Written questions by Snowden.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department will consider supporting initiatives to commemorate the role of British farmers in maintaining food security during the Second World War.

In May, Defra relaunched the Women’s Land Army and Timber Corps Scheme, a civilian veteran service medal scheme recognising those women volunteers who took on roles traditionally done by the men away at war by cultivating crops used to help feed the nation. We recognise the vital role that farmers play putting food on our plates and caring for our countryside. The Government is committed to supporting British farmers by strengthening food security, increasing farm profitability, and protecting our environment for future generations.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to recognise the historic contribution of British farmers to the war effort through (a) public commemoration, (b) heritage funding and (c) other methods.

In May, Defra relaunched the Women’s Land Army and Timber Corps Scheme, a civilian veteran service medal scheme recognising those women volunteers who took on roles traditionally done by the men away at war by cultivating crops used to help feed the nation. We recognise the vital role that farmers play putting food on our plates and caring for our countryside. The Government is committed to supporting British farmers by strengthening food security, increasing farm profitability, and protecting our environment for future generations.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 July 2025 to Question 67577 on Dangerous Dogs: Lancashire, what steps his Department is taking to help reduce instances of dog attacks.

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible ownership across all breeds of dog. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 in reducing dog-related injuries and fatalities.

Defra is continuing to engage closely with the Police, local authorities, and rescue and rehoming organisations to monitor the impacts of the XL Bully dog ban. We are also working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to explore measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. We have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce and look forward to receiving their findings and recommendations in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many vehicles were seized in relation to waste crime offences in (a) Fylde and (b) Lancashire in each of the last five years.

0 vehicles have been seized in relation to waste crime offences by the Environment Agency (EA) within the Fylde region over the last five years. Within Lancashire a total of 12 vehicles were seized within the last five years. This included 7 vehicles seized and crushed in 2022, with an additional 1 vehicle seized and returned to its owner in 2022. In 2023 a further 3 vehicles were seized, followed by another 1 vehicle in 2024. Please note this response is based on EA data and does not include local authority data on vehicles crushed

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of (a) trends in the population levels of horseflies in the UK and (b) the impact of these levels on (i) rural communities and (ii) livestock.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) does not do any systematic surveillance on horseflies in the UK or the impact they have and is not aware of any organisation that does. Horseflies are mainly considered a biting nuisance rather than a biological vector of disease such as mosquitoes and ticks. Defra has recently funded the Vector Borne Diseases Group at APHA to investigate potential arthropod vectors of disease such as horseflies with the Pirbright Institute that will involve field sampling so that we can start to address these questions as awareness of the threat of arthropod vectors increases. All livestock are protected by comprehensive and robust animal health and welfare legislation with the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Farmers have a duty to care for the animals they keep which includes protecting them from pain, injury, suffering and disease, which includes taking appropriate precautions to prevent their animals from being irritated by flies during procedures such as ear-tagging. Suppliers of ear tags must provide instructions on insertion and best tagging practice.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many incidents involving dangerous dogs have been reported in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire in each of the last five years.

Defra does not hold this data. This information may be collected by the NHS, individual police forces or local authorities.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has provided guidance to the police on the steps to take when the sale of single use vapes is reported to them.

The single-use vapes ban is enforced by Local Authority Trading Standards. The Government has worked closely with Trading Standards to ensure that they are prepared for the ban, this has included supporting training for Trading Standards Officers on the single-use vapes ban.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the population of wild peacocks.

The Government does not hold data on the population of Indian peafowl (peacock) but is aware of recent data recorded by the British Trust for Ornithology that shows there were at least 9 confirmed breeding pairs in the UK in 2020, spread widely in Dorset, Cornwall, Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Breconshire and Isle of Man. This data can be found in the UK Rare Breeding Birds Annual Report for 2020, found here: Annual Reports – UK Rare Breeding Birds Panel.

Food and Rural Affairs, what mechanisms exist for (a) developers and (b) local planning authorities to appeal the (i) availability and (ii) cost of mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain credits in cases where viable alternatives are limited.

