Written questions by Shannon.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to improve food supply security across the UK.

The UK has a resilient food supply chain built on supply from diverse sources, strong domestic production as well as imports through stable trade routes. Defra works with industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise. This includes extensive, regular and ongoing engagement in preparedness for, and response to, issues with the potential to cause disruption to food supply chains.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many farms have experienced TB outbreaks in the last 12 months.

In the 12 months to September 2025, the number of new TB herd incidents was as follows: England2,307Wales595Scotland29 New herd incidents are the number of herds which were previously Officially TB Free but either had cattle that reacted to an official TB test or had a tuberculous animal disclosed by routine meat inspection at slaughter, during the period shown. In Northern Ireland, the number of new reactor herds in the 12 months to September 2025 was as follows: Northern Ireland2,281 In Northern Ireland, new reactor herds refer to the number of herds during the period shown that were previously Officially TB Free but have had cattle that tested positive to the tuberculin skin test.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to improve flood defences.

As part of the Government’s Plan for Change, we are investing £4.2 billion over three years (2026/27 to 2028/29) to construct new flood and coastal erosion schemes and maintain and repair existing defences across England. In our first year in Government, 151 flood defence schemes have been delivered, better protecting over 24,000 homes and businesses. This Government will invest at least £10.5 billion into our flood defences between April 2024 and March 2036 benefitting nearly 900,000 properties across England. The Environment Agency’s National Flood Risk Assessment data now includes climate change scenarios, providing the best evidence to inform long-term risk assessment and the development of flood mitigation strategies. To halt the decline of our flood assets following years of under investment, over 2024/25 and 2025/26 £108 million has been reprioritised into asset maintenance, ensuring an additional 14,500 properties will have their expected level of protection maintained or restored.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of extended producer responsibility on small businesses in local communities.

pEPR in the UK has some of the most generous support measures for small businesses across any packaging scheme globally. These are exemptions from disposal fee and recycling (PRN) obligations for producers with an annual turnover below £2 million and packaging tonnage below 50 tonnes; and an exemption from data collection and reporting obligations for small businesses with turnover below £1 million and packaging tonnage below 25 tonnes. These exemptions apply to approximately 70% of businesses supplying packaging in the UK. We have made a full assessment of the impacts that implementing packaging extended producer responsibility will have. This includes assessment of the impacts on small businesses, which can be found in Section 8 of the impact assessment.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help encourage the use of local food supply chains.

The food strategy recognises the key role that regional and local food systems can play in supporting delivery of the growth, health, sustainability, and food security / resilience outcomes. Defra wants to create an environment that champions UK food cultures and celebrates British food.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps her Department has taken to address extreme flooding.

Over the last year, this Government has made significant progress by committing record investment in flood and coastal erosion defences; introducing the most significant change in flood and coastal erosion funding policy for nearly fifteen years; and building partnerships to improve flood preparedness and resilience. As part of the Government’s Plan for Change, we are investing £4.2 billion over three years (2026/27 to 2028/29) to construct new flood and coastal erosion schemes and maintain and repair existing defences across England. In our first year in Government, 151 flood defence schemes have been delivered, better protecting over 24,000 homes and businesses. This Government will invest at least £10.5 billion into our flood defences between April 2024 and March 2036 benefitting nearly 900,000 properties across England. The Environment Agency’s National Flood Risk Assessment data now includes climate change scenarios, providing the best evidence to inform long-term risk assessment and the development of flood mitigation strategies.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with ger counterparts in Northern Ireland in relation to the second outbreak of blue tongue in Portaferry.

Defra works closely with the Devolved Governments with the aim of providing, where possible, a consistent and coordinated response across the UK. Following the first confirmed bluetongue cases in Northern Ireland, Defra is working with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) to review policy regarding movement of bluetongue susceptible animals between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. This has included a case conference, and a CVO stocktake attended by the chief veterinary officers and policy leads from Defra, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps are being taken to help support the maritime sector.

Defra, including arms length bodies such as the Marine Management Organisation, supports maritime industries through a range of policy and operational activities. This includes the marine licensing system, work to support growth in offshore wind, our Marine Spatial Prioritisation programme and other marine, fisheries and environmental policies. In doing this we work closely with other Government Departments including Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Department for Transport, Department for Business and Trade.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many confirmed cases of blue tongue there has been in the last 24 months.

The first cases of bluetongue virus serotype 3 (BTV-3) of the current outbreak (2025/2026 vector season) were confirmed on the 11 July 2025. As of 5 December 2025, there have been 238 cases of bluetongue in GB since July 2025, with 223 cases in England and 15 cases in Wales. Prior to this, Defra confirmed 160 BTV-3 cases in England and 2 in Wales between 26 August 2024 and 31 May 2025. One case of bluetongue virus serotype 12 (BTV-12) was confirmed in England on 7 February 2025. Between November 2023 and March 2024 Defra confirmed 126 BTV-3 cases in England.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many confirmed cases of avian flu has there been in the last 12 months.

