Written questions by Dance.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to provide support to people in Yeovil constituency who have experienced property damage due to Storm Chandra.

Storm Chandra brought heavy rain to the UK on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 January. This was felt especially by parts of the South and South West previously affected by Storm Ingrid, with the rain falling on already saturated ground, leading to 3 Severe Flood Warnings being issued. Across Somerset, around 50 properties have been reported as flooded, with rivers responding rapidly to recent rainfall and ground conditions remaining saturated. Flood warnings and alerts remain in force, and further rain is expected. This Government recognises the terrible impact flooding has on householders and businesses, both in terms of physical damage, disruptions to daily activities and impacts on health, including mental health. Those affected should contact their insurance companies as quickly as possible. Affected householders should ask their insurance provider if they will be eligible for Build Back Better within their claim, which can provide for flood resilient repairs over and above the cost for like-for-like reinstatement of actual flood damage that would. With localised flooding incidents, local authorities have well-established contingency arrangements in place to support their local communities. Local authorities also have discretionary powers to fund grants, loans, or other payments for home improvements. In severe weather events with widespread impacts, local authorities may receive central support to help reopen affected community spaces through the Flood Recovery Framework, however funding is typically deployed where there is large scale and widespread flooding.Further information can be found here:Check your current and long-term risk here Check the long term flood risk for an area in England - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk);Look at the advice on preparing for flooding at Prepare for flooding: Protect yourself from future flooding - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk); andSign up to receive any flood alerts and flood warnings for your local area here Check for flooding in England - GOV.UK (check-for-flooding.service.gov.uk)

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she plans to take to support the reopening of community spaces that were closed as a result of flooding during Storm Chandra.

Storm Chandra brought heavy rain to the UK on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 January. This was felt especially by parts of the South and South West previously affected by Storm Ingrid, with the rain falling on already saturated ground, leading to 3 Severe Flood Warnings being issued. Across Somerset, around 50 properties have been reported as flooded, with rivers responding rapidly to recent rainfall and ground conditions remaining saturated. Flood warnings and alerts remain in force, and further rain is expected. This Government recognises the terrible impact flooding has on householders and businesses, both in terms of physical damage, disruptions to daily activities and impacts on health, including mental health. Those affected should contact their insurance companies as quickly as possible. Affected householders should ask their insurance provider if they will be eligible for Build Back Better within their claim, which can provide for flood resilient repairs over and above the cost for like-for-like reinstatement of actual flood damage that would. With localised flooding incidents, local authorities have well-established contingency arrangements in place to support their local communities. Local authorities also have discretionary powers to fund grants, loans, or other payments for home improvements. In severe weather events with widespread impacts, local authorities may receive central support to help reopen affected community spaces through the Flood Recovery Framework, however funding is typically deployed where there is large scale and widespread flooding.Further information can be found here:Check your current and long-term risk here Check the long term flood risk for an area in England - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk);Look at the advice on preparing for flooding at Prepare for flooding: Protect yourself from future flooding - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk); andSign up to receive any flood alerts and flood warnings for your local area here Check for flooding in England - GOV.UK (check-for-flooding.service.gov.uk)

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of food inflation on residents in Yeovil constituency.

Food and drink prices showed an annual rate of inflation of 4.2% in the year to November 2025, in the most recently published inflation figures for the UK, released by the Office for National Statistics. This is a decrease from 4.9% in October 2025. General inflation in the UK was 3.2% in November 2025, down from 3.6% in October 2025. These inflation figures are for the UK and are not available by constituency.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the need to improve drought resilience in Yeovil Constituency following the publication of the Environment Agency's Drought Prospects for Spring 2026.