Statutory credits are a last resort way of achieving biodiversity net gain (BNG). They are different from biodiversity units, which are sold in the offsite market. If developers buy statutory credits, this is because it is not possible to restore habitats on-site or units are not available for purchase in the offsite market. Statutory Biodiversity Credits are sold by Defra to ensure developers can meet their BNG obligation in the few instances where suitable units are not available from the market. Defra can review and amend credit prices. Low volumes of Statutory Biodiversity Credits sales suggest that the private market for units is functioning as intended with good availability of a range of habitat types across England. Biodiversity Units differ in their availability and pricing. Defra is monitoring the availability and pricing of BNG units. Defra’s consultation on BNG regulations and implementation in January 2022 sought views on the impact of implementing BNG on small and medium-sized developers. Results from the consultation suggested that these developers should remain in scope of the BNG policy but with a simplified process. The department is currently holding a consultation seeking views on improving the implementation of biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) securing and (b) verifying Biodiversity Net Gain credits on small and medium-sized developers.

Statutory credits are a last resort way of achieving biodiversity net gain (BNG). They are different from biodiversity units, which are sold in the offsite market. If developers buy statutory credits, this is because it is not possible to restore habitats on-site or units are not available for purchase in the offsite market. Statutory Biodiversity Credits are sold by Defra to ensure developers can meet their BNG obligation in the few instances where suitable units are not available from the market. Defra can review and amend credit prices. Low volumes of Statutory Biodiversity Credits sales suggest that the private market for units is functioning as intended with good availability of a range of habitat types across England. Biodiversity Units differ in their availability and pricing. Defra is monitoring the availability and pricing of BNG units. Defra’s consultation on BNG regulations and implementation in January 2022 sought views on the impact of implementing BNG on small and medium-sized developers. Results from the consultation suggested that these developers should remain in scope of the BNG policy but with a simplified process. The department is currently holding a consultation seeking views on improving the implementation of biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of trends in regional differences in the (a) availability and (b) pricing of Biodiversity Net Gain credits.

Statutory credits are a last resort way of achieving biodiversity net gain (BNG). They are different from biodiversity units, which are sold in the offsite market. If developers buy statutory credits, this is because it is not possible to restore habitats on-site or units are not available for purchase in the offsite market. Statutory Biodiversity Credits are sold by Defra to ensure developers can meet their BNG obligation in the few instances where suitable units are not available from the market. Defra can review and amend credit prices. Low volumes of Statutory Biodiversity Credits sales suggest that the private market for units is functioning as intended with good availability of a range of habitat types across England. Biodiversity Units differ in their availability and pricing. Defra is monitoring the availability and pricing of BNG units. Defra’s consultation on BNG regulations and implementation in January 2022 sought views on the impact of implementing BNG on small and medium-sized developers. Results from the consultation suggested that these developers should remain in scope of the BNG policy but with a simplified process. The department is currently holding a consultation seeking views on improving the implementation of biodiversity net gain for minor, medium and brownfield development.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to publish a publicly accessible register of biodiversity net gain credit schemes with information on (a) location, (b) pricing and (c) habitat type to support market functionality and planning decisions.

Statutory credits are a last resort way of achieving BNG. They are different from biodiversity units, which are sold in the offsite market. If developers buy statutory credits, this is because it is not possible to restore habitats on-site or units are not available for purchase in the offsite market. Defra does not intend to maintain a register of schemes in receipt of income from the sale of statutory credits; however the department is required to publish an annual report detailing income received from the sale of Statutory Biodiversity Credits, how that income was spent and (if applicable) the projected biodiversity value of the measures funded by that expenditure. The first annual report is publicly available on gov.uk. Demand for Statutory Biodiversity Credits has been low, suggesting that the offsite units market is working as intended.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an estimate of the cost of introducing a not for EU labelling scheme for agri-food businesses in Fylde constituency.

