Committee for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs

The Permanent Secretary, Dr Denis McMahon, gave opening remarks and advised that officials from each business area would speak in turn.

Rosemary Agnew spoke on the DAERA Transition Programme which aims to guide the future strategic direction of the Department following EU Exit but also includes a “no deal” scenario. The programme focuses on the delivery of a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and the overarching legislation programme. There is a significant challenge ahead to have a fully operational regime in place by 31 December 2020 and a number of associated risks.

Primary Legislation includes the three Bills – Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries and DAERA officials continue to liaise with Defra officials as the Bill progress through Westminster.

Secondary legislation will include Defra UK wide SIs with devolved content as well as NIs own SRs. Of the Defra Sis, 44 will be laid in July 2020, 33 will be affirmative, 11 negative and 19 around the NI Protocol. The Department will share the proposed laying dates with the Committee when they are known. The NICS has been asked how engagement with Committees will take place and a three structured approach has been considered the best way forward:

• Correspondence for technical amendments;
• Written briefings for minor policy amendments;
• All others will involve oral briefings with the relevant Committees.

Rosemary advised that a scoping exercise will take place to establish the current position regarding the number of SRs to be brought to the Committee within the timeframe that is available but it currently stands at 2 affirmative and 18 negative.

Frameworks will be implemented by legislation, executive action, memorandums of understanding or by other means and need to be in place by the end of December 2020. DAERA is the lead Department for 22 common frameworks with 15 initially categorised as legislative and the remaining 7 as non-legislative. The Department continues with stakeholder engagement and participation in negotiations.

Denis McMahon spoke on the SPS arrangements which DAERA is the lead Department for the implementation of. Dr McMahon is the SRO of the DAERA Transition Programme Board and good linkages and support has been established to date. The Command Paper has an extremely tight deadline with a number of Red/Amber concerns around delivery. There is a need to minimise the friction between NI and GB trade and proposals are being discussed and negotiated to include trusted trader status and lows cost for business etc.

Tracey Teague spoke on the set up of the Enviornment/Brexit EU Transition Group and the need for a clear direction on future policy with many policy decisions still remaining to be made by Defra. Migrant workers are a major concern following the UKG position on the future points based immigration system which will come into operation on 1 January 2021. Post January the Department sees an operational job on the ground to ensure that environmental standards do not drop.

David Small spoke on the implications of the Protocol for fisheries. He stated that Articles 5.3 needs a discussion with the Cabinet Office around EU/UK access to waters and fish stocks. There is a need to ensure that the NI fishing fleet and aquaculture do not have any additional tariffs or regulatory burden placed on them when landing fish in NI or ROI. There had been a large response to the fishing industry during the Covid-19 pandemic and whilst Brexit remains a priority other issues remain to be dealt with.

Paul Donnelly spoke on rural development, plant health legislation and the rural policy framework. In terms of plant health, DAERA is preparing a number of legislative changes with 2 EU Exit SRs required by 30 September 2020. A new plant framework is now needed due to Brexit. There is now a new opportunity for a new policy framework for the Rural Development \programme.

Robert Huey mentioned the vast workload that lies ahead with many unknowns making the process more difficult. He aims to ensure a consistent approach through the set-up of the UK Bio Security Office which will help to guarantee standards.

There will be internal checks and third country checks completed to aid this. There are two frameworks that he has responsibility for which are Animal Health and Welfare and Zootechnics. There will be a significant body of work in terms of legislation some of which may be “jumbo” legislation. There needs to be a new Animal Health Law for NI in place by April 2021 which is a huge piece of work which will require clarity across the Department.

Brian Doherty spoke for Central Services and Contingency Planning. He stated that the work required cannot be done with the current volume of staff and there is a need for an additional 456 more people. The current staff resource stands at 280 but Covid has delayed the process of obtaining the required number of staff.

