Daniel Zeichner
MP for Cambridge · Labour · United Kingdom
“I recall, as a shadow Minister, visiting a major institution in the country and sending the management into panic when I asked them where the bus stop was to get back to the station.”
“My hon. Friend is absolutely right about the location of bus stops. I am so frustrated when I have taken the train to Cambridge, arrive at the station, see the bus, but have to walk 200 yards around the platform, come out of the station and walk 200 yards back to the bus stop, to find the bus has gone.”
“Devolution and local government reorganisation are different things. To be honest, they should probably be considered separately, but they have become so interlinked and intertwined in this debate that it is impossible to do so. If we are to have a stronger devolution settlement, it is right to spend more time getting it right.”
“I commend the Secretary of State and his team for their determination and resolve in the transfer to renewables. In the extraordinary and unprecedented weather that we are having at the moment I can assure the House that some shade would be really welcome in parts of the east of England.”
“I commend all the hard work that has gone into both the road map and the profitability review by the civil servants, the ministerial team and so many people across the sector, including Baroness Batters.”
“On that point about speculative building, I appreciate that the hon. Gentleman is probably not a fan of big, bold projects of this kind, but does he agree that there is a very good example just down the road in Cambridge?”
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“Our sincere hope is obviously that this does not extend beyond the Brandenburg area, but we are absolutely ready to deal with those issues. On the investment at Weybridge, as I have said, we have committed an initial £200 million. This is a debate we have been having for some time, and I am afraid that we are working with the resources we have now. However, I am confident that we have a very good set of procedures in place to tackle any potential incursion.”
“According to the general advice with regard to control measures, if an outbreak were to occur in the UK, vaccination is a control option that would be considered by DEFRA and devolved Administrations at the outset, in addition to culling and immediate movement controls. I can assure the shadow Minister that the UK vaccine bank holds vaccines for a range of foot and mouth disease serotypes. I can also assure him that there is good, close working with the devolved Administrations on this matter and that we are working in harmony. On the movement of personally carried goods, I remind the shadow Minister that this Government strengthened those controls at the borders. I am confident that we are doing everything possible at the moment to ensure that we are following the right procedures, given the risk assessments that have been carried out.”
“I fully appreciate the expertise and passion the hon. Gentleman brings to this subject; he knows of what he speaks. I hope I made it clear in my initial reply just how seriously the Government take these issues. I spoke to him earlier this morning ahead of a Delegated Legislation Committee to make it clear that we would work on a cross-party basis to tackle this, should it come to our shores. I will try to address the hon. Member’s questions, particularly those around vaccination, because that is always raised and is always of concern. We are absolutely ready in case that is a control that we need to implement.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for her question and for the concern she has rightly shown. As I said at the outset, we are well aware of the concern that people feel. However, they should be reassured that we have very good tracing facilities these days; the technologies have improved. What is particularly important is that we are in close contact with our German colleagues, who are sharing advice regularly. Everything that can be done is being done, but I absolutely recognise people’s concerns.”
“I am always happy to speak to Lord Curry, who brings huge expertise and knowledge. I will just say to the hon. Gentleman that there was no delay—essentially, as soon as we were informed, we put the appropriate processes in place, and staff at border control points were issued instructions to hold goods at the border. Everything was done as quickly as possible. I hear the hon. Gentleman’s point about our relationship with the German Government. I know the German Minister personally, and I spoke to him yesterday. I can assure the hon. Gentleman that we are getting every co-operation needed from the German Government.”
“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her comments and for her account of the effect the disease had on her constituents. The purpose of my response to the question today is to give reassurance to people that we have very, very high quality officials working very, very hard to make sure we do everything we can to prevent such an outbreak happening again.”
“I thank the Chair of the Select Committee for his point. I think we all know how important biosecurity is, and that is why the Government committed a further £200 million for that very important facility in Weybridge.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his question—good try. At the moment, we are talking about an outbreak in Germany. Should there be—obviously, we are doing everything we can to prevent it—an outbreak in the UK, we will come back with further proposals, but at the moment we are working hard to make sure that that does not happen.”
“The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. We will, of course, take every precaution and apply the precautionary principle. We treat Northern Ireland in the same way as the other devolved Administrations. The Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry East (Mary Creagh) will be having conversations later today.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for her point and her concern. We have an extensive set of facilities and agencies who are tasked with protecting our country on these issues. I have every confidence in the chief veterinary officer and her officials in the APHA, subject to the issues that have been raised around long-term funding. We have good protections in place and people should have confidence in them.”
“I am always grateful for invitations from hon. Members and feel that I am permanently on tour, but the hon. Gentleman is right that I have not yet had the opportunity to visit, although the Secretary of State has. Last week, when I was at a conference in York, very senior officials from the APHA gave me a very detailed briefing on the work they do. I share in the thanks to those people who play a huge role in keeping our country safe.”
