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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the total cost to businesses of complying with any new certification, labelling, IT system, and regulatory requirements arising from a future UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement.

The precise impacts of the agreement will depend on the outcome of the negotiations. As technical negotiations progress, this Government expects to follow normal processes for any necessary legislative changes and assess impacts accordingly. Defra officials have been listening to businesses to understand how the agreement will affect them and will work with them to ensure a smooth transition.