Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom. The department is responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in England. Concordats set out agreed frameworks for cooperation, between it and the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive, which have devolved responsibilities for these matters in their respective nations.
Defra also leads for the United Kingdom on agricultural, fisheries and environmental matters in international negotiations on sustainable development and climate change, although a new Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 to take over the last responsibility; later transferred to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy following Theresa May's appointment as Prime Minister in July 2016.
Creation
The department was formed in June 2001, under the leadership of Margaret Beckett, when the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was merged with part of the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions and with a small part of the Home Office.It was created after the perceived failure of MAFF to deal adequately with an outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease. The department had about 9,000 core personnel,.
In October 2008, the climate team at Defra was merged with the energy team from the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, to create the Department of Energy and Climate Change, then headed by Ed Miliband.
Ministers
Defra ministers are as follows, with cabinet members in bold:| Minister | Portrait | Office | Portfolio |
| Emma Reynolds MP | Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | Strategy and overall responsibility for departmental policy; water quality and security; food production and security; economic growth; international relations; senior appointments. | |
| Angela Eagle MP | Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs | Farming ; food security; science and innovation ; rural; fisheries; farmed animal welfare including bovine TB; trade; budget ; lead for Rural Payments Agency, Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, Marine Management Organisation, Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and Sea Fish Industry Authority | |
| Mary Creagh MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Nature | Circular economy; planning and land use framework; domestic biodiversity; tree planting and forestry; international nature and wildlife; environmental targets and EIP; Official Development Assistance programme; green finance; Protected Landscapes ; lead for Office for Environmental Protection, Natural England, Forestry Commission, Joint Nature Conservation Committee and Kew Gardens | |
| Emma Hardy MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Water and Flooding | Floods and emergencies; water; clean air and noise; environmental regulation ; pesticides; Net Zero, climate change and adaptation; domestic and international marine; lead for Environment Agency and Consumer Council for Water | |
| Baroness Hayman | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Biosecurity, Borders and Animals | Biosecurity and plant health; borders; Northern Ireland – Windsor Framework; animal welfare; One Health; access ; lead for Veterinary Medicines Directorate and Animal and Plant Health Agency |
The Permanent Secretary is Paul Kissack.
Responsibilities
Defra is responsible for British Government policy in the following areas:- Adaptation to global warming
- Agriculture
- Air quality
- Animal health and animal welfare
- Biodiversity
- Conservation
- Chemical substances and pesticides
- Fisheries
- Flooding
- Food
- Forestry
- Hunting
- Inland waterways
- Land management
- Marine policy
- National parks
- Noise
- Plant health
- Rural development
- Sustainable development
- Trade and the environment
- Waste management
- Water management
Executive agencies
The department's executive agencies are:- Animal and Plant Health Agency
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science
- Rural Payments Agency
- Veterinary Medicines Directorate
Key delivery partners
The department's key delivery partners are:- Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board
- Consumer Council for Water
- Environment Agency
- Fera Science
- Forestry Commission
- Joint Nature Conservation Committee
- Marine Management Organisation
- National Forest Company
- Natural England
- Office for Environmental Protection
- Ofwat
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
- Sea Fish Industry Authority
Defra in England
Policies for environment, food and rural affairs are delivered in the regions by Defra's executive agencies and delivery bodies, in particular Natural England, the Rural Payments Agency, Animal Health and the Marine Management Organisation.Defra provides grant aid to the following flood and coastal erosion risk management operating authorities:
Aim and strategic priorities
Defra's overarching aim is sustainable development, which is defined as "development which enables all people throughout the world to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life without compromising the quality of life of future generations". The Secretary of State wrote in a letter to the Prime Minister that he saw Defra's mission as enabling a move toward what the World Wide Fund for Nature has called "one planet living".Under this overarching aim, Defra has five strategic priorities:
- Climate change and energy.
- Sustainable consumption and production, including responsibility for the National Waste Strategy.
- Protecting the countryside and natural resource protection.
- Sustainable rural communities.
- A sustainable farming and food sector including animal health and welfare.
Defra's headquarters are at 2, Marsham Street, London. It is also located at Nobel House, 17, Smith Square, London.