Written questions by Morello.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the expansion of domestic manufacturing of (a) tractors, (b) combine harvesters and (c) precision agriculture technology.

Domestic adoption of precision farming technologies including, for example, tractor mounted drills, inter row hoes and weeders and camera guided spot sprayers, has been supported by the Farming Equipment & Technology Fund (FETF), that provides grants towards the cost of innovative equipment that is commercially available. A round of FETF will open to farmers across England in Spring 2025. Through the Accelerating Development of Practices and Technologies (ADOPT) fund we are also providing grants for farmer-led demonstration trials of newly emerging technologies, so farmers may have greater confidence to invest in further advances to improve productivity and profitability. A range of measures is being considered through the development of the Government’s Industrial Strategy to benefit UK technology and equipment manufacturers and deliver growth.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing (a) fiscal and (b) regulatory incentives to (i) support UK-based agricultural machinery manufacturers and (ii) reduce reliance on imported agricultural equipment.

The Farming Innovation Programme funds research and innovation to offer new technology, equipment and practices that will support development of UK businesses and deliver solutions for farmers. Further grants like the Farming Equipment & Technology Fund (FETF) have helped ensure these UK-developed technologies can be adopted to support UK agriculture. We continue to work with industry to explore and enhance the full range of levers available to support UK agri-innovation and technology growth.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has commissioned research into the scalability of vertical farming practices.

The Government recognises that vertical farming (as part of Controlled Environment Horticulture) is a highly productive and valuable component of our wider agricultural system. As part of our mission-driven government, we are now considering how we can achieve our ambitious, measurable and long-term goals for all our farming sectors, including horticulture.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of mixing farming practices that integrate livestock and crop production to improve soil health.

Defra has made several assessments via R&D addressing the effectiveness of mixing farming practices which integrate livestock and crop production to improve soil health, focussing on comparing integrated crop and livestock systems with conventional cropping systems. Some of this ongoing research is delivered collaboratively via EU programmes, which also address circularity in mixed systems and have an emphasis on climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to implement alternative mechanisms to help support farmers with (a) hedgerow planting and (b) restoration projects following the suspension of capital grants under the Sustainable Farming Incentive.

Defra announced on 24 February that the standalone Capital Grant scheme will re-open in the summer. The Capital Grant scheme will continue to offer funding to support hedgerow planting and restoration projects. In addition, Defra offers a range of other grants to support capital works which benefit the environment which are open now.

What estimate her Department has made of the number of farmers in West Dorset who will be affected by the proposed changes to Inheritance Tax, including Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief.

The Government has published information about the reforms to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR) at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms. The Chancellor also recently wrote to the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee regarding the APR reforms; the letter can be accessed at: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/45691/documents/226235/default/. It is expected that up to around 2,000 estates across the UK will be affected by the changes to APR and BPR in 2026-27, with around half of those being claims that involve AIM shares. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) are expected to be unaffected by these reforms. In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill. Information from claims is not recorded to enable regional or constituency-level breakdown of the number of estates expected to be affected. For more information, please see my recent letter to the Chair of the Northern Ireland Select Committee: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/46267/documents/232537/default/.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the temporary closure of capital grants within the Sustainable Farming Incentive on (a) the Great Big Dorset Hedge project and (b) other community-led environmental initiatives.

Defra paused the standalone Capital Grant scheme, which includes grants to plant hedgerows, due to unprecedented demand. Defra announced on 24 February that all applications submitted before the scheme paused to new applications will be processed and funding will be granted to eligible applicants, including those who want to plant hedgerows. Defra does not intend to assess the impact of the temporary pause as this was a short period to re-assess the affordability of the scheme.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to collaborate with educational institutions to provide apprenticeship opportunities in the agricultural sector.

The Department for Education (DfE) works closely with education providers and key partners such as Landex, the membership body for land-based education providers, to understand the challenges in delivering agricultural education and what support is needed to ensure everyone has access to high quality skills training. There are 39 apprenticeships available for delivery in agriculture, environmental and animal care. To support more apprenticeship opportunities for young people the DfE provides £1,000 to both employers and training providers when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18, and up to age 24 for apprentices with an education, health and care plan or who have been in local authority care. We are working with industry and DfE to understand how the agricultural and horticultural sectors can make better use of the available apprenticeship system.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to reduce E. coli levels in the River Char.

The River Char is not a designated site, therefore we do not hold any data on E.Coli levels for that river. The Environment Agency (EA) does not routinely monitor for E. Coli, as this is not a measure used to classify the ecological health of our rivers. E Coli monitoring is normally only undertaken at designated bathing waters to provide information to bathers on possible health risks. The Char has no designated bathing waters so is not monitored for E Coli. The nearest designated bathing water site in the catchment is on the coast at Charmouth West. This has been classified as having Excellent Bathing Water Quality.

What assessment her Department has made of trends in food bank use in rural areas over the last 12 months.

The latest statistics on food bank usage including data at a national and regional level can be found in the household food security tables located here: Family Resources Survey: financial year 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK

What recent discussions her Department has had with farming representatives on the potential impact of the Furnished Holiday Lettings tax scheme on farmers who have diversified into holiday accommodations.

