DEFRA ministers: Who does what

DEFRA has released details of the portfolios of Owen Patterson, secretary of state, David Heath, minister of state for agriculture and food, Richard Benyon, parliamentary under-secretary for natural environment, water and rural affairs and Lord de Mauley, parliamentary under-secretary for resource management, the local environment and environmental science.

Here’s what subjects will be fill filling the ministers’ in-trays:

Paterson​’s portfolio

• Strategy and overall responsibility for departmental policy
• Budget and finances
• Legislative programme
• Emergencies
• EU and international relations
• Environment Agency and Natural England

Heath​’s portfolio

Agriculture

• Common Agricultural Policy and deputising for the secretary of state at EU Agriculture Council
• Single payments scheme and the Rural Payments Agency
• New Covent Garden Market Authority
• Better regulation
• Climate change mitigation in the agriculture sector
• Agricultural wages, gangmasters’ licensing and Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme
• Rural Development Programme for England (joint with Benyon).

Animal health

• Management of endemic and exotic diseases (including bovine TB)
• Animal Health and Welfare Board for England
• Welfare of farm animals
• Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency
• Veterinary Medicines Directorate

Forestry

• Domestic forestry policy
• Response to the Independent Panel on Forestry ’s report
• Forestry Commission

 Commons handling of Lords portfolio

• Nanotechnology, pesticides, chemicals and industrial pollution
• Genetically modified organisms
• Plant and bee health
• Green economy, sustainable consumption and production
• Welfare of companion and wild animals (including circuses, dangerous dogs and zoos)

Benyon​’s portfolio

Natural Environment

• Biodiversity (domestic and international, including international forestry)
• Land management and soil (including commons and contaminated land)
• National parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty
• Ecosystem services
• Joint Nature Conservation Committee
• Wildlife management

Water and marine

• Flooding and coastal erosion
• Inland waterways
• Water resource management and quality (including Ofwat)
• Fisheries, including Common Fisheries Policy and EU Fisheries Council
• Marine environment (including marine and coastal access act implementation and marine management organisation)

Rural affairs

• Economic development (including broadband and mobile technologies)
• Skills and apprenticeships
• Countryside and rights of way including coastal and wider access
• Rural development programme for England (joint with Heath)

Commons handling of Lords portfolio

• Air quality, noise and litter
• Climate change adaptation and mitigation (including biofuels)
• Environmental regulation
• Environmental Science
• Localism and civil society
• Waste and management

Lord de Mauley’s​ portfolio

All departmental business in the House of Lords

Resource Management

• Climate change adaptation
• Environmental impacts of climate change mitigation (including biofuels)
• Environmental regulation (including deputising for the secretary of state at EU Environment Council)
• Sustainable consumption and production
• Waste management

Local Environment

• Air quality
• Noise and litter
• Welfare of companion and wild animals (including circuses, dangerous dogs and zoos)
• Localism and civil society

Science and research

• Environmental science
• Nanotechnology
• Pesticides, chemicals and industrial pollution
• Genetically modified organisms
• Plant and bee health
• Royal Botanic Gardens Kew
• Food and Environment Research Agency