Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of analysis by Kantar that grocery price inflation has risen for three months in a row, and what steps they are taking to mitigate the impact on consumers.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government cares deeply about the cost of living and food security; therefore, it closely monitors food prices and the factors impacting them. Defra uses the ONS Consumer Price Index (CPI) to track UK food price inflation. After a period of high inflation experienced during 2022 and 2023, food price inflation (based on ONS CPI data) has been below 2% since May 2024. The latest ONS data available show that annual food price inflation was 1.9% in October 2024, unchanged from September 2024. Kantar’s Grocery Price Inflation uses a different methodology to the ONS CPI index and includes all grocery products including non-food items.
Defra regularly engages with supermarkets and producers on a range of food supply matters. However, it is not for the Government to set retail food prices nor to comment on day-to-day commercial decisions taken by businesses.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to protect consumers where water companies are facing financial difficulties.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Ofwat independently monitors the financial position of water companies and acts when companies need to strengthen their long-term financial resilience. Ofwat expect water companies to maintain a level of financial headroom to manage short term volatility and shocks to their financial structures and meet their obligations and commitments.
We are clear consumers must be protected. Ofwat has strengthened its powers to improve financial resilience, including stopping water companies paying dividends where financial resilience is at risk.
Our Water (Special Measures) Bill will put water companies under tough special measures, by strengthening regulation as a first legislative step towards improving the sector.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the agribusiness sector in reaching net zero carbon emissions targets.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to delivering net zero by 2050 and we will work in collaboration with farmers and others with a stake in our food system towards this.
The transition to more climate friendly practices will go hand in hand with food security and farm productivity. We will support farmers to adopt low carbon farming practices, increasing the carbon stored on their land while boosting profitability.
As part of this, we will optimise environmental land management schemes to make them work for farmers and nature, and introduce a land-use framework, helping to protect both the environment, food security and livelihoods.
We will also look carefully at how to enable the benefits of innovation in reaching net zero carbon targets and the integration of new technologies and best practice into farming practices.
Furthermore, to support our farming businesses, we will protect them from being undercut in trade deals, make the supply chain work more fairly and prevent shock rises in bills by switching on GB Energy.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which the new border control facilities which were introduced to implement the regime that came into effect in April are being used.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government’s concern has been to ensure that the infrastructure required to facilitate trade are in place, while respecting the discretion of port operators and other stakeholders to make decisions on a commercial basis about the use of their infrastructure and facilities.
We recognise that ports are in the best position to determine how to utilise facilities which meet the standards required for checks to be undertaken. Where any port has more capacity for checks than required under the Border Target Operating Model (BTOM), they are free to put their facilities to alternative use, provided they retain sufficient capacity to conduct the volume of checks required under the BTOM.
One of the reasons for not introducing the checks on EU imports in July 2023 was so that we could introduce a simplified, risk-based and data-driven regime of checks on goods that applies equally to EU and ‘rest of the world’ goods. Facilities for checks and controls can therefore be used flexibly for any imported goods, regardless of origin.
The BTOM sets outs out a risk-based, proportionate regime of controls which assesses the inherent biosecurity or public health risk presented by an import, together with the prevalence of relevant pests and diseases and our confidence in the exporting country’s production standards and health controls.
This assessment allows us to set controls at the most appropriate level and focus on the areas of highest risk to the UK. The goods posing the highest biosecurity risk are being prioritised as we build up to full check rates and high levels of compliance.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what measures they are implementing to (1) assess, and (2) mitigate the risk of, any lead contamination in the UK food chain.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Lead is a naturally occurring contaminant that is present in soil, water and the atmosphere including as a result of past human activities and can be present in food. Whilst there is no safe level of lead, maximum levels for certain foods including cereals and meat are in place which are set based on the ‘as low as reasonably achievable’ (ALARA) principle.
Food business operators are responsible for ensuring that they comply with the established maximum levels. Lead is included in the national monitoring plan for products of animal origin and where noncompliance is found this will be followed up by the relevant local authority for enforcement purposes.
The Food Standards Agency has previously worked with farming groups and industry on best practice advice for farmers on preventing lead poisoning of livestock which includes practical suggestions to reduce animals’ intake of soil that may contain lead which is particularly important in those areas of the country with naturally high levels of lead in the soil.
Lead exposure from food is under constant review to ensure that advice and other measures in place remain protective for all consumers.
Under Part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, each local authority has a duty to inspect its area to identify and require remediation of contaminated land. A risk-based approach is used to define contaminated land, with regulators required to intervene in cases where the contamination is deemed to present an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment.
Additionally, the Water and Abandoned Metal Mines (WAMM) Programme set up in 2011 between Defra, the Environment Agency and the Coal Authority, investigates and tackles the legacy of historic water pollution from abandoned metal mines in England and to develop schemes to clean up rivers polluted by abandoned metal mines.
The WAMM programme shows Defra is taking metal mine pollution seriously and our legal target under the 2021 Environment Act: to halve the length of rivers polluted by target metals from abandoned metal mines by 2038, against a baseline of around 1,500km (approximately 930 miles), is proportionate to the documented evidence of the problem of which we are aware.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the recent parasitic outbreak in drinking water in Devon, what assessment they have made of (1) the proposed compensation for affected consumers, and (2) the impact on consumer confidence.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
The Guaranteed Standards Scheme sets minimum statutory standards of service for customers of water and sewerage companies, and where a company fails to meet any of these standards it is required to make a specified payment to the affected customer. Several companies also offer enhanced Customer Services Promises in addition to the statutory requirements, including compensation payments for additional standards.