Defra has published an impact assessment which sets out the likely costs to businesses. Due to the scope of products that need to be labelled from 1 July, and uncertainty as to the extent to which these products may be removed from sale in Northern Ireland and hence the scale of any requirement in Great Britain, it includes a ‘range’ for the potential cost to businesses. As is set out in the Impact Assessment, the indicative cost to business of applying ‘not for EU’ labelling to a subset of product lines is significantly less than the whole scope and will vary depending on the product. We made the decision to introduce a targeted power, as opposed to a mandatory requirement for all goods, in order to prevent some of these costs to businesses.Moreover, the non-monetised benefits - particularly safeguarding food security in Northern Ireland - will be a crucial part of maintaining a strong economy.

Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of miles of public beaches that were inaccessible due to (a) private ownership and (b) development on 7 July 2025.

Defra does not hold information on the number of miles of public beaches that were inaccessible due to (a) private ownership and (b) development on 7 July 2025.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the cleanliness of beaches in Lancashire.

Responsibility for keeping beaches clear of litter and refuse rests with the landowner or the local council in the case of amenity beaches. The Code of practice on litter and refuse sets out the cleaning standards expected on amenity beaches. Councils have enforcement powers to deter littering including the ability to issue fixed penalty notices (on-the-spot fines) of up to £500. They can also ban items like disposable barbecues from their beaches. We welcome all beach litter collection efforts, such as the Marine Conservation Society’s Great British Beach Clean including in Lancashire this week. The UK Government funds the Marine Conservation Society to record litter from sections of our coast which helps us monitor the levels and trends of plastic pollution across several years. This data is used in combination with other monitoring data to inform our decisions about how to tackle marine litter.

Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance his Department has issued to the public on rights of access to (a) coastal paths and (b) beaches.

a) Local highway authorities are responsible for the management and maintenance of public rights of way and may issue information locally on these. Defra provides information on National Trails including the King Charles III England Coast Path, including which stretches are open to the public. This information can be found on gov.uk. b) Access to beaches can vary depending on who owns the land and how it is managed. Many beaches are open to the public, but some may have restrictions. The Countryside Code also provides guidance for both visitors and landowners when accessing the countryside.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to support the conservation of native red squirrel populations.

The Government is committed to taking action to recover our threatened native species, including red squirrels, especially through the delivery of our biodiversity targets, which will benefit many of our native species including red squirrels.We know that red squirrel decline is being driven by the squirrel pox virus, habitat availability and competition from non-native grey squirrels. To address these pressures, we are supporting research into grey squirrel fertility and have put management measures in place to control grey squirrels to aid red squirrel conservation.We are considering how to go further to reduce the impacts of grey squirrels on our woodlands and red squirrel populations and shall have an update in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 7 May 2025 to Question 60563 on Livestock: Death, what resources his Department has made available to the Animal and Plant Health Agency to monitor compliance with animal welfare standards during periods of extreme heat.

APHA does not receive additional resources to monitor compliance with animal welfare legal requirements during periods of extreme heat. However, the Agency has provided guidance on how to care for animals on farm and in transport in case of extreme weather since 2013; the guidance has been regularly reviewed and updated and it is available on the following page Keeping farm animals and horses in extreme weather - GOV.UK. In addition, The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) issues guidance to transporters on transporting animals in extreme hot and cold weather. The guidance ensures that transporters consider the particular risks that extreme weather presents to animal welfare and that animals are transported in a way that avoids any pain, suffering or distress. APHA continues to monitor reports of animals being transported in extreme weather conditions. Where incidents of unnecessary suffering caused by transporting animals in extreme weather are identified, APHA will take appropriate regulatory action which may include the suspension of transporter authorisations. The Local Authority will be notified and will consider any appropriate enforcement action.

Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the level of veterinarian costs on the number of animals being put down.

Defra does not hold data on the number of animals being euthanised due to veterinary costs. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is conducting a full market investigation into the supply of veterinary services (including costs) for household pets in the UK. The market investigation is expected to conclude in May 2026. Defra cannot comment on an ongoing investigation but looks forward to seeing the recommendations made by the CMA.