“I am grateful to my hon. Friend for reflecting on the awful experiences of 20 years ago. I assure her that we have excellent people, to whom I have just referred, who are working extremely hard to minimise the risk of any further outbreak. We are doing everything we can to prevent that from happening.”
“Northern Ireland farms are just as important. In Northern Ireland, the controls will apply to meat and live animals moving from a 3 km protection zone and a 10 km surveillance zone surrounding the affected premises in Germany. Those products cannot be moved to Northern Ireland.”
“This is an unusual outbreak, in a sense. It is a very small herd of 20 water buffalo. What is unknown to the German authorities at the moment is how they got infected in the first place. Extensive work is going on in Germany to try to understand that. The difference from 20 years ago is that we now have much better science to be able to trace where it may have come from. Extensive work is going on across Europe, because it is a threat to the entire continent. I can assure my hon. Friend that every avenue is being explored to try to make sure that we understand how this has happened and that it goes no further.”
“I thank the hon. Lady for her question. I know she takes these issues very seriously and we have discussed them before. Let me be clear: this is an outbreak in Germany at the moment. We are doing everything we can to ensure it does not extend into our country. Of course people are concerned and worried. Should it develop further, which we are absolutely determined to make sure does not happen, then we will look at further measures to help and support people, but we are not at that stage.”
“I can assure my hon. Friend that we have an extremely close relationship with the Welsh Government. The Rural Affairs Minister, Huw Irranca-Davies, and I speak frequently—indeed, we spoke to each other only a few days ago, at the Oxford farming conference—and we are in regular contact to discuss issues such as these. In anything that we do, we will be working together on an “entire United Kingdom” basis.”
“I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s appreciation of the complexities that we face, but it is in everyone’s interests to ensure that we stop this, and we are all co-operating closely. The veterinary officials have a very good network, and they are working closely together. No one wants this to extend further.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his concern and his recollections. Yesterday we held a roundtable to discuss the threat posed by bluetongue, and we are in constant dialogue with all those who have direct interests and expertise. We will be working in lockstep.”
“We stand with farmers throughout the United Kingdom. The circumstances are slightly different, for reasons that the hon. Gentleman will understand, which is why we have to provide appropriate advice, but we are working in tandem and lockstep with colleagues across Europe to beat this horrible disease.”
“We constantly keep under review the resources that are available to enable us to tackle all these issues. On the basis of a number of questions today, I shall be happy to visit Weybridge at the earliest opportunity.”
“I thank the hon. Gentleman for his invitation; I shall add him to my list. The border checks involve a complicated set of issues, but one of the Brexit benefits, if you like, is the existence of those checks, and I am satisfied that they are providing a level of security that should give people confidence. As I said in an earlier answer, we have strengthened the controls on personal imports. It is always a challenge to protect any area, but we are in a better position than colleagues in mainland Europe.”
“That is an important point. We will try to do all that we can to ensure that illegal imports are intercepted and stopped. I am delighted to observe the outbreak of cross-party consensus on the need for more investment, and I hope there will also be an outbreak of consensus on how to fund it.”
“The right hon. Gentleman speaks with passion and paints a vivid picture of that dismal period, which, sadly, I remember well. I can give him an absolute assurance that—as he will know from his time in government—the veterinary officers work very closely together, particularly on an official level. This is an entirely shared endeavour, and we will do everything we can to ensure that that there is the close co-operation that is needed.”
“I recognise the hurt that the hon. Lady recollects from that dreadful time. A great deal of work was done in the light of those events, and lessons have been learnt; for instance, technology has changed and improved. I will not go into all those lessons, which are probably worthy of a longer debate, but it is important for us to act on them, because we do not want a repeat of what happened in 2001.”
“The hon. Gentleman has spoken with passion and conviction about that dreadful time, and I fully respect that. We were notified of the outbreak on Friday; today is Wednesday. Of course we are ready to move to the next stage should it be necessary, but at this point the key priority must be ensuring that we keep the disease out of our country, and that is where the attention is currently focused. In the dismal eventuality that we have to move to measures within our country, we will of course work very closely with everyone who needs to be involved.”
“I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her recollections of that time. I reiterate that we are trying to ensure that foot and mouth disease does not arrive on our shores. Should that happen, we will move to another phase. We are not at that point yet, and it is important to reassure people that we have excellent measures and excellent people in place. They are working very hard to ensure that we do not get to that point.”
