Written questions by Naish.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps are being taken to ensure that Cider and Perry products have an appropriate amount of fruit juice to protect the quality of these drinks in the UK.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to launch a public consultation on prohibiting the sale of disposable barbecues.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her department are taking to ensure that the Deposit Return Scheme will be accessible for those with disabilities and limited mobility.

Defra has published an Equality Impact Assessment of the Deposit Return Scheme. Officials have worked with the Cabinet Office Disability Unit and the Government Equalities Office and with disability groups, including Disability Rights UK to learn from the...

Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance her Department plans to issue to developers and local planning authorities on the transitional arrangements for the revised Biodiversity Net Gain rules expected on 31 Jul

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether the revised Biodiversity Net Gain rules expected to come into effect on 31 July 2026 will apply to planning applications based on the date of submission or the date of determin

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her department has made of allowing exemptions in the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill to allow responsible rescue work of dogs and other animals

As outlined in the manifesto, this Government is committed to ending puppy smuggling. That is why Defra was pleased to support the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Act 2025. This Act gives the Government powers to prevent the supply of lo...

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help protect the health of people using inland waters for recreation.

The Government will bring forward legislation through the Clean Water Bill, announced in the King’s Speech on 13 May, to deliver major reforms to the water system. Public health will be at the heart of these reforms, alongside measures to strengthen regul...

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to improve access to inland waters for recreational users.

The Government recognises the importance of providing access to the outdoors for people’s health and wellbeing.  Public access onto around 3,400 miles of our regulated inland waterways, including several of the larger rivers, is available through the lice...

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of user-replaceable batteries in smartphones and tablets on levels of electronic waste in the UK.

Defra is working with the Devolved Governments to review the UK’s producer responsibility legislation for batteries. As part of this review, a series of workshops were held with industry earlier this year to explore the potential impacts of regulatory con...

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has considered the potential merits of introducing legislation requiring user-replaceable batteries in smartphones and tablets, equivalent to the provisions cont

Defra is working with the Devolved Governments to review the UK’s producer responsibility legislation for batteries. As part of this review, a series of workshops were held with industry earlier this year to explore the potential impacts of regulatory con...

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions her Department has had with smartphone and tablet manufacturers on the introduction of user-replaceable battery standards and the potential impact on consumer repair c

Defra is working with the Devolved Governments to review the UK’s producer responsibility legislation for batteries. As part of this review, a series of workshops were held with industry earlier this year to explore the potential impacts of regulatory con...

Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made with enacting Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

The Government is strongly committed to improving the implementation of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS). In December 2024 we made changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to support increased delivery of SuDS. The NPPF now requires all development to utilise SuDS where they could have drainage impacts. These systems should be appropriate to the nature and scale of the proposed development. We consulted on a revised version of the NPPF, with new policies on local plans and national decision making, including flood risk and SuDS, and are now in the process of considering next steps. Better delivery of SuDS may be achieved by continuing to improve the current planning policy-based approach and looking at ways of improving the approach to adoption and maintenance, rather than commencing Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of current measures of deprivation in capturing dispersed and hidden poverty in rural communities.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) leads on management and publication of the English Indices of Deprivation (IoD). Defra collaborated with MHCLG on a review and update of the indices, published in October 2025. A comprehensive independent literature review identified factors affecting deprivation in rural areas and its measurement which were taken into account in the updated indices. As part of the IoD, MHCLG published a rural report.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to incorporate transport costs, access to services and off-grid energy costs into its assessment of rural deprivation and need.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) leads on management and publication of the English Indices of Deprivation (IoD). Defra collaborated with MHCLG on a review and update of the indices, published in October 2025. A comprehensive independent literature review identified factors affecting deprivation in rural areas and its measurement which were taken into account in the updated indices. As part of the IoD, MHCLG published a rural report.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to increase awareness of the issues and impact surrounding light pollution.

The Government recognises that good use of artificial light can contribute to preventing accidents, reducing crime and creating safer spaces and promoting the night-time economy, benefiting us all in various ways. The Government has put in place a range of measures to ensure that light pollution is effectively managed through controls in the planning system, the Permitted Development Regime and the Statutory Nuisance Regime. Defra will continue to work closely with researchers, non-governmental organisations and across Government to improve our understanding of the impacts of light pollution.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to enforce restrictions against nuisance light pollution under the The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005.

The Government has put in place a range of measures to ensure that light pollution is effectively managed through the statutory nuisance regime. Local authorities have a duty to investigate complaints about light emitted from premises which could constitute a nuisance or be harmful to health and have powers to take action where there is a problem. The Government believes that any mitigating actions to try to reduce light pollution in urban, suburban and rural areas are best taken by local authorities as these are best dealt with at a local level.

Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to bring forward legislation to prohibit the use of dogs in hunting activities, including trail hunting.

This Government is committed to enacting a ban on the activity of trail hunting in line with its manifesto commitment. Work to determine the best approach for doing so is ongoing and Defra intends to consult on how to deliver a ban this year. We plan to introduce legislation to ban the activity of trail hunting when Parliamentary time allows.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has considered banning prong collars in addition to shock collars as part of the Government's Animal Welfare Strategy published 22nd December 2025.

As set out in the Animal Welfare Strategy, we will consult on whether to ban the use of electric shock collars later in this Parliament. We will carefully consider the scope of the consultation ahead of its publication.

Food and Rural Affairs, in reference to question UIN 43714 tabled on 2 April 2025, what recent progress her Department has made in public guidance for a process of withdrawing certificates of exemption for dogs wrongly registered as XL Bullies.

We are continuing to develop a withdrawal scheme so that owners who no longer believe that their dog is an XL Bully can apply to have their certificate of exemption for their dog withdrawn. This work is still in progress, and further details will be shared once finalised.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has any plans to legislate to ban the sale, and not just ownership, of shock collars as part of the Government's Animal Welfare Strategy published 22nd December 2025.

As set out in the Animal Welfare Strategy, we will consult on whether to ban the use of electric shock collars later in this Parliament. We will carefully consider the scope of the consultation ahead of its publication.