Written questions by Stafford.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of implementing a five per cent rule to exempt low-throughput abattoirs from full-time veterinary oversight requirements.

Defra remains committed to identifying potential opportunities to ease regulatory and/or administrative burdens that apply to smaller abattoirs. This includes the livestock unit regulatory flexibility (5% rule). Working closely with the Devolved Governments and the appointed Competent Authorities, Defra is committed to engaging with industry stakeholders to gather views and insights on the potential implementation of these potential flexibilities and to ensure we fully understand and address any concerns they may have.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to incorporate the needs of small-scale meat (a) producers and (b) processors into his Department's (i) food strategy and (ii) future rural support programmes.

Developing a food strategy is not a job for the Government alone. We are forming a coalition with the food sector, academics and charities, citizens, and key thinkers to pool our collective ideas, influence, and effort. As part of our engagement, we are holding sectoral and thematic conversations through May and June, utilising existing Defra forums. This includes the Livestock Chain Advisory Group, in which small-scale meat producers and processors are represented by sector bodies and associations. This is just the start of the conversation, and all stakeholders across the food supply chain will be engaged. Defra plans to simplify and rationalise grant funding, ensuring that grants deliver the most benefit for food security and nature. We are currently working to agree our capital settlement as part of the Spending Review. Once agreed, we will consider how best to use capital to achieve outcomes and will confirm any future grant rounds in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to encourage Forestry England to introduce disabled parking spaces in the Bourne Woods car park, Surrey.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 11 November 2024, UIN 12353.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many applications have been received from commercial laying hen and pullet keepers for the Laying Hen Housing for Health and Welfare Grant in England.

The deadline for online applications was the 18 September 2024. The Rural Payments Agency received 103 applications. The deadline for full applications is 28 April 2026. As of 22 April 25, one full application has been received. Checks to confirm eligibility against the requirements of the Laying Hen Housing for Health and Welfare Grant will be completed as part of full application process.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) banning the use of Bovaer and (b) allowing the use of Kelp.

The Food Standards Agency has advised milk from cows given Bovaer is safe to drink. Bovaer has undergone a rigorous safety assessment and is approved for use in Great Britain. Regulation of feed additives and materials, such as Kelp, is the responsibility of the Food Standards Agency. Both synthetic and natural feed products must be demonstrated as safe for use to be added to the GB Register of Feed Materials.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the cost of extended producer responsibility fees in (a) the UK and (b) other European countries.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 4th April 2025, UIN 42346.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has contingency plans for a national bin strike.

Local authorities are independent employers, responsible for managing industrial relations and the impacts of any potential industrial action.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of (a) extended producer responsibility fees and (b) other tax increases on the viability of UK breweries.

The 2024 pEPR impact assessment can be found here.The impact assessment estimated the pEPR producer fees would generate over £1 billion annually to support local authority collection and disposal services, including recycling services. We expect Greenhouse Gas Emissions savings of approximately 0.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent over the 10-year appraisal period. Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) relief would have ended entirely in April 2025, creating a cliff-edge for businesses. Instead, the Government has decided to offer a 40 per cent discount to RHL properties up to a cash cap of £110,0000 per business in 2025-26 and frozen the small business multiplier. By tapering RHL relief to 40%, rather than letting it end, the Government has saved the average pub, with a rateable value (RV) of £16,800, over £3,300 in 2025. At Budget, the Government also announced that from 2026-27, it intends to introduce permanently lower tax rates for RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. This permanent tax cut will ensure that they benefit from much-needed certainty and support. The Government intends to fund this by introducing a higher multiplier on the most valuable properties, which includes the majority of large distribution warehouses, including warehouses used by online giants. The rates for any new business rate multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that the Government can take into account the upcoming revaluation outcomes as well as the economic and fiscal context.

Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish the findings of the consultation entitled Reform of the Bathing Water Regulations 2013, published on 12 November 2024.

The consultation on Reforms to the Bathing Water Regulations 2013 closed on 23 December 2024. We are currently analysing responses and evaluating how any proposed changes may impact the application and designation process. We will issue a formal government response to the consultation in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) banning the use of Bovaer and (b) allowing the use of Kelp in milk products.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has advised milk from cows given Bovaer is safe to drink. Bovaer has undergone a rigorous safety assessment and is approved for use in Great Britain. Regulation of feed additives and materials, such as kelp, is the responsi...

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to ensure that halal products are clearly marked on food labelling.

There are no regulations that require the labelling of halal meat, but where any information of this nature is provided it must be accurate and must not be misleading to the consumer. The Government respects religious freedoms and expects the industry, wh...

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to encourage Forestry England to introducing disabled parking spaces in the Bourne Woods car park, Surrey.

Parking in the nation’s forests is an operational matter for Forestry England. Forestry England values accessibility for all visitors. It is not currently able to mark out designated spaces for disabled parking in some forests due to the location of these...

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on the adequacy of EU export regulations for preventing the importation of diseased plants into the UK.

The Trade Specialised Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures, set up under the UK/EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, provides a platform for information sharing and discussion on each of the Parties’ import and export requirements. It is ...

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help prevent the sale of illegal dog breeds on (a) Freeads, (b) Gumtree and (c) other advertisement websites.

It is a criminal offence to sell, gift, exchange, advertise or offer for sale any prohibited dog breeds. The maximum penalty for doing so is up to six months in prison and or an unlimited fine. The Government has strongly encouraged all online selling sites to run automated checks for words and terms relating to these prohibited breed types, reporting this to enforcement authorities where relevant.