“We are applying all the rules that we can to ensure that we exclude German products at the moment, but there is quite a complex set of supply chains within the European Union. The key priority is live animals. There is nothing fortuitous about bluetongue, but there have been restrictions on movements for some time, so we are probably better protected than we might have been. We cannot say for sure that nothing will move across the continent and come into the country, which is why it is very important that people are vigilant. Should foot and mouth disease cross the channel, speed will be of the essence to ensure that we shut it down. However, from talking to the chief vet and her officials and my conversations with German colleagues, I am confident that everything that can be done is being done. I hope that reassures the hon. Lady.”
“We do not need any extra impetus; the Government have committed to get a better deal. What I can say to the hon. Lady is that the relationship with our German colleagues is excellent at the moment, and they are giving us the full co-operation that we need.”
“The hon. Gentleman and I spoke frequently when he was in his previous role and I was in opposition, and he knows of what he speaks. We have strong measures in place. We strengthened them a few months ago, and I am confident that they are at the right level at the moment. Of course, there is always a case for further investment, and I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will support any measures that we bring forward.”
“I am grateful to the hon. and learned Gentleman for continuing our dialogue on this issue. I do not recognise that loophole, and I can assure him that Northern Ireland will be fully protected, because that is what we are determined to do.”
“I thank the hon. Gentleman not just for his question, but for the concern he expressed about his constituents, who suffered so grievously. The detailed conversations on these issues are conducted between the veterinary officers, who have a very close network. However, any political decisions that need to be made will be made by Ministers, and I have a very close relationship with Minister Irranca-Davies. If further action is needed, we will work together to stop any further incursions.”
“I thank the hon. Lady for expressing her concern. I reiterate the point I made earlier about the border controls that we have in place. I am afraid this has been a long-running issue, but we have much stronger border controls in place than we would have done in previous times. We are working hard with the port health authorities to make sure that we crack down on illegal imports of meat.”
“The hon. Gentleman speaks with passion on these issues. I can absolutely assure him that the measures in place to protect farmers in Northern Ireland are strong and will be good enough to make sure that we can protect people properly. Clearly, there is a slightly different set of arrangements in Northern Ireland, as he will be well aware. We have to respect that, but we are getting absolute and total co-operation from our German colleagues. There will be no meat coming from affected parts of Germany to Northern Ireland.”
“The Government are committed to removing trade barriers, including through seeking to negotiate an SPS agreement with the EU, but that will take time. The draft instrument is a necessary step to implement the policy that the industry has been preparing for, and to ensure that biosecurity is maintained between now and any new agreement’s taking effect. The draft regulations will ensure that controls already in place endure, implement a responsive, risk-based approach to the border, and protect the United Kingdom from emerging pests and disease, while supporting businesses with processes that are as simple and effective as possible.”
“We explained that while powers exist to control imports through statutory instruments, administrative powers are required to ensure that changes to import conditions can be made rapidly in response to emerging biosecurity and food safety risks in trading partners approved to export to Great Britain. That is a really important point. The amendments reflect and build on changes already made since the United Kingdom left the European Union, to refine our listing procedures for imports of animals and animal products in ways that provide the flexibility and responsiveness needed to protect biosecurity, but also to facilitate trade. The Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee noted DEFRA’s explanation and was reassured about the use of administrative, rather than legislative, powers in that specific policy area.”
“For animals and animal products, the default documentary rate remains at 100%, and while low-risk goods do not require certification or routine checks under the new approach, we are able to detain such goods for checks, based on intelligence. By next year we will have review cycles of risk categorisation in place and we have existing surveillance programmes to ensure that emerging risks are detected and dealt with in a timely manner. Finally, the REUL Act is being used, under its powers, to replace provisions under assimilated law inherited from the European Union to create new provisions that achieve the same or similar objectives. The Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee asked about the use of administrative, rather than legislative, powers in other areas of import controls.”
“The Scottish and Welsh Governments have consented to the amendments. Upon laying the draft instrument, we received a submission from Friends of the Earth, which expressed concerns about checks being made away from border control points, the frequency of checks being based on risk, how misdeclaration would be handled and performance monitoring. It also queried whether we were acting within our powers under the REUL Act. We responded by explaining that the instrument allows provision to be made only for documentary, identity and physical controls to be undertaken at places other than border control posts or control points, and that we have robust, evidence-based risk-modelling measures to categorise SPS into categories based on the inherent risk that the product poses to animals, food, biosecurity and public health.”
“Two policies, however, have impact from the date when the draft instrument comes into force. First, diagnostic testing of plants and plant products can be undertaken at a border control post, instead of such tests needing to take place at official laboratories. That is a positive development, which will significantly reduce the release time of certain perishable goods. The second policy is the use of enhanced enforcement powers to require and pursue full cost recovery of the common user charge for goods entering through Government-run border control posts. That is vital to ensure full cost recovery of the operating costs and to ensure that businesses pay charges for their import activity. The changes will have no impact on the Windsor framework and do not bring in additional checks on the west coast of Great Britain.”
