strategy
details how government will undertake additional research, which
combines a long-term programme of strategic research with more
applied, responsive research. This will improve horizon scanning
and our understanding of how to enhance the resilience of ecosystems
whilst also ensuring that we have in place immediate analysis
to support risk assessment, contingency planning, surveillance
(including earlier detection) and practical management actions
we can share with industry, NGOs, landowners, the public and international
plant health authorities.
Defra will work closely with the Forestry Commission
and the devolved administrations to deliver a robust evidence
base to facilitate rapid and effective responses to plant health
threats. We have recently initiated a new UK Plant Health Strategic
Evidence Group (PH-SEG) composed of key Government and industry
funders of plant-health-related research to better coordinate
our respective research activities at a strategic level. Evidence
of such coordination and co-design of research across Government
includes: at the UK level, the recent £9.6 million Tree Health
and Plant Biosecurity Initiative under the Living With Environmental
Change Partnership; at the European level, coordination of national
and European research via the EUPHRESCO (the European research
network for plant health) ERA-Network, providing leverage of funds,
expertise and research opportunities at both applied and strategic
levels.
Expertise
11. We invite Defra to set out in its response
to this report a full list of the immediate initiatives that are
being taken to address the lack of relevant expertise in the field
of plant health, including clear timeframes for implementation
of these initiatives and details of the funding that has been
allocated; and an explanation of how Defra is co-ordinating its
response with the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills
to ensure that the most effective and collaborative solution is
realised. (Paragraph 48)
Professor Sir Mark Walport, the Government Chief
Scientific Adviser and Head of the Government Office for Science
and Defra's Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Ian Boyd are undertaking
a study (which will report later in 2014) to determine the UK's
future needs for capability in Animal and Plant Health. The study
will include an assessment of the evidence capabilities needed
across the UK over the next 10-15 years, and at a strategic level,
define options for effective governance and delivery. To reflect
the collaborative approach being followed, the steering group
for this project includes senior officials from Defra, the Department
for Business Innovation & Skills, the Department of Health,
the Research Councils, the Devolved Administrations and three
independent experts in animal and plant health.
Alongside this work to review current and future
capability, Defra maintains a research framework to develop and
harness the best available science from within the Defra and its
agencies, UK universities and research institutes, as well as
expertise more widely available in Europe and internationally.
Work undertaken under this programme which assists in enhancing
capability includes; the investment of over £300k into the
'capacity and consortium building' phase of the strategic LWEC
Tree Health and Plant Biosecurity research initiative in 2013;
the investment of £600k over 3 years into a pilot European
fellowship scheme under EUPHRESCO, in collaboration with the Dutch
Ministry; a regular investment of about £100k per year since
2005 into a programme of taxonomic-related plant health fellowships.
12. In order to secure new entrants and to maintain
a suitable level of expertise in the field of plant health, we
recommend that funding is provided to increase the number of university
courses and research posts, with a corresponding increase in the
number of related university places in the UK. (Paragraph 49)
The Government agrees that there is a need to inspire
entry into plant health careers and we have instigated a review
of the educational landscape to advise on the actions which will
be required to embed plant health in to the educational agenda.
This research has mapped and identified 18 key sectors involved
in education, formal and vocational qualifications, from across
lower education (e.g. primary and secondary schools), academia
(e.g. universities and professional scientific societies), industry
(e.g. trade associations and levy funded bodies) and non-government
organisations (e.g. plant related charities). By working with
key stakeholders across the entire landscape we will maximise
the opportunities for uptake by new entrants.
Through this work, Defra is consulting with the Research
Councils on the opportunities which may be available through the
major government investment in both doctoral training programmes
and advanced training partnerships aimed at academics and industry
respectively. Both offer an excellent opportunity to develop skilled
professionals not only in natural sciences but also social sciences
related to plant health. Good progress has also been made with
British Society of Plant Pathology outreach team with a view to
linking up with the Gatsby funded Science and Plants for Schools
initiative. Defra will also be seeking to developing new work-based
learning opportunities and develop new modular training resources
for Higher Education Institutions. Defra's Food and Environment
Research Agency (Fera) also sponsors externally registered studentships
(PhDs) directly through its own Defra Seedcorn Programme.
