The Environmental Audit Committee recently held its final evidence session as part of its Green Jobs enquiry, and was joined by Ministers from several Government departments including DEFRA, DWP and BEIS. In advance of the session Barry had written to Local Authority Chief Executives to ask them about their in-house capacity and staffing needs to deliver the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan, which involves ambitious plans for Biodiversity Net Gain for new developments and the creation of Local Nature Recovery Strategies. Barry asked the Minister to respond to concerns from Chief Executives about in-house ecological expertise and funding.
Barry joins water quality enquiry and focuses on nature-based solutions
The Environmental Audit Committee recently held its second evidence session as part of its inquiry into water quality. Barry’s questions addressed the role of nature-based solutions for sustainable drainage systems. He asked about the benefits not only of such solutions for reducing surface water flood risk and associated environmental benefits including improving water quality. He also asked the expert panel what the UK can learn from other countries including the US and Australia and how the regulatory framework should be adapted to promote nature-based solutions.
"How are you on no sleep?" Barry presses COP26 President Alok Sharma on environmental diplomacy
Barry was involved with the Foreign Affairs Select Committee today when he grilled Alok Sharma MP and COP26 President on environmental diplomacy.
During a fascinating exchange Barry asked Mr Sharma what offers the U.K government had made to China with regards to ensuring the previous COP was a success. He then wanted to know whether the government had offered the Chinese government an agreed set of principles with regards to biodiversity.
There was also further quizzing following representations made to Barry by South African Members of Parliament with regards to the recent International Development cuts announced by the Foreign, Commonwealth and International Development Secretary, Dominic Raab, to which Barry said went to the heart of their climate challenge and urged the government to improve its delivery of climate finance against these cuts.
Finally, Barry raised the prospect of COP26 and without expecting a definitive answer asked who was the priority when it came to in person versus virtual.
You can watch the captivating exchange below.
Barry raises the issue of pollution and bathing water at Environmental Audit Committee
Barry was back pressing experts at the Environmental Audit Committee, focussing on bathing water. Barry zoned in on how often bathing water in our rivers is tested and agreed with Barry describing the Secretary of State’s actions in encouraging people to bath in our rivers despite the amount of pollution and lack of safety in them as prehistoric.
To watch the full exchange click below
Askham Bryan are playing a "three card trick" on the people of Cumbria
Barry was once again grilling witnesses at the Select Committee for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with regards to Askham Bryan College.
Askham Bryan College currently hold controversial plans to shut down and sell Newton Rigg in Penrith to which Barry said they had played a “three card trick” on the people of Cumbria when Newton Bryan acquired Newton Rigg in 2011 when the ‘asset deed’ that Cumbria County Council originally insisted upon to ensure facilities had to remain there for further education purposes, was nullified when Askham Bryan purchased it.
Barry also suggested that Askham Bryan had run down Newton Rigg so it could be sold to raise money that belonged to Cumbria County Council and then use it to prop up a financially failing college.
The full exchange can be viewed below
Barry scrutinizes Secretary of State on support to shellfish industry post-Brexit
On Thursday members of the EFRA Select Committee questioned Secretary of State George Eustice on the Government’s failure to support the UK’s shellfish industry exporting to the EU after the end of the transition period. Barry asked the Minister why sail-powered oyster fisherman on the Fal river in Cornwall were not eligible for assistance under the Government’s £23 million fund for loss of income. Barry pushed for clarity on why DEFRA was not more clear with wild-caught shellfish exporters about the barriers they would face to when the UK left the EU and why financial assistance has not been available to them. Barry subsequently asked the Secretary of State to clarify how the UK can access real-time catch data on EU catches in the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) amid reports that in the first two months after Brexit not one EU vessel was boarded for inspection. At-sea inspection is important to ensure that catches are within limits and vital to minimise over-fishing inflicted by super-trawlers, which are overfishing in UK Marine Protected waters.
The Secretary of State agreed to write to the Committee following Barry’s intervention on the current position on sharing vessel monitoring data through the EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
Barry questions Minister on preparations to roll out Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers
The Environmental Audit Committee questioned DEFRA Minister Rebecca Pow recently on plans for a Deposit Return Scheme. Barry focused his questions on local authorities, and whether a reduction in kerbside collection if a Deposit Return Scheme were rolled out would negatively affect council budgets. The Minister assured Barry that the Debt Management Office would pay local authorities for any material collected that does not go through the Deposit Return Scheme. Barry then asked the Minister to give an overview of the assessment made by DEFRA of the gaps in reprocessing and recycling infrastructure in the UK, as the scheme is likely to require a major upscaling in the UK’s infrastructure demands. The Minister and DEFRA Official clarified that infrastructure will be one of the key strategic aims of the Scheme Administrator.
