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 plans to take steps to increase transparency around use of pesticides by local authorities.

The Government’s first priority with regard to pesticides is to ensure that they will not harm people or animal health or pose unacceptable risks to the environment.

There is a legal requirement to minimise the use of pesticides along roads and in areas used by the public. It is for each Local Authority to decide the best way of delivering effective and cost-effective weed control in its operations while protecting people and the environment.