Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Merron on 11 December (HL Deb col 1760), what assessment they have made of the length of time taken to lay the Bread and Flour (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2024; and what steps they intend to take in future to shorten the process for food supplements without compromising consumer and patient safety.

In England, the Department of Health and Social Care is responsible for nutrition legislation including food supplements, fortified foods, nutrition and health claims, foods for specific groups, and nutrition labelling.

The Government has been working closely across all four nations to implement the policy to fortify non-wholemeal flour with folic acid to reduce the risk of neural tube defects in babies. In England, this change has been implemented via amendments to The Bread and Flour Regulations 1998 alongside other changes and will come into force in December 2026.

This is a complex policy, which has required careful consideration of the evidence, advice from scientific committees and involved much scientific debate. It has been taken forward as a measure across the United Kingdom and has involved two consultations and coordination across the four nations and across successive governments in each nation.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs published responses to the second public consultation in January 2024. The Government has prioritised swift action to protect unborn babies and moved rapidly to reach agreement with the other nations and lay the legislation in England on 14 November 2024.

The length of time needed to develop policies varies depending on the complexity of the policy and other factors.