“Competent authorities, devolved Governments, the Food Standards Authority and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs together will be able to amend and manage biosecurity controls in response to changing risks. Additionally, animals and animal products can be categorised based on risk, with the ability to exempt low-risk categories from unnecessary checks, aligning our animal control measures with those for plants and plant products. The third category of measures allows policies that reduce burdens to be delivered in future, and allows extension of policies to non-EU goods. Those future policies would require further legislative change to implement, but we propose to have the powers in place now to provide for flexibility in the future and to ensure that the border can be adapted over time in response to risk.”
“We are therefore making it possible to remove the requirement to carry out documentary checks on all imports, allowing the frequency of checks to be based on risk and providing the power to allow for inland border control posts for reasons other than geographical constraints, in addition to giving Government the power to determine whether to designate allowing greater control to align border control facilities and resources with biosecurity, trade and food security priorities. The second category of measures allows for conditions governing the import of animals and animal products to be updated administratively in response to risk, to uphold our obligations to protect biosecurity and public health while facilitating trade.”
“That aims to deliver a streamlined approach to imports that protects public plant and animal health, and minimises friction at the border. The draft instrument uses powers conferred by the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023, known as the REUL Act. The changes implemented by the draft instrument fall into three main categories. The first category of measures provides a long-term legislative framework for sanitary and phytosanitary controls already introduced, but beyond the reliance on temporary powers, such as the transitional staging period—for example, by amending the definition of “official certificate” to include digital documents, facilitating fully electronic and digital import documentation, and by expanding the definition of “documentary check” to include remote examination or examination by automated means.”
“I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Official Controls (Amendment) Regulations 2024. It is always a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mrs Harris. I wish you and all Members and officials present a happy new year. The draft regulations were laid before the House on 19 November. As I am sure Members will have noticed, there is a lot of detail to them; the Committee will be relieved to hear that I do not intend to go through the statutory instrument line by line, but I shall try to cover the most significant elements. Building on the work introduced by the previous Government, we are implementing a global risk-based import model for sanitary and phytosanitary goods known as the border target operating model.”
“I am grateful for the contributions made by Members and for the support of the Opposition spokesperson, the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley, whose positive response I welcome. This is important work, and a sensible approach is being taken. I also hear the points made by the hon. and learned Member for North Antrim. I reassure him that essentially what we propose in the draft regulations is absolutely consistent with all the commitments already set out in the Windsor framework, including continuing to guarantee that qualifying Northern Ireland goods will have unfettered access to the Great British market.”
“I am grateful for the points made by the hon. and learned Member. He will appreciate that we are trying to resolve a complicated set of circumstances and make them work. These measures are a genuine attempt to make the system work for everybody’s benefit. I appreciate the complex issues that he raises, but I do not believe that these measures make any substantial difference to them. The draft regulations remove the reliance on temporary measures, implementing a responsive, risk-based imports approach to protect the United Kingdom from emerging pests and diseases while supporting businesses with processes that are as simple and effective as possible. I commend them to the Committee. Question put and agreed to .”
“Mr Speaker, I wish you and all your staff a happy Christmas, and thank all those who work in our food system for ensuring that we are fed every day and that, particularly at this time of the year, so many of our constituents can enjoy a traditional, wonderful British celebration. The autumn Budget on 30 October confirmed the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs budgets for 2024-25 and 2025-26, and funding allocations for individual programmes will be determined in the upcoming months through the Department’s business planning exercise. We will update the House on the rural England prosperity fund in due course.”
“We are in constant dialogue with our MHCLG colleagues. I was delighted that areas with a significant rural population will on average receive about a 5% increase in their core spending power. That is a real-terms increase. I hope we can continue to work well to address the rural productivity gap of some 18%, which is a real challenge for all of us.”
“We all know that food security is national security, and most of us also recognise that the impacts of climate change and nature loss pose a significant risk to domestic production, so it is very important that we use our land carefully. Consequently, the Government will be introducing a land use framework to ensure that we protect our most productive agricultural land.”
“I thank the hon. Gentleman for his points and refer him to my earlier comments: we see more and more pressure, and there are so many things we need to do on our land to house and feed people, so it is important that we have a proper structure in place. It is widely acknowledged that the current planning system does not necessarily do that. The previous Government promised a land use framework; we will actually deliver it.”
“The point that farmers need to get a better return from their business is well made, and that is exactly what this Government will be addressing.”
“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It was extraordinary, was it not, that the last Government managed not to spend £300 million of the farm budget. We are determined to ensure that we do better. I wish him and his farmers a very merry Christmas.”