Environment Secretary George Eustice has selected Alan Lovell DL as the Government’s preferred candidate to succeed Emma Howard Boyd as the Chair of the Environment Agency.

Mr Lovell’s selection followed a rigorous process conducted in accordance with the Ministerial Governance Code on Public Appointments. The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Select Committee and the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) will now hold a joint pre-appointment hearing on Tuesday 5 July and report on Mr Lovell’s suitability for the post.

Pre-appointment scrutiny is an important part of the appointment process for some of the most significant public appointments made by Ministers to verify that the recruitment meets the principles set out in the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

Pre-appointment hearings are held in public and allow a Select Committee to take evidence from a Minister’s preferred candidate before they are appointed. The EFRA and EAC Select Committees will publish a report setting out their views on the candidate’s suitability for the post, which will be considered by Ministers before deciding whether to proceed with the appointment.

Subject to the EFRA and EAC Select Committees’ report and the final decision being made by the Environment Secretary, Mr Lovell will take up the post in September 2022. Emma Howard Boyd CBE second term as Environment Agency Chair will end in September 2022.

Biographical details of Alan Lovell

• Alan is an experienced Chair of both commercial and not-for-profit enterprises. He is currently Chairman of the Interserve Group Ltd, and is Senior Independent Director of SIG plc and Chair of Safestyle UK plc.
• His executive career included time as a Chief Executive of six companies, including Infinis, Jarvis, Costain and Dunlop Slazenger.
• Alan was also Chair of the Consumer Council for Water for four years and has chaired the University of Winchester and the Mary Rose Trust.

Thank you, Mr Vice-President.

Stopping violence against women and girls is one of the most urgent human rights challenges of our time. It is rooted in discrimination and inequality, and the issue is widespread: one third of all women worldwide will experience physical and/or sexual violence during their lifetime.

The UK recognises that climate change can have implications for the full enjoyment of human rights and have a particularly devastating impact on women and girls, who are more likely to die or be displaced, or suffer from intimate partner violence during climate change-induced crises and disasters. Gender responsive climate action is essential to addressing these global challenges.

Putting women and girls at the forefront of policy-making processes and supporting organisations led by and focusing on women and girls is critical if we are to ensure response and recovery strategies respect, protect and promote women and girls’ human rights.

It is for this reason that, last July, the UK joined the Action Coalition on Feminist Action for Climate Justice, affirming our commitment to championing women and girls’ climate leadership, education and decision-making. At the COP26 Gender Day in November 2021, the UK announced £165 million of funding to simultaneously tackle gender inequality and climate change.

Mr Vice President,

We would like to ask the panellists to consider what measures can be implemented to ensure this critical combination of issues is addressed.

Thank you, Mr President.

Women and girls have been disproportionately affected by the economic impacts of COVID19. Not only are they over-represented in some of the worst-hit sectors, but they also undertake a bulk of unpaid care work. Redistributing, recognising and reducing women and girls’ unpaid care contributions, and investment that allows women to reach their full potential, protects their human rights, promotes stronger more inclusive growth, and ultimately benefits everyone.

The unequal division of unpaid care responsibilities in the home and low pay for paid care work also limits women’s empowerment, social and economic participation and leadership. The UK works with partner governments, multilaterals, and the private sector to address care in partner countries. We are encouraging the private sector to create better quality, more flexible work, and investors to seek opportunities to strengthen the care economy. We will join the Global Alliance for Care and share best practice on addressing unpaid care, and paid care for children and the elderly. We will encourage collection and analysis of sex and age-disaggregated data worldwide, with which to better monitor and improve policies, programmes and investments in care. By taking such action employers will reduce time and income poverty, improve working conditions and wages for unpaid and paid care workers, and provide care at all stages of life.

Mr President

We would like to ask the panellists to share evidence of concrete examples at the regional or country level of such actions taken by employers to encourage flexible workplace practices and reduce and redistribute care responsibilities?

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr President.

We would like to make some comments in response to the Special Rapporteur’s most recent report. The UK is committed to ensuring that all migrants, regardless of their status, are treated with dignity and full respect for their human rights. We are also committed to tackling the heinous crime of modern slavery and to supporting its victims, in line with our international obligations. The UK was the first country to put in place a domestic statute to tackle Modern Slavery, through its 2015 Act.

The UK’s Nationality and Borders Act promotes the principle that access to the UK’s asylum system should be based on need, not the ability to pay people smugglers. It reflects the widely held principle on claiming asylum in the first safe country reached. Therefore, we respectfully disagree with the assertion in your report regarding the UK.

The UK has offered 310,000 men, women, and children refuge in the UK since 2015. We continue to provide support to the people of Ukraine. Over 130,000 visas have been granted to help bring those caught up in the war to safety. We will continue to build on our work so far – from Syria to Ukraine – to help those in genuine need of resettlement to come to the UK safely and legally.

Thank you.