In relation to the incident in Devon, the Secretary of State appreciated the considerable concern and disruption to the local community. He raised those concerns directly with the Chief Executive. South West Water increased its standard payment within its Customer Service Promise for a boil water notice to £115. Some customers will receive £265 which represents financial compensation equivalent to over 50% of South West Water’s average annual bill per household, according to Ofwat’s bill estimates.
Excellent customer experience is important to maintain consumer trust and confidence in the water sector. We expect water companies to take that seriously, to respond to events appropriately in a timely manner and to deliver better services to their customers.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to a recent poll conducted by the National Farmers Union which showed that business confidence among farmers is at its lowest since 2010, what steps they are taking to support the agricultural sector to ensure food security.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
Food security is more important than ever – which is why we need to back British farmers to keep putting food on our tables while protecting the environment.
That is why we are supporting farmers with £2.4 billion of annual spending. This includes an increase in payment rates, with the average value of a Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) agreement increasing by 10%. Around 50 new paid-for actions will also be added to the SFI and Countryside Stewardship (CS) schemes from summer 2024, giving farmers more choice with an offer for all farm types and locations.
Additionally, at the NFU Conference this February, the Prime Minister announced more funding for farmers. This included the doubling of the SFI Management Payment, which supports many farmers to participate in the SFI scheme, and the planned launch of the biggest ever package of grants this year to boost productivity and resilience. This grants package, which will total £427 million, includes funding for the Improving Farming Productivity scheme to invest in things like robotics and barn-top solar; funding for a new round of the Farming Equipment and Technology fund, worth £70m; and targeted schemes to support farmers in improving the viability of their businesses, delivering environmental outcomes and supporting sustainable food production.
Our plan will mean farmers always come first – with fair prices for goods, less bureaucracy and more funding as we continue to protect our food security. On May 14, the Prime Minister hosted the second annual Farm to Fork Summit at Downing Street, focused on how the Government will support domestic food production, boost innovation, support the sector to reach its economic potential and recruit the next generation of farming leaders. The Summit also saw publication of the first draft Food Security Index, setting out key data and trends to allow government and industry to monitor domestic food production, land use, input costs and farmer productivity on an annual basis.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to strengthen the resilience of the UK's food supply chain, and (2) to enhance food security, in the face of external disruptions and challenges.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
The UK has a highly resilient food supply chain and is well equipped to deal with situations with the potential to cause disruption.
Our high degree of food security is built on supply from diverse sources; strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. We produce 60% of all the food we need, and 73% of food which we can grow or rear in the UK for all or part of the year, and these figures have changed little over the last 20 years.
UK consumers have access through international trade to food products that cannot be produced here, or at least not on a year-round basis. This supplements domestic production, and also ensures that any disruption from risks such as adverse weather or disease does not affect the UK's overall security of supply.
Defra has well established ways of working with the industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise. This includes extensive, regular and ongoing engagement in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption to food supply chains.
Recognising the importance of food security, in the Agriculture Act 2020, the Government made a commitment to produce an assessment of our food security at least once every three years. The first UK Food Security Report was produced in 2021 and the next will be published by December 2024. This report serves as an evidence base for policy work.
Starting this year, the government is also strengthening our food security monitoring by introducing the annual Food Security Index in addition to the three-yearly UKFSR.
Published to coincide with the second UK Farm to Fork Summit on 14 May 2024, the 2024 Food Security Index sets out how Government will track UK-wide food security on an annual basis, monitoring domestic food production, land use, input costs, and farmer productivity.
The Index looks at shorter-term trends that change year on year, complementing the UKFSR’s comprehensive assessment and attention to longer-term trends. The 2024 Index shows that the UK farming sector is at its most productive since records began.
A further package of measures to support farmers and grow the UK’s farming and food sector was announced by the government at the Farm to Fork Summit on 14th May 2024.
This includes a new Blueprint for Growing the UK Fruit and Vegetable Sector (see attached), setting out how industry and government can work together to increase domestic production and drive investment into this valuable sector. The plan involves ensuring the sector has access to affordable and sustainable energy and water, cutting planning red tape to make it easier and quicker to build glasshouses, and looking to double to £80 million the amount of funding given to horticulture businesses when compared to the EU legacy Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme which will be replaced from 2026 onwards.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support small businesses in adapting to additional costs for post-Brexit border checks.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
To support SMEs, Defra has identified and issued guidance on a number of facilitations and mitigations to reduce the burden of sanitary and phytosanitary import requirements using groupage.
The Common User Charge is designed to spread the costs to be recovered across the maximum number of imports. This approach distributes the cost across business of all sizes and sectors and provides a high level of predictability on costs for all importers.
The impact of the Common User Charge on businesses, and especially on small businesses, will be kept under monthly and quarterly reviews, with rates reviewed and updated annually.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have had, or intend to have, discussions with the EU regarding the implementation of a post-Brexit agreement on the supply of veterinary medicines to Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
The Government is committed to securing a long-term sustainable solution ahead of December 2025 that will properly support the flow of veterinary medicines into Northern Ireland from Great Britain on an enduring basis. We are determined to safeguard the supply of veterinary medicines, and we will pursue technical discussions with the EU to find a solution that removes barriers to supply; in return we are willing to provide assurances and safeguards to the EU. The Veterinary Medicines Working Group, including experts, industry representatives and elected representatives, will report back to Government on steps needed to secure supplies for the long term.