Barry questions COP26 President Alok Sharma on domestic and international leadership on Climate
The UK is scheduled to host COP26 in Glasgow in November, the 26th Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, dubbed as the ‘last change’ by Climate experts to keep global temperatures within safe 1.5 degrees warming limits. All the Parliamentary Select Committees with an interest in Climate and Environmental issues are scrutinizing progress towards COP26 in the run up to November, and the Environmental Audit Committee recently held their session. Barry questioned Alok Sharma on how the UK’s recent domestic announcements in the Budget, namely the super-deductions for capital allowances which could go to infrastructure of fossil fuel companies, demonstrate the international leadership required of the UK as COP26 President, and how much scope the COP26 Unit has in steering the UK’s domestic Climate policies in advance of COP26.
Barry leads Public Accounts Committee session on Environmental Taxation
The Public Accounts Committee’s recent evidence session invited representatives from HMRC and HM Treasury to discuss the role of environmental taxes in achieving the Government’s net-zero target. Initially, Barry focused his questions around announcements in the Budget which were contradictory to the Government’s environmental objectives, namely the potential for fossil fuel companies to benefit from the super-deduction on capital allowances. Barry then directed his line of questionning around the need for tax information notes to include expected environmental impacts of the measure and ensuring that Treasury’s Net Zero review recognises that all taxation decisions impact on the environment, reiterating Dasgupta’s key messages from his review. You can watch the exchanges below.
Barry questions Treasury Minister on Budget’s Green credentials and implementation of the Dasgupta recommendations
Last week, Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee held the final session of its Biodiversity inquiry. The witnesses for the session were Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Kemi Badenoch MP and Steve Field, Director of Climate, Environment and Energy at the Treasury. The session was opportune given the recent Budget speech and Barry opened his line of questioning by pushing for a commitment to stress-test fiscal packages and stimulus against the Government’s net-zero target and updating the Treasury’s Green Book for appraising projects to account for the impact on natural aswell as human and produced capital. Moreover on Dasgupta Barry recommended the Treasury take heed of Dasgupta’s recommendation on Natural Capital Accounting and also pushed the witnesses on other areas of the budget which implications for reaching net-zero targets, including the need for a green mandate for the National Infrastructure Bank and ensuring fossil fuel companies do not benefit from the tax super-deductions announced by Rishi Sunak.
Green Jobs: Barry joins inquiry into potential for green jobs in post-COVID recovery
In a recent Environmental Audit Committee session, Barry met with representatives from Think Tanks and Trade Unions to discuss the opportunities for green job creation in the post-COVID economy recovery. Barry asked the first panel, featuring policy experts from Green Alliance and the Institute for Public Policy Research, about the role of Carbon Border Adjustment Taxes. The EU is proposing a scheme to tax energy and goods imports which are carbon intensive. The idea of border taxes are not without criticism, whilst proponents argue they will encourage lower income countries to decarbonize to remain competitive, Barry questioned the panel on whether the UK could better incentivize developing countries to decarbonize in a more just way.
In the second panel featuring Trade Union representatives, Barry focused his questions on retraining and reskilling workers transitioning out of fossil fuel industries and into renewables. The panel also discussed sector transition plans including for new homes, and the support and extra funding required to ensure businesses and workers are prepared for the net zero transition.
Barry questions industry experts on role of tidal power in UK's future energy mix
The Environmental Audit Committee recently held an evidence session with industry experts regarding the potential role of tidal power in meeting the UK’s emissions reduction targets and net zero by 2050 commitment. Barry focused his question on the environmental impacts of tidal lagoons and tidal stream, including its impact on natural carbon sinks such as saltmarsh and seagrass. You can watch the exchanges below.
Barry leads Public Accounts Committee session on Government preparedness for net-zero
Last week the Public Accounts Committee held an evidence session in response to the publication of the National Audit Office report: Achieving Net Zero. With COP26 now just nine months away, it is imperative that the UK provides international leadership on curbing carbon emissions as countries pledge new Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.
In this evidence session, Barry and other Committee members were able to scrutinize decarbonisation plans of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and HM Treasury. Barry asked the BEIS Permanent Secretary to reconcile the approval of the UK’s first deep coal mine since 1987 with the Government’s Energy White Paper and net-zero target and pushed for clarity on plans to meet Fourth and Fifth Carbon Budgets.
