Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what measures are in place to ensure that imported goods consumed in the UK are produced to environmental standards comparable to those required of UK producers.

If I understand the Honourable Member’s question correctly, I can assure him that all imported food stuffs have to meet the UK’s environmental standards and that we will not and do not abandon either animal welfare or food standards when securing trade deals with other countries. To the contrary, we champion British farming, protect the environment, and promote the highest food production standards including through trade deals promoting high sustainable standards.

In the Trade Strategy, the Government launched a review of the UK’s approach to responsible business conduct, focused on addressing environmental harms alongside human rights and labour abuses in global supply chains. We hope to publish our conclusions soon.