Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many of his Department's staff have been redeployed since 1 July 2020 to work on (a) covid-19 response and (b) the transition period following the departure of the UK from the EU.
The Government is committed to delivering its manifesto and policy commitments while preparing for the end of the transition period and responding to the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic.
We have established a central team to co-ordinate our Covid-19 response and preparations for the end of transition. 36 staff have moved since 1 July to bolster teams working on these priorities. These teams have been supplemented by cross-Government moves and external recruitment.
Moving staff to meet our priorities is normal practice and in line with usual business planning.