Environment Agency: Barry scrutinizes Chairs over missed targets in latest EFRA Committee session
In the recent session of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, Barry and other Committee members met with the Chair and Chief Executive of the UK’s Environment Agency.
Barry used the opportunity to question the attendees on the Environment Agency’s new Five Year Plan, which sets goals in relation to resilience and adaptation, healthier air and water and green growth. Barry also questioned on missed targets in relations to the Environment Agency’s work on limiting illegal waste and minimising water pollution.
Biodiversity: Barry challenges Ministers on UK's role supporting China in COP15
2021 is a vital year for the planet. In November, the UK will host COP26 where countries will renew efforts to tackle climate change and work towards the goals of the Paris Agreement. In May, China will host COP15 to set out a new global biodiversity framework for the Convention on Biological Diversity. At present, this framework is less ambitious than its predecessor, with weaknesses on species reduction targets and failing to commit to the elimination of all subsidies harmful to species.
At the fourth hearing of the Environmental Audit Select Committee inquiry into Biodiversity and Ecosystems, Barry focused his questions to the Secretary of State for Environment George Eustace and Minister with responsibility for international nature conservation Zac Goldsmith on the UK’s role in pushing for a more ambitious biodiversity framework and working with China to secure successful COP outcomes.
Barry quizzes Minister on food parcels, public sector procurement and Scottish fishing export delays
The third evidence session of the Environment Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee on Public Sector Food Procurement took place last Tuesday. Minister for Agriculture and Food, Victoria Prentis MP, and Simon James, Director of Constitution and Borders at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs were in attendance. This proved opportune given the recent revelations of suboptimal food parcels delivered to students in receipt of Free School Meals during lockdown and reports of delays to Scottish fish exports arriving in the EU due to increased red-tape post Brexit.
Barry pressed the Minister for assurances that private contractors responsible for the shameful food parcels widely circulated on social media would not be engaged in the future. He also challenged for greater oversight of the nutritional standards of food parcels delivered during lockdown and the need for cultural sensitivity with regards specific dietary requirements for ethnic and religious minorities. Furthermore, Barry was able to challenge the Director of Constitution and Borders at DEFRA on the delays to Scottish Seafood exports as a result of requiring Export Health Certificates (EHC) post-Brexit and support the government are providing to exporters facing delays.
You can watch the exchanges below.
Barry leads session on Managing Flood Risks
In the latest Public Accounts Session public evidence session, Barry was the lead member. The witnesses were: Tamara Finkelstein (Permanent Secretary, Defra), Sir James Bevan (Chief Executive, Environment Agency), Catherine Wright (Interim Executive Director of Flood and Coastal Risk Management, Environment Agency), and Sally Randall (Director, Flooding and Water, Defra)
Throughout the session, Barry was urging Defra to provide stronger leadership and challenging the Department to be clearer on the impact of its programme on overall flood risk and how it will measure the value for money. You can watch the full exchange below.
Barry tackles the question of sustainability in fashion
In this EAC follow up meeting, Barry questioned an expert panel on social and environmental sustainability in the fashion industry.
The panel consisted of:
Fiona Gooch, Senior Policy Adviser, Traidcraft Exchange;
Peter Andrews, Head of Sustainability Policy, British Retail Consortium
Dr David Moon, Head of Business Collaboration, WRAP
Barry’s series of questioning touched on topics such as:
How they will tackle the fundamental underlying problems in the industry and achieve real change
Whether they will implement a target to reduce shedding of microfibres in synthetic garments
What they are doing to make the whole industry more sustainable
Should there be mandatory compliance be implemented to help achieve their goals
You can watch the exchange below.
Barry scrutinises candidate for the Office of Environmental Protection in joint approval hearing
In this approval hearing both the EAC and EFRA scrutinised Dame Glenys Stacey, the Government’s preferred candidate to become Chair of the new Office for Environmental Protection.
You can watch Barry question Dame Glenys below.
"How should we approach the challenge of population growth?"- Barry questions expert panelist
This EAC session focused on Biodiversity and Ecosysyems. There were two panels and they consisted of:
Panel 1,:
• Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta, Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus, University of Cambridge, Lead on HMT Economics of Biodiversity Review.
Panel 2,:
• Professor David Hill CBE, Chairman, Environment Bank
• Dr Mihai Coroi, Ecology Technical Principal, Mott Macdonald
• David Webster, Director of Sustainability & External Affairs at Associated British Foods UK Grocery
You can watch Barry questioning both panels below