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

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a long-term management plan and consultation regarding beaver reintroduction and recovery; and what plans they have, if any, to provide financial support to landowners wishing to reintroduce beavers into the wild on their land.

This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only.

On 28 February 2025, Defra announced its new approach to beavers, including a commitment to developing a long-term management plan for beavers in England. We are developing our approach to this work and will engage stakeholders in due course to work together to develop a vision for managing the long-term reintroduction and recovery of beaver populations in England.

Defra has no plans to provide financial support to landowners wishing to reintroduce beavers into the wild on their land. A licence is required from Natural England to release beavers into the wild. Any project seeking a license must demonstrate that they have enough funding for the duration of the wild release project, which is usually 10 years.

Defra does offer support for living alongside beavers through Environmental Land Management (ELM) funding. ELM support and advice for land managers is available through Countryside Stewardship (Higher Tier) and capital grants. In addition, some actions in the Sustainable Farming Incentive also have a role to play in riparian management.