We recognise that improving drought resilience in Yeovil Constituency remains important following the Environment Agency’s (EA) latest Drought Prospects for Spring 2026, which highlights the need for continued monitoring of groundwater levels and winter rainfall. While recent rainfall has helped reservoirs, including Sutton Bingham near Yeovil, to refill to capacity, groundwater levels in the chalk aquifers of Wiltshire remain below average and are important to the wider Wessex Water supply grid. Wessex Water is required to update its statutory drought plan, with a draft due to be published in 2027. This plan will set out improvements to their drought response as well as measures to manage demand and maintain supplies during drought while mitigating environmental impacts. In the meantime, Wessex Water continues to promote water efficiency and work with the EA to monitor conditions and update drought prospects as new data becomes available.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to reduce waste crime in Yeovil constituency.

This Government is committed to tackling waste crime from the fly-tippers who blight our towns and villages to the serious and organised crime groups who are exploiting the waste sector. We are making policy and regulatory reforms to close loopholes exploited by criminals and have increased the Environment Agency’s (EA’s) budget for waste crime enforcement by over 50% this year to £15.6m. The EA focuses on tackling large-scale waste crime, often linked to organised criminal activity. While fly-tipping is managed by local authorities, the EA works proactively with partners including the police, HMRC, DVSA, Local authorities and National Farmers Union through intelligence-led “days of action” at locations such as Cartgate roundabout near Yeovil. These operations target unregistered waste carriers and ensure compliance with licensing requirements and robust enforcement for non-compliance. Representatives from the EA sit on the Avon and Somerset Rural Affairs Forum which is a partnership to address rural crime including waste crime. The Agency is also part of the South-West Regional Organised Crime Unit, which focuses on serious and organised waste crime. This unit assesses reports of illegal waste activity, undertaking triage and determining the response, based on a range of risk and public interest factors.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to support a reduction of incidents of fly-tipping in (a) Yeovil constituency and (b) South Somerset.

Local councils are responsible for tackling fly-tipping in their area and have a range of enforcement powers to help them do so. These include fixed penalty notices of up to £1000, seizing and crushing of vehicles and prosecution action. We encourage councils to make good use of their enforcement powers and are taking steps to develop statutory fly-tipping enforcement guidance to support councils to consistently, appropriately and effectively exercise these existing powers.  We are also conducting a review of council powers to seize and crush vehicles of fly-tippers, to identify how we could help them make better use of this tool.In our manifesto we committed to forcing fly-tippers to clean up the mess that they have created. We will provide further details on this commitment in due course.In the meantime, Defra continues to chair the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group through which we work with a wide range of stakeholders, such as local authorities, National Farmers Union and the Environment Agency, to share good practice on preventing fly-tipping, including on private land. Various practical tools are available from their webpage at: https://nftpg.com/

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help reduce the number of pollution incidents from Wessex Water sewerage assets in Somerset.

In Somerset, two new Water Industry Officer teams now monitor Wessex Water’s compliance with environmental permits and hold them accountable for pollution incidents. These teams inspect all Wessex Water assets and in 2024/25, delivered more inspections than any other EA Area, with similar performance expected this year. Officers are continually upskilled to strengthen incident response and enforcement capabilities to ensure they hold Wessex Water accountable. Within the Yeovil constituency, the EA is due to complete a total of 22 inspections of Wessex Water assets this year, an increase from 6 last year. The EA has already responded to a significant pollution incident within the constituency, initially stopping the pollution incident and now investigating further to determine an appropriate enforcement response.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking with farmers in (a) Yeovil constituency (b) Somerset and (c) the UK to help increase the UK's food security.

Food security is national security. We need a resilient and healthy food system, that works with nature and supports British farmers, fishers and food producers. As part of the Government’s Plan for Change we are delivering on the Government’s New Deal for Farmers which includes a raft of new policies and major investment to boost profits for farmers. We have allocated a record of £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production in England over this parliament. This includes funding for Environmental Land Management schemes, which amongst others, will deliver improvements to sustainable food production and the environment, in Somerset and across the country. Furthermore, UK consumers have access through international trade to food products that cannot be produced here, or at least not on a year-round basis. This supplements domestic production and also ensures that any disruption from risks such as adverse weather or disease does not affect the UK's overall security of supply. Defra works with industry and across Government to monitor risks that may arise.

Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to publish the conclusions of the research project on operational challenges preventing some cats from being reunited with their keepers after road traffic accidents.

The research report for the project entitled "Impact of waste management processes on reunifying owners with their dead cats and dogs found by the roadside" is undergoing review. A report will be published once those procedures have concluded.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2025 to Question 75506 on the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs: Finance, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of delivering funding beyond 2025-26 to the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs.

My officials continue to work closely with the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs in delivering the 25/26 grant. Any assessment of the potential merits of providing further funding beyond 25/26 will form part of future spending decisions.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of removing discretionary grant funding for the National Federation of Young Farmers' Clubs on the farming industry in (a) Yeovil constituency (b) Somerset and (c) England.

Encouraging more young people into farming and land-based careers is vital to ensure a skilled workforce is in place and the longer-term viability of the sector. Defra works closely with the National Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs (NFYFC). Defra provides funding of up to £30,000 per year for specific project-based activity which supports skills development and training. My officials continue to work very closely with the NFYFC to deliver the 2025-26 grant to ensure value for money.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of protecting funding for the Darwin Plus scheme beyond 2030.

Defra is committed to continuing the support made available to the UK Overseas Territories through Darwin Plus. The department recognises the unique environmental importance of the territories and the positive impact of the programme in protecting biodiversity. As set out in my earlier answer, the department has secured a multi-year commitment from HM Treasury and will therefore look to provide an update on Darwin Plus following departmental business planning. Funding commitments for grants awarded through the Darwin Plus programme can cover up to 5 years of activity through schemes such as Darwin Plus Strategic. Updates regarding Darwin Plus will be made in the usual way, as soon as they are available.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2025 to Question 61101 on Darwin Plus: Finance, how many years the funding commitment is for.

Defra is committed to continuing the support made available to the UK Overseas Territories through Darwin Plus. The department recognises the unique environmental importance of the territories and the positive impact of the programme in protecting biodiversity. As set out in my earlier answer, the department has secured a multi-year commitment from HM Treasury and will therefore look to provide an update on Darwin Plus following departmental business planning. Funding commitments for grants awarded through the Darwin Plus programme can cover up to 5 years of activity through schemes such as Darwin Plus Strategic. Updates regarding Darwin Plus will be made in the usual way, as soon as they are available.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2025 to Question 61101 on Darwin Plus: Finance, when he plans to announce the amount of future funding for Darwin Plus.

Defra is committed to continuing the support made available to the UK Overseas Territories through Darwin Plus. The department recognises the unique environmental importance of the territories and the positive impact of the programme in protecting biodiversity. As set out in my earlier answer, the department has secured a multi-year commitment from HM Treasury and will therefore look to provide an update on Darwin Plus following departmental business planning. Funding commitments for grants awarded through the Darwin Plus programme can cover up to 5 years of activity through schemes such as Darwin Plus Strategic. Updates regarding Darwin Plus will be made in the usual way, as soon as they are available.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with large supermarkets on the potential impact of (a) food pricing and (b) supermarkets' buying practices on food producers.

Defra regularly engages with supermarkets and producers about a range of measures they can take to ensure the availability of affordable food.  These measures include maintaining value ranges, price matching and price freezing.  However, it is for each individual food retailer to make commercial decisions regarding the products in their stores, as the Government does not interfere in day-to-day operations. The Government is firmly committed to ensuring food producers receive a fair price for their products, and to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists. On 13 March, Fair Dealing Regulations for the pig sector were introduced and are currently progressing through the parliamentary process. Similar regulations for the eggs and fresh produce sectors will follow, with the Government prepared to intervene in any sector where fairness issues are identified. Where farmers sell directly to retailers, their agreements will be covered within the scope of the sectoral regulations that we are introducing through powers in the Agriculture Act 2020. Additionally, the Government is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to nutritious, affordable food. The recently launched Food Strategy will look to outline measures to make healthy food accessible and affordable for the whole population.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the primary causes of litter in rural communities.

Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local councils are usually best placed to respond to littering. They have a range of enforcement tools including fixed penalty notices and prosecution to help them meet their duty to keep public areas clear or litter and rubbish. This Government is considering what further steps are needed to help local authorities tackle litter. In the meantime, we are tackling two of the more common sources of litter. The sale of single-use vapes will be banned from 1 June 2025 and a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will go live in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027. The DRS will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers. No assessment has been made of the primary causes of litter in rural communities, the potential impact of litter on public health in rural communities or the potential merits of supporting greater education in schools on littering. The Eco-Schools programme, run by Keep Britain Tidy, works with schools to help change littering habits. As part of the programme, in 2023/24 over 100,000 pupils participated in litter picks collecting 27,000 bags of rubbish and delivering over 3,000 litter picks in their communities.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take to help tackle the sources of littering in (a) Yeovil constituency and (b) rural communities.

Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local councils are usually best placed to respond to littering. They have a range of enforcement tools including fixed penalty notices and prosecution to help them meet their duty to keep public areas clear or litter and rubbish. This Government is considering what further steps are needed to help local authorities tackle litter. In the meantime, we are tackling two of the more common sources of litter. The sale of single-use vapes will be banned from 1 June 2025 and a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will go live in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027. The DRS will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers. No assessment has been made of the primary causes of litter in rural communities, the potential impact of litter on public health in rural communities or the potential merits of supporting greater education in schools on littering. The Eco-Schools programme, run by Keep Britain Tidy, works with schools to help change littering habits. As part of the programme, in 2023/24 over 100,000 pupils participated in litter picks collecting 27,000 bags of rubbish and delivering over 3,000 litter picks in their communities.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of supporting the introduction of bottle deposit schemes in (a) Yeovil constituency and (b) other rural communities.

The Government has engaged with stakeholders as we developed policy for the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drink containers, including two public consultations: the first in 2019 and the second in 2021. 83% of the 2,590 responses to the 2021 consultation supported a DRS. We also published the Final Impact Assessment on DRS for England and Northern Ireland in November 2024. The Deposit Management Organisation, who will run the scheme, is legally required to ensure there is a comprehensive returns network, so that rural communities, like Yeovil, can easily redeem their deposits and people have convenient access to a return point wherever they live.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take reduce the public health impact of litter in rural communities.

Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local councils are usually best placed to respond to littering. They have a range of enforcement tools including fixed penalty notices and prosecution to help them meet their duty to keep public areas clear or litter and rubbish. This Government is considering what further steps are needed to help local authorities tackle litter. In the meantime, we are tackling two of the more common sources of litter. The sale of single-use vapes will be banned from 1 June 2025 and a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will go live in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027. The DRS will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers. No assessment has been made of the primary causes of litter in rural communities, the potential impact of litter on public health in rural communities or the potential merits of supporting greater education in schools on littering. The Eco-Schools programme, run by Keep Britain Tidy, works with schools to help change littering habits. As part of the programme, in 2023/24 over 100,000 pupils participated in litter picks collecting 27,000 bags of rubbish and delivering over 3,000 litter picks in their communities.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessments he has made of the potential merits of supporting greater education in schools on (a) littering and (b) reducing littering.

Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local councils are usually best placed to respond to littering. They have a range of enforcement tools including fixed penalty notices and prosecution to help them meet their duty to keep public areas clear or litter and rubbish. This Government is considering what further steps are needed to help local authorities tackle litter. In the meantime, we are tackling two of the more common sources of litter. The sale of single-use vapes will be banned from 1 June 2025 and a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will go live in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027. The DRS will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers. No assessment has been made of the primary causes of litter in rural communities, the potential impact of litter on public health in rural communities or the potential merits of supporting greater education in schools on littering. The Eco-Schools programme, run by Keep Britain Tidy, works with schools to help change littering habits. As part of the programme, in 2023/24 over 100,000 pupils participated in litter picks collecting 27,000 bags of rubbish and delivering over 3,000 litter picks in their communities.