Nick Brown: ...Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 in controlling the spread of (a) Japanese knotweed and (b) other non-native plant species.
Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have about Japanese knotweed and other invasive weeds in old industrial areas near Swansea; whether they have received representations about spraying by contractors for the local authority; and if so, whether they will provide guidance on how to control Japanese knotweed.
Lord Davies of Oldham: ...in this area. The Government have sought to do what they can in the past on these matters, but we are aware of the great threats that obtain. As a Minister, I was personally concerned with Japanese knotweed five years ago. I was informed by the scientific establishment, not only in the department but in government, that we had cracked it in terms of the science and that all it needed now...
Lord Selsdon: ...affairs or domestic affairs? I am slightly confused about that. We joined the EU because of trade but there is no mention of trade in the debate’s title. We are faced with a form of European Japanese knotweed—that is, legislation which seems to throttle everything that we want to do. People believe that by introducing new rules and regulations progress will be made. Perhaps the...
Baroness Sharples: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress is being made in eliminating Japanese knotweed from the United Kingdom.
Stella Creasy: ..., but we are happy that the Minister recognises that important problem. We will therefore give the Government an opportunity to show whether their approach will work, or whether it is like Japanese knotweed—it might be cut down in one place, but it will appear somewhere else. I also echo the Committee’s support for the Minister’s interpretation of our amendment 99, and the idea that...
Stella Creasy: ...how such websites are advertised is welcome. That is despite the Government having told us that they did not feel that the Bill was about that issue. Our concern is that such sites are a bit like Japanese knotweed. We might be able to shut them down quickly, arguing that they are not offering an additional service and are therefore misleading consumers, and that it is an unfair contract...
Lord Taylor of Holbeach: My Lords, I will be brief: I am sure the Committee would want me to be so. I can be very reassuring to my noble friend. He presents what is a very serious issue. Japanese knotweed is not the only invasive and destructive plant, as indeed he mentioned. In reforming the anti-social behaviour powers, we have deliberately created flexible powers that can be used to stop or prevent any behaviour...
Baroness Sharples: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in eliminating Japanese knotweed in the United Kingdom.
Johann Lamont: ...unwanted advances of a big beast with only one thing on its mind. We also know that the Government has its priorities all wrong. That is why Mark McDonald asked more questions in Parliament about Japanese knotweed than about accident and emergency services in Aberdeen. Is not it the case that the Scottish National Party will not mention independence in Aberdeen because the yes campaign is...
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps he has taken to prevent the spread of invasive Japanese knotweed.
Karen McKevitt: ...or threatened species of flora or vegetation. Exotic species are commonly associated with parkland and artificial pond habitats such as those in Daisy Hill wood. I was going to go into what the Japanese knotweed was, the cherry laurel, the Himalayan knotweed or the giant hogweed, which is so difficult to remove. However, as the previous Member has already said it, I think that we can...
Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress is being made in the pilot schemes for the control of Japanese knotweed.
Alex Fergusson: ...as a “new way to demonstrate good nature conservation”. I have to say that that is a slightly odd way of demonstrating it. Of course, the problem is not just about crayfish; grey squirrels, Japanese knotweed and the imported trees and shrubs from which so many diseases come—the latest being ash dieback—have all impacted on our biodiversity. All those examples and many more suggest...
Richard Benyon: ...Environment Agency cuts back vegetation once a year during winter, with the next round of work due to be carried out before March 2013. Once a year the Environment Agency also sprays herbicide on Japanese Knotweed growing in, or next to, the river. This is to control the spread of this invasive species and to prevent it from damaging concrete sections of the river bank. It last undertook...
Alex Attwood: ...that that directive might not add that much more to our understanding or to the structural approach that we are taking to managing invasive species. I was going to be in a position to talk about Japanese knotweed, the giant hogweed, the potential threat of the North American signal crayfish, a raccoon that was found in Wexford and other examples of invasive species that are a threat and...
Richard Benyon: ...the ‘Economic Cost of Invasive Non-native Species to Great Britain’. DEFRA directly funds some specific priority measures such as the development and release of a biological control agent for Japanese knotweed. The Department's contribution to that project to date is £309,234 with a further commitment of £75,000 until 2015. DEFRA is also funding further research into the biological...
Baroness Sharples: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in eliminating Japanese knotweed from the United Kingdom.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps have been taken to protect waterways from Japanese knotweed.