Written questions by Snowden.

Food and Rural Affairs, how the Commissioner for the Tenant Farming Sector will ensure that the voices of small-scale and marginal tenant farmers are represented in policy discussions and recommendations.

The Commissioner will proactively engage across the sector as part of his wider role to gather intelligence and insights on how the sector operates within the Agricultural Landlord and Tenant Code of Practice for England. All tenant farmers and other parties to tenancy agreements can raise an enquiry, concern or issue with the Commissioner. The Commissioner will work closely with the joint Defra / industry Farm Tenancy Forum, including on trends and issues raised and provide insights on how to improve practice in the sector for industry and government to consider.

Food and Rural Affairs, what formal powers the Commissioner for the Tenant Farming Sector will have to (a) investigate complaints and (b) enforce the Agricultural Landlord and Tenant Code of Practice.

As a non-statutory role, the Commissioner will promote and encourage good relations between tenants, landlords, and advisors, and provide a neutral and confidential point of contact for anyone who has concerns that the Agricultural Landlord and Tenant Code of Practice for England is not being followed. Where concerns or issues cannot be resolved the Commissioner will signpost sources of further professional advice as appropriate. The Government is committed to keeping the effectiveness of this approach under review.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to protect swans.

In England all wild birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, including Swans. This makes it an offence to kill, injure or take wild birds and to take or damage their eggs and nests.Defra supports the valuable work of the National Wildlife Crime Unit and is a principal funder. The unit helps to prevent and detect wildlife crime (including crimes against swans) by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis, and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to work with the Secretary of State for Transport to reduce the number of wildlife-related road accidents.

There is currently no joint programme of work between Department of Transport and Defra to reduce the number of wildlife-related road accidents.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the preparedness of local authorities in England to collect food waste separately to household waste from March 2026.

Under the Simpler Recycling reforms, all local authorities in England must provide weekly food waste collections from households by 31 March 2026, unless a transitional arrangement applies (a later date set in legislation). We have invested over £340 million to date to support councils as they get ready for weekly food collections. We have also published guidance to help local authorities and funded sector specialists WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) to provide further resources and support. This includes guidance on good practice when delivering services to householders and communications guidance for household food waste collections. We have consulted and engaged extensively with local authorities throughout the development of this policy. This has included focused working groups, sector events and holding monthly stakeholder forums. We meet monthly with local authority waste network chairs to partner on delivery of these reforms. We are aware of some specific delivery challenges faced by some local authorities to meet these new obligations and are working with local authority waste networks and the wider industry to provide additional support where we can. We will continue to monitor progress and work with the sector to deliver these reforms.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made a recent estimate of the population of Hen Harriers in Lancashire.

The most recent estimate of the population of Hen Harriers in Lancashire is 13 successfully breeding females, which produced 42 young this year.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential ecological impact of animal road casualties on native wildlife populations.

The Secretary of State for Defra has not assessed the potential ecological impact of animal road casualties on native wildlife populations in general. However, studies have shown that road traffic collisions are one of the factors in the decline in species such as the hedgehog.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department provides guidance or best practice to local authorities on integrating animal protection measures into local transport and infrastructure planning.

When determining any planning application, it is the responsibility of the local planning authority to ensure that protected species are fully considered and that ecological surveys have been carried out where appropriate. Natural England has issued Standing Advice to assist both local planning authorities and developers in deciding whether there is a reasonable likelihood of protected species being present on a proposed development site. It provides detailed advice on those protected species most often affected by development to enable an assessment to be made of the suitability of a protected species survey and, where appropriate, a mitigation strategy to protect the species affected by the development. To help integrate nature into new development, the government has also amended the National Planning Policy Framework. This encourages the incorporation of features, such as swift bricks and hedgehog highways, to protect threatened species through local plans and decisions on planning applications.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department will take steps to provide (a) financial support and (b) incentives for (i) developers and (ii) households to install water-saving devices.

The Government works with Ofwat who offer financial environmental incentives for developers to meet certain water efficiency standards. On 23 September we launched a consultation to consider tighter water efficiency standards for new homes in the Building Regulations. We are working with Ofwat to ensure that environmental incentives in the future align with the ambition set out in this consultation and are considering how we can support developers as part of the £25 million fund held by Ofwat to fund a Water Efficiency Lab which aims to encourage innovation across the sector and is from November focusing on actionable insights for consumers. To support households to reduce their water usage we are rolling out mandatory water efficiency label to ensure consumers can make informed decisions on their purchases, this will align with existing incentives for consumers to install water saving devices including free devices from water companies and the incoming £100 million Water Efficiency Campaign from Ofwat.

Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance his Department has issued on animal welfare regulations that apply to construction activity taking place on land where horses are kept.

Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 (the 2006 Act), it is an offence to cause any animal unnecessary suffering or to fail to provide for its welfare. The 2006 Act is backed up by the Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Their Hybrids which provides guidance on the legal duty of care for horses, as required by the 2006 Act. This guidance applies to any land where horses are kept, including land affected by construction activity. The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) Regulations 2018 require businesses hiring out horses to provide for a suitable environment. The guidance is available here - Hiring out horses licensing: statutory guidance for local authorities - GOV.UK.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2025 to Question 75416 on Dangerous Dogs, when the withdrawal scheme will become active.

We are currently working 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. Information about this process will be available soon.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2025 to Question 75416 on Dangerous Dogs, if she will consider introducing an interim scheme until the withdrawal scheme is active.

We are currently working 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. Information about this process will be available soon.

Food and Rural Affairs, how applications for emergency authorisation of banned neonicotinoids will be assessed under the new guidance; and whether an independent scientific advisory committee will be involved in the decision-making process.

The new guidance applies to emergency authorisation applications for all pesticides, not just neonicotinoids. When considering applications, the possible adverse effects of the pesticide are weighed against the potential benefits of its use. Applicants must provide clear evidence on the benefits of pesticide use and the potential risks to people, animals and the environment if authorisation is granted. The guidance states that the decision-maker may seek independent advice on scientific aspects of applications for emergency authorisation. A key source of advice is the UK Expert Committee on Pesticides, which provides independent scientific advice on the regulation of pesticides.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he is considering legislative options to permanently ban all uses of neonicotinoid pesticides.

As set out in December’s neonicotinoid policy statement, Defra will identify and assess legislative options to prevent future use of three neonicotinoid pesticides (clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam) that are not authorised due to the threat they pose to pollinators.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether the updated guidance for emergency authorisations of pesticides will apply retrospectively to applications submitted in 2024.

The updated guidance for emergency authorisations of pesticides was published on 11 September 2025. It does not apply retrospectively to applications submitted prior to that date, including any submitted in 2024.

Food and Rural Affairs, how the £500 million estimate of the value of pollination services to UK agriculture was calculated.

Bees and other pollinators play an essential role in our £100 billion food industry. The latest estimated value of insect pollination on UK crops fruit, vegetable and oil seed rape production is around £630 million per year. This estimate is based on increases in yield and market quality. It was produced through field and desk-based research undertaken by the University of Reading and other researchers, who estimated the potential deficits in crop yield and quality without (or with reduced) insect pollination services, and related this to market value.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the economic impact of pollinator decline on UK agriculture.

There have been no recent assessments of the economic impact of pollinator decline on UK agriculture. Abundant pollinators are an essential part of maintaining sustainable food production and we will provide farmers and land managers with the support they need to help restore nature, vital to safeguarding our long-term food security, support productivity and building resilience to climate change.

Food and Rural Affairs, how frequently drinking water is tested for compliance with (a) microbiological and (b) chemical safety standards.

The sampling frequency for drinking water is set out in Schedule 3 of The Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016 including which parameters are sampled at which point in the system, with some variation depending on factors such as treatment chemicals used, population served, etc. There is also a requirement to monitor for anything else which may present a risk to health. The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) ensures that these requirements are met by companies, and may on occasion increase the sampling frequency if a specific risk is under investigation. The DWI published a report on 26 February 2025 recommending revisions to some parameters listed in the drinking water regulations. The report is the output of work by an advisory group of specialists both UK and internationally. Defra and the DWI will work together to consider potential regulatory updates to England’s drinking water quality legislation based on the recommendations.

Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of public drinking water supplies met national quality standards in the most recent reporting year.

The Government is committed to ensuring a high level of protection for human health and the environment. Public drinking water compliance with the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016 has been consistently high for a number of years, with a rate of 99.97% in 2024. This compares to compliance rates of between 98-98.5% in the early 1990s. The DWI’s annual report on the quality of publicly supplied drinking water provides water companies, and also the public, with a picture of overall drinking water quality in England.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many enforcement actions have been taken against water companies for breaches of drinking water quality standards in each of the last three years.

The Government is committed to ensuring that drinking water supplies remain safe and reliable. The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) regulates the industry and takes enforcement action where they or the companies identify a risk of failing to meet their obligations under the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016, to mitigate against future breaches. This information is published annually as part of the DWI’s Chief Inspector’s Report.