15 Nov 2022
An independent panel of external experts is to be set up to assess the evidence surrounding the deaths of large numbers of crustaceans, such as crabs and lobsters, on the North East coast between September and December 2021. In a letter to the Environment Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee, Fisheries Minister Mark Spencer confirmed Defra’s […]
15 Nov 2022
About the Infrastructure Scheme At least £65 million in grant funding is available through the Infrastructure Scheme. The scheme will fund projects that improve the UK seafood sector supply chain through investment in: improved capability at ports, harbours, processing, and aquaculture facilities the social and economic welfare of coastal communities fleet modernisation recreational sea fishing […]
08 Nov 2022
The UK government has announced £156,000 to protect England’s island seabird populations against the threat of invasive predators. This is one of the first instances globally of a central government providing funding to protect seabird islands against these specific threats, Defra has said. The UK’s islands such as Coquet Island and the Isles […]
03 Nov 2022
The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) has said it was considering enforcement action against Defra after it failed to meet the deadline to set statutory targets as part of the Environment Act. Utility Week reported that newly appointed secretary of state, Therese Coffey, said the department had struggled to analyse the 180,000 responses to a […]
01 Nov 2022
The Seabed User and Developer Group (SUDG) brings together the majority of UK marine industries, including renewable energy, marine aggregates, ports, subsea cables, recreational boating and marinas, oil and gas, nuclear energy, and carbon capture storage and utilisation. The group has written to three Secretaries of State to state they do not recommend moving away […]
06 Oct 2022
The Environment Secretary has announced that the potential civil penalty is to rise from £250,000 to up to £250 million to help bring quicker enforcement action against water companies for causing pollution. The Minister will bring forward proposals to raise the civil penalty for water companies who pollute the environment by 1,000-fold. The […]
27 Sep 2022
A fishing ban at Lindisfarne has been opposed by councillors, with claims by one it would turn it “into a museum”, the BBC has reported. The government is exploring creating a Highly Protected Marine Area (HPMA) which would see commercial and recreational fishing halted. Conservative-led Northumberland County Council heard this week such a move would “devastate” the […]
22 Sep 2022
The campaigning organisation, River Action, has written to the new UK Prime Minister and Environment Secretary to congratulate them on their appointments and to urge them to take action to address the state of UK’s rivers. Last week we reported on the Environment Minister’s first day in office and his demand for water company chief […]
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