Between 5 December 2024 and 4 December 2025, there were 143 confirmed cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in poultry or other captive birds in the UK.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of safe bathing water across the UK.

To protect our waterways and the health of bathers, the Environment Agency monitors the water quality at over 400 designated beaches and inland waters across England during the bathing season. This is achieved through a robust sampling programme – as set out in law in the Bathing Water (Amendment) (England and Wales) Regulations 2025. On 25 November, the Environment Agency published the 2025 bathing water classifications for designated bathing sites in England. 93% of sites sampled were deemed “Sufficient” of better, with 87% meeting the standards for ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’ classification. This is an improvement on 2024, meaning swimmers can benefit from a higher number of better-quality bathing sites compared to last year.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps are being taken to promote social inclusion for pensioners in rural areas.

The Government is committed to supporting people to have the social connections they need. This is a key part of achieving wider government priorities across health and community cohesion. The Government funds the Tackling Loneliness Hub, an online forum for people working on loneliness to come together and share insights, research and best practice, with the aim of addressing loneliness and strengthening social connections across our communities. Defra also funds Action with Communities in Rural England to support local action, which includes actions related to social inclusion activities with older people.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of trends in the level of global milk demand.

The Uk Agricultural Market Monitoring Group which was established by Defra and the Devolved Governments under the Devolution Framework is responsible for the oversight and monitoring of the UK agriculture market. This includes a review of prices, production, inputs and trade covering an assessment of current and future global demand for dairy products. The current position indicates broadly stable demand for dairy across the world alongside continued rising supply and falling prices.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to improve mental health awareness training for the agricultural sector.

This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only. Defra funds the Farmer Welfare Grant that includes a recipient consortium led by The Farmer Network that is delivering mental health first aid training to those who interact with farmers. Participants reported an almost 100% increase in their knowledge and confidence in discussing mental health. Another recipient, the Lincolnshire Rural Support Network are also delivering farmer specific mental health awareness and first aid sessions to the sector. Furthermore, the department is also increasing awareness of mental health training opportunities by signposting resources to our customers and supporting the rollout of training for our staff who directly engage with individuals in the sector.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with her counterpart in Northern Ireland on Asian hornets.

The British Irish Council (BIC) has an Invasive Species Work Sector which shares expertise and learning across the eight BIC administrations and makes decisions on common policies and approaches with respect to Invasive Species. Members include the UK Government and the Northern Ireland Executive. There is a Work Plan for this Work Sector and Asian hornets are one of the five key areas of focus.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with her counterparts in Northern Ireland on the adequacy of the Noise Act 1996.

The Noise Act 1996 gives local authorities powers to serve warning notices to deal with noise from dwellings and licensed premises that exceeds a permitted level between 11pm and 7am. There have not been any recent discussions on the adequacy of the Noise Act 1996 between Defra and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of blue-green algae on water quality in UK rivers.

The Environment Agency (EA) works with others including local authorities and Public Health England to manage waterbodies affected by blue-green algae and the risks they pose. The EA does not routinely monitor for blue-green algae but attends incidents and analyses samples where appropriate, assessing the risks and notifying water body owners, abstractors, Environmental Health Officers, as necessary. Excessive nutrient enrichment is a major cause of algal blooms. The Government recognises this and is taking action to reduce nutrient pollution. The Environment Act 2021 sets legally binding goals to cut agricultural nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment entering water by 40% by 2038 (compared to a 2018 baseline), and to reduce phosphorus loadings from treated wastewater by 80% by 2038 (compared to a 2020 baseline). We have also committed to a review of the Environmental Improvement Plan, which will outline how Defra will meet these targets.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help support the game keeping industry.

We do not currently have specific policies that support the gamekeeping profession. However, in addition to our work to support the farming sector, Defra works across Government to ensure policies are rural proofed with the aim of supporting rural businesses and communities.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of recent trends in levels of water pollution in England.

Defra publishes an annual suite of indicators that assess progress on protecting and improving the water environment. These reports are publicly available at GOV.UK. The latest report has several trend assessments, each one is useful for understanding different parts of the water environment and for understanding trends from different pressures, such as those from the water industry. One of the trend assessments, covering data from 1990 to 2023, shows a generally improving national situation for many pollutants over that time, though some exceptions remain. The Environment Agency and Defra are working hard with many partners to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas and won’t change our focus until reductions in pollution are observed across the board.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the devolved Administrations on new dog breeding laws.

Animal welfare is a devolved matter in the UK. This means that responsibility for animal welfare policy in each of the nations, including the regulation of dog breeding, is the responsibility of the relevant nation’s Ministers. Defra works closely with the devolved Governments on a range of shared priorities, including animal welfare, and will discuss any relevant matters as necessary, including at meetings of the Interministerial Group (EFRA).