To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his department has made of the impact of nutrient neutrality requirements on small-scale residential developments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his department has made of the impact of nutrient neutrality requirements on small-scale residential developments.

Agreed to on question.

Agreed to on question.

I am grateful for the opportunity to raise the issue of sewage pollution in the River Otter, a river that flows through many of the Devon communities that I represent.

I should say at the outset that, this morning, I declined an offer of hospitality from the new chief executive of...

I am grateful for the opportunity to raise the issue of sewage pollution in the River Otter, a river that flows through many of the Devon communities that I represent.

I should say at the outset that, this morning, I declined an offer of hospitality from the new chief executive of...

It is a pleasure to respond to this afternoon’s debate on behalf of my colleague the Water Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice (Emma Hardy), who is sadly unable to be with us because she is attending an international conference on the marine...

It is a pleasure to respond to this afternoon’s debate on behalf of my colleague the Water Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice (Emma Hardy), who is sadly unable to be with us because she is attending an international conference on the marine...

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the minutes of the Natural England Board Meeting of 30 July, in which the Chief Executive noted that nutrient mitigation risks remain significant, what the nature of those risks is; whether they are financial or...

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the minutes of the Natural England Board Meeting of 30 July, in which the Chief Executive noted that nutrient mitigation risks remain significant, what the nature of those risks is; whether they are financial or...

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what lessons Natural England has drawn from the performance of its nutrient mitigation scheme when designing its Environmental Delivery Plans and its future management of the nature restoration fund.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what lessons Natural England has drawn from the performance of its nutrient mitigation scheme when designing its Environmental Delivery Plans and its future management of the nature restoration fund.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much public funding was allocated to Natural England for its nutrient mitigation scheme in 2022.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much public funding was allocated to Natural England for its nutrient mitigation scheme in 2022.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps Natural England is taking to recover the costs of its nutrient mitigation scheme against its commitment that the scheme would be cost neutral to the public purse; and if he will publish the most recent figures...

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps Natural England is taking to recover the costs of its nutrient mitigation scheme against its commitment that the scheme would be cost neutral to the public purse; and if he will publish the most recent figures...

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Nature Restoration Fund on planning decisions in relation to nutrient neutrality requirements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Nature Restoration Fund on planning decisions in relation to nutrient neutrality requirements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps Natural England will take through the Nature Restoration Fund to help tackle nutrient pollution impacting housing delivery.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps Natural England will take through the Nature Restoration Fund to help tackle nutrient pollution impacting housing delivery.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the first tranche of Environmental Delivery Plans on nutrient pollution in rivers, lakes and estuaries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the first tranche of Environmental Delivery Plans on nutrient pollution in rivers, lakes and estuaries.

Lords motion to take note of the second report of the Environment and Climate Change Committee on Nitrogen: time to reduce, recycle, reuse (HL 161). Agreed to on question.

Lords motion to take note of the second report of the Environment and Climate Change Committee on Nitrogen: time to reduce, recycle, reuse (HL 161). Agreed to on question.

My Lords, it is my pleasure as chair of the Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee to open this debate on its report Nitrogen: Time to Reduce, Recycle, Reuse. I convey my thanks to our committee clerk Andrea Ninomiya, our policy analyst Lily Paulson and the operations officers Farhan Riaz...

My Lords, it is my pleasure as chair of the Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee to open this debate on its report Nitrogen: Time to Reduce, Recycle, Reuse. I convey my thanks to our committee clerk Andrea Ninomiya, our policy analyst Lily Paulson and the operations officers Farhan Riaz...

My Lords, I repeat that a key recommendation in our report was simplification of the regulatory system and toughening of enforcement. There are some low-hanging solutions, such as reducing inputs of nitrogen and optimising their application, improving manure management, mandating low-emission slurry spreading and slurry covers by 2027 and extending...

My Lords, I repeat that a key recommendation in our report was simplification of the regulatory system and toughening of enforcement. There are some low-hanging solutions, such as reducing inputs of nitrogen and optimising their application, improving manure management, mandating low-emission slurry spreading and slurry covers by 2027 and extending...

My Lords, the Environment and Climate Change Committee’s report on nitrogen raises many issues, including the effects of nitrogen emissions on the climate, on the air that we breathe and on the water that we drink. However, I shall confine my attention to the role of nitrogen fertilisers in agriculture.

Plants...

My Lords, the Environment and Climate Change Committee’s report on nitrogen raises many issues, including the effects of nitrogen emissions on the climate, on the air that we breathe and on the water that we drink. However, I shall confine my attention to the role of nitrogen fertilisers in agriculture.

Plants...

My Lords, I thank noble Lords on the committee for agreeing to undertake this inquiry into nitrogen. Although it was my suggestion, I can take no credit for it; that must go to two scientists

who worked with me on the charity SongBird Survival’s scientific sub-committee. Incidentally, I came off...

My Lords, I thank noble Lords on the committee for agreeing to undertake this inquiry into nitrogen. Although it was my suggestion, I can take no credit for it; that must go to two scientists

who worked with me on the charity SongBird Survival’s scientific sub-committee. Incidentally, I came off...

My Lords, I mentioned varying the 60% or 80% rate of nitrogen application but, sadly, it is not as easy as that. No simple rule of thumb can be followed by all farmers since geography, soil type and climatic conditions such as lack of rainfall,

excess rainfall, rain at the...

My Lords, I mentioned varying the 60% or 80% rate of nitrogen application but, sadly, it is not as easy as that. No simple rule of thumb can be followed by all farmers since geography, soil type and climatic conditions such as lack of rainfall,

excess rainfall, rain at the...

My Lords, I thank our chair for her excellent leadership in this inquiry, our clerk and our policy analyst for their excellent work and our specialist adviser, Professor Mark Sutton, for keeping us on the straight and narrow.

Our chair’s introduction was so excellent that I am tempted to simply say...

My Lords, I thank our chair for her excellent leadership in this inquiry, our clerk and our policy analyst for their excellent work and our specialist adviser, Professor Mark Sutton, for keeping us on the straight and narrow.

Our chair’s introduction was so excellent that I am tempted to simply say...

My Lords, I sincerely thank the noble Baroness, Lady Sheehan, and the committee for forcing to the forefront an issue on which it has long been evident that action is urgently needed in the UK and around the world. I join the noble Lord, Lord Krebs, in saying that we...

My Lords, I sincerely thank the noble Baroness, Lady Sheehan, and the committee for forcing to the forefront an issue on which it has long been evident that action is urgently needed in the UK and around the world. I join the noble Lord, Lord Krebs, in saying that we...

I just make the point that the whole point of regenerative agriculture is to regenerate those mycorrhizal fungi and the soil. If the noble Baroness is saying that we cannot and should not use artificial nitrogen—I am advocating for using less of it—half the world will starve.

I just make the point that the whole point of regenerative agriculture is to regenerate those mycorrhizal fungi and the soil. If the noble Baroness is saying that we cannot and should not use artificial nitrogen—I am advocating for using less of it—half the world will starve.