Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department has made a comparative assessment of standards on pesticides in CPTPP between members states and the UK; and if she will make a statement.

The Government will not compromise on our high environmental protections and food standards in trade deals. Trade agreements to which we sign up will respect the regulatory autonomy of both the UK and our trading partners, including on pesticides. All agri-food products imported into the UK under existing or future free trade agreements will, as now, have to comply with our import requirements. This applies to the UK’s accession to CPTPP, as it does to our other deals. We will ensure decisions on the use of pesticides are based on careful scientific assessment and will not authorise pesticides that may carry unacceptable risks to people or the environment.