The Government will abolish the Furnished Holiday Lettings (FHLs) tax regime from April 2025. This will equalise the tax treatment of FHL and non-FHL landlords’ income and gains. Draft legislation to abolish the FHL tax regime was published on 29 July 2024, providing farming representatives and other businesses with an opportunity to share their views on the legislation with the Government.

What steps her Department is taking to improve the (a) accessibility and (b) maintenance of rural roads.

This Government takes the accessibility and condition of both rural and urban roads very seriously and is determined to help local authorities tackle the maintenance backlog that results from years of underinvestment by the previous Government. The Government has announced a highway maintenance funding uplift of £500 million for the 2025/26 financial year to help local authorities in rural and urban areas to carry out their highway maintenance responsibilities. Dorset County Council is set to receive over £25 million, an increase of over 35% from the current financial year. It is up to each authority to decide how much of this it spends on its rural roads, based on local needs and priorities.The Department also provides Integrated Transport Block funding to local authorities to allow them to carry out accessibility and other improvements to roads in rural and urban areas and hopes to confirm 2025/26 allocations shortly. Active Travel England has also recently announced active travel funding allocations to authorities for 2024/25 and 2025/26 which will allow them to improve the accessibility of footways in both rural and urban areas, and Dorset will receive around £1 million of this funding.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the cost of living on recent demand for food banks in rural areas.

The latest statistics on food bank usage including data at a national and regional level can be found in the household food security tables located here: Family Resources Survey: financial year 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK

What recent estimate his Department has made of the number of NHS dentists accepting new patients in West Dorset constituency.

As of 4 February 2025, in the West Dorset constituency, there were 15 National Health Service dentist practices, with two showing as ‘accepting new child patients when availability allows’ and two showing as ‘accepting new adult patients when availability allows’.This data is sourced from the Find a Dentist website and is matched to constituencies based on the postcode data shown on the website, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support farmers facing increased veterinary insurance premiums.

Insurance providers are private businesses and are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. However, through the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway, we are providing eligible keepers of cattle, sheep and pigs in England access to a series of funded visits by a vet of their choice, the animal health and welfare review and the complementary endemic disease follow-up visit.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent data his Department holds on E. coli levels in the River Char.

The River Char is not a designated site, therefore we do not hold any data on E.Coli levels for that river. The Environment Agency (EA) does not routinely monitor for E. Coli, as this is not a measure used to classify the ecological health of our rivers. E Coli monitoring is normally only undertaken at designated bathing waters to provide information to bathers on possible health risks. The Char has no designated bathing waters so is not monitored for E Coli. The nearest designated bathing water site in the catchment is on the coast at Charmouth West. This has been classified as having Excellent Bathing Water Quality.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he has taken to support farmers with changes in agricultural subsidies following the UK's departure from the EU.

As we carry on the transition away from payment for land ownership and towards paying to deliver public goods for the environment, the Government is working with farmers to deliver a profitable farming sector and unlock rural growth. Environment Land Management (ELM) schemes remain at the centre of our offer for farmers and nature, putting us on the path to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector. In the October 2024 budget, we committed £5 billion for farming over two years, including £1.8 billion for our ELM schemes - the largest ever budget directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history. More than half of farmers are now in an ELM scheme. At January’s Oxford Farming Conference, the Secretary of State announced a series of reforms to support farmers, delivering on the Government’s New Deal for Farmers. This includes a pledge to use the Government’s own purchasing power to back British produce and a commitment to monitor food currently bought in the public sector and where it is bought from. The Government will also use planning reforms to support food production, help farmers make additional money from selling surplus energy from solar panels and wind turbines by accelerating connections to the grid, protect farmers in trade deals, and boost profitability through fair competition across the supply chain.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent hunting activities from causing distress to livestock on active farmland.

The Government recognises the distress livestock worrying can cause animals and their keepers. It is an offence under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953 for any dog to attack or worry livestock. All reported crimes should be taken seriously, investigated and, where appropriate, taken through the courts and met with appropriate penalties. Government is supporting a Private Members’ Bill which will amend and update the 1953 Act. The Bill will modernise definitions and scope, strengthen police powers and increase the maximum penalty from a fine of £1,000 to an “unlimited” fine to act as a deterrent.

Food and Rural Affairs, what funding is allocated for research into affordable precision agriculture technologies suitable for small-scale farmers.

The Farming Innovation Programme funds research across a range of technologies in agriculture including precision agriculture. Almost £150 million has been committed to projects of which over £84 million has been committed to small businesses. From 2025 / 2026 a further £63 million will be available in innovation grants under the Programme to support research and innovation, technology and equipment for farmers.

What support is available to farmers to improve the insulation of farmhouses.

The UK Government is committed to ensuring that no-one is left behind in the transition to Net Zero, supplying solutions that work for all buildings, income groups, and housing types such as farmhouses. As part of the Warm Homes Plan, the Government has committed initial £3.4 billion over the next three years towards heat decarbonisation and household energy efficiency. There are various schemes currently delivering home energy efficiency improvements including the Energy Company Obligation, the Great British Insulation Scheme, and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. The new Warm Homes: Local Grant will support low-income homeowners and private tenants with insulation measures, with delivery beginning this year. Households can also use the home retrofit tool on GOV.UK, ‘Find ways to save energy in your home’ (www.gov.uk/improve-energy-efficiency) which allows users to get tailored recommendations for home improvements that could make their property cheaper to heat and keep warm.