Resistance
13. In the longer term, the development of resistant
strains of ash trees will provide the surest protection against
the prevalence of Chalara fraxinea, but the resources diverted
to this end must not be at the expense of other, more immediate,
control measures. (Paragraph 53)
The Government believes the best hope of securing
the environmental future of the ash tree lies in understanding
and, identifying durable resistance (or tolerance) to Chalara,
and facilitating the spread of that resistance sustainably in
our ash populations. Defra has commissioned research to identifying
relevant trees as well as developing genetic tools to allow incorporation
of resistance into breeding material. Ash trees within UK woodlands
are being monitored for signs of reduced susceptibility and seed
is being collected and maintained for future use. The level of
susceptibility can only be monitored in areas where the disease
is already present. As a result, Forest Research established and
will monitor a mass screening trial in which ash saplings from
across the UK and elsewhere have been planted in areas at high
risk from Chalara to allow more rapid identification of those
less susceptible to the disease. This screening and monitoring
will continue until at least 2018, and success in resistance breeding
for Chalara may provide solutions for other tree and plant health
problems in the future.
Genetic research is producing maps of the ash tree
genome. These maps will be a valuable tool in identifying the
location of genes involved in resistance and identifying genetic
markers for use by breeders. The research is also attempting to
understand the process by which some trees are less susceptible.
Defra have also funded research to identify chemical pesticides
that are effective against the Chalara pathogen. However it should
be noted that chemical treatments are unlikely to be able to remove
infection or "cure" ash trees, but may be useful as
a preventative measure in certain situations. The research has
identified several chemicals which show potential in laboratory
tests and these products are being tested under field conditions.
Before any product that is identified as effective can be used
it will need to be registered for control of Chalara and the economic
and environmental impact considered.
In addition to work on Chalara, Defra has provided
funds to the Forestry Commission to undertake an enhanced control
programme for reducing the impact of Oak Processionary moth in
London. A pilot trial of aerial spraying with a biological control
for this pest was conducted last year at Pangbourne, to ascertain
its efficacy and impact on other invertebrates.
One of the funded projects under the LWEC initiative
is focussed on developing improved and cost-effective tools for
the early detection, surveillance and monitoring of alien pests
and pathogens of trees and other plants to improve the UK's biosecurity.
It will exploit technical advances in fields such as genomics,
bioinformatics, pest and disease detection, trapping and environmental
sampling, including risk and social impact valuation to support
the health and resilience of UK trees and woodlands.
Environmental impacts
14. The Government's approach to safeguarding
plant health must encompass the protection and enhancement of
public benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Mitigation measures and proposed actions in the risk register
must include building resilience in woodlands and wider landscapes
through conservation, restoration and expansion of our natural
habitats. (Paragraph 57)
Government agrees that safeguarding plant health
must encompass the protection of biodiversity and ecosystem services.
The Tree Health Management Plan, published on 30 April 2014, describes
how we are starting to implement the Plant Biosecurity Strategy
for pests and diseases of trees in England. The Government will
take a risk-based approach to tree health, setting out risks posed
by, and action being taken in response to, specific pests and
pathogens, and by highlighting the links between healthy trees
and a healthy economy and healthy environment. We are investing
in research on plant diseases such as Chalara, to understand better
their likely impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services, and
to inform management to mitigate any impacts (see for example
publications on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/chalara).
The Government agrees that we should build resilience
in woodlands and wider landscapes and recognises the vital role
that improving tree health plays in building the economic and
environmental resilience of our tree population. It is doing this
in a number of ways.
The Government's Forestry and Woodland Policy Statement,
incorporating its response to the report of the Independent Forestry
Panel sets its objectives for forest and woodlands. Biodiversity
2020 sets out a strategy for England's wildlife and ecosystem
services. It includes actions to reduce environmental pressures
and to bring more woodland into sustainable management, as well
as to expand the area of woodlands.
Government is working to conserve, restore and expand
our natural habitats and is committed to being the first generation
to leave the natural environment better than we found it. This
is a challenging, generational ambition that will not be achieved
overnight but we are already making good progress with the creation
of nearly 50,000 hectares of priority habitats such as wetlands
and woodlands having been commenced, and over £3.1 billion
being made available between 2014 and 2020 to protect and enhance
biodiversity through the New Environmental Land Management Scheme.
The Forestry Commission is undertaking research on
silvicultural approaches to resilience, and investigating a range
of alternative species to replace those impacted by pests and
diseases.
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