Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has undertaken an assessment of the potential merits of an earned recognition trusted trader imports system for the professional tree and plant growers.

We will publish a Target Operating Model in the autumn (2022) that will set out how and when we will introduce an improved global regime of all border import controls. It will be based on a further assessment of risk and will harness the power of data and technology. We are working with stakeholders to develop these proposals. This includes looking at the role a trusted trader scheme might play in the plant health control system, which applies to the import of trees, plants and plant products.