Climate Change Motion

The Committee discussed the following Climate Change Motion as proposed by Philip McGuigan and the amendments that had been put forward by Members:

“That this Assembly acknowledges the ongoing climate and biodiversity emergency and calls by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for rapid decarbonisation; reiterates the Assembly’s declaration of a climate and biodiversity emergency, Assembly demands for the urgent introduction of a Climate Change Act, the all-party New Decade, New Approach commitment to delivering a Climate Change Act, and the Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Minister's commitment to a Green Growth

Strategy; recognises the need for a stimulus-led recovery to restart economic activity following economic disruption arising from COVID-19; calls on the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs to introduce a Climate Change Act with legally binding sectoral emission-reduction targets to ensure any economic recovery strategy is underpinned by decarbonisation; and further calls on the Minister to introduce this Act in the Assembly within three months.”

The amendments were marshalled as follows:

Amendment 7

Amendment 2

Amendment 3

Amendment 6 (if agreed the question should not be put on amendments 8 or 4) Amendment 8 (if agreed the question should not be put on amendments 4, 5 or 1) Amendment 4

Amendment 5

Amendment 1

 

Amendment 7 proposed by Rosemary Barton

At line 2 remove “emergency and calls by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for rapid decarbonisation; reiterates the Assembly’s declaration of a climate and biodiversity emergency, Assembly demands for the urgent introduction of a Climate Change Act, the all-party New Decade, New Approach commitment to delivering a Climate Change Act, and”

and replace with:

“difficulties; supports the UK Climate Change Act and a debate on where a Northern Ireland Climate Change Act could make further improvements; supports”

Members voted as follows:

AYES                                     

Rosemary Barton                 

Harry Harvey                    

William Irwin

NOES

Clare Bailey

John Blair

Declan McAleer

Patsy McGlone

Philip McGuigan

The amendment fell.

Amendment 2 proposed by Clare Bailey

At line 8, after ‘strategy;’ insert ‘recognises climate change as a human rights issue that risks deepening existing inequalities;’

Members voted as follows:

AYES                            

Clare Bailey                          

John Blair                              

Declan McAleer                     

Patsy McGlone

Philip McGuigan

NOES

Rosemary Barton

Harry Harvey

William Irwin

The amendment was carried.

 

Amendment 3 proposed by Clare Bailey

At line 9, after ‘stimulus-led’ insert ‘just and green recovery’

Members reached consensus on the proposed amendment. The amendment was made.

 

Amendment 6 proposed by William Irwin

At line 11 remove “introduce a Climate Change Act with legally binding sectoral emission-reduction targets”

and replace with:

“engage with executive colleagues and stakeholders to bring forward proposals for a Climate Change Act with clearly defined reduction targets”

Members voted as follows:

AYES

Rosemary Barton

Harry Harvey

William Irwin

NOES

Clare Bailey

John Blair

Declan McAleer

Patsy McGlone

Philip McGuigan

The amendment fell.

Amendment 8 proposed by Rosemary Barton

At line 11 remove “Climate Change Act with legally binding sectoral emission- reduction targets to ensure any economic recovery strategy is underpinned by decarbonisation; and further calls on the Minister to introduce this Act in the Assembly”

and replace with:

“consultation on plans for a Climate Change Act” Members voted as follows:

AYES

Rosemary Barton

Harry Harvey

William Irwin

NOES

Clare Bailey

John Blair

Declan McAleer

Patsy McGlone

Philip McGuigan

The amendment fell.

 

Amendment 4 proposed by Clare Bailey

At line 12, after ‘binding’ insert ‘ambitious’

Members reached consensus on the amendment. The amendment was made.

 

Amendment 5 proposed by Patsy McGlone

At line 13 after ‘by’ insert ‘rapid’ Members voted as follows:

AYES

Clare Bailey

John Blair

Declan McAleer

Patsy McGlone

Philip McGuigan

NOES

Rosemary Barton

Harry Harvey

William Irwin

The amendment was carried.