Written questions by Ranger.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to protect small bird keepers in relation to avian flu regulations.

Steps being taken by the Government to protect small bird keepers from disproportionate impacts of avian influenza regulations, include: Psittacines (including parrots and budgerigars) and passerines (including canaries and finches) which are fully housed in a dwelling or in specialist bird houses with no access to the open air are exempt from the requirement to register with the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).For the first time in 2025/26, housing measures in England and Wales were not mandatory for keepers with fewer than 50 birds who do not sell or give away eggs, poultry products or live birds.The mandatory biosecurity measures that are introduced through an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone are tiered to ensure that the measures are proportionate. The threshold for the most stringent of these measures is keeping 500 birds. To support small bird keepers in achieving good biosecurity, APHA circulates advice and guidance targeted at small keepers, through email and social media, including a weekly biosecurity tip.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to support dairy farmers.

The Government paid more than £2.6 billion to British farmers, including those in the dairy sector in 2024-25, the most funding in a single financial year since we left the EU. This included funding toward Environmental Land Management schemes, improving animal health and welfare on farm and grants to drive innovation in agriculture and food production across England.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the areas expected to be at risk of major flooding by 2050; and whether her Department plans to introduce measures to restrict future (a) residential, (b) infrastructure and (c) transport development in those areas.

In January 2025, the Environment Agency published the updated National Flood Risk Assessment. With climate change, it is estimated that the number of properties in areas at risk of flooding from rivers and the sea will increase from 2.4 million to around 3.1 million between 2036 and 2069. The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding should be avoided by directing development away from areas at highest risk. Where development (be it residential, infrastructure of transport) is necessary, and where there are no suitable sites available in areas with a lower risk of flooding, local planning authorities and developers should ensure development is safe for its users for the development’s lifetime, will not increase flood risk overall and will provide wider sustainability benefits.