Written questions by Naish.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of (a) veterinarians, (b) veterinary technicians and (c) other veterinary experts to manage potential future outbreaks of foot and mouth disease.

Defra and APHA appreciates the incredibly valuable work completed by veterinarians, technicians, and support staff, recognising their essential roles in achieving our ambitious goals of upholding high standards of animal welfare, supporting trade, and safeguarding public health and food security. The Government acknowledges the high demand for veterinary services and is working collaboratively across departments and with the profession to explore additional measures that will ensure sufficient staffing levels to support and sustain the sector effectively during times of disease outbreaks.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the capability of the Animal and Plant Health Agency IT equipment.

The APHA and Defra leadership teams have benefited from internal audits undertaken each year which look at issues including spend, governance, resilience, cyber security, and asset management. Additional insight into the need for investment in the APHA's IT capability has also come from 3 recent Government Internal Audit Agency audits on; Disaster Recovery, Cyber Security and a more targeted APHA Shadow IT Audit.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Animal and Plant Health Agency has carried out scenario planning for potential (a) outbreaks of foot and mouth disease and (b) other significant biosecurity breaches.

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) scenario modelling has been completed, and initial outputs received. A report is being drafted with the deadline being end of March. APHA is undertaking assessments in relation to other diseases including ASF. FMD scenario modelling has been carried out multiple times, for such reasons as Contingency Exercises (Exercise Rowan) and to support development of livestock traceability systems. The majority of APHA exercises are based around a plausible scenario, developed from expert opinion, and/or demonstrated incursion, and/or simulation model. Scenarios are designed to reflect plausible, whilst testing, conditions. APHA have carried out assessments of the risk of incursion of FMD from the continent and publish these via GOV.UK.

Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has in place to ensure that urgent biosecurity information reaches farmers quickly.

Biosecurity is a priority for this government. Urgent biosecurity information, such as alerts about animal and plant health disease incidents, any geographic restrictions in place as a result, and signposting to information on what farmers should do to maintain good biosecurity measures – are shared frequently across the sector. During the current bluetongue virus outbreak, text messages and email alerts are regularly sent to those registered via livestock keeper databases so that they are aware of their responsibilities. We have made bird registration mandatory for those with poultry or other captive birds, so that we can inform them of the biosecurity risks, for example from Avian Influenza. We maintain continued communications through our industry partners, on gov.uk, social media and, where possible, through the national and trade press, to increase awareness and action to help protect the UK from biosecurity risks.

Food and Rural Affairs, what role he envisages community and voluntary organisations such as community gardens playing in the food system going forwards; and whether funding is available for existing community and voluntary organisations for this purpose.

The Government will be considering the role of place-based initiatives, including the role of community and voluntary organisations, as we develop our plans for a food strategy that will create a healthier, fairer and more resilient food system. The development of a food system strategy, in partnership with the food sector itself, sets out to map the system-change that is needed. It is too early to list confirmed actions or activities, and therefore funding decisions.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the provisions of the Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006 forbidding the handling of chickens by their legs on farms and during transportation and loading are followed.

The Government is firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and wants to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards. Having reviewed the advice and recommendations in the Animal Welfare Committee’s Opinion on the welfare implications of different methods and systems for the catching, carrying, collecting and loading of poultry, the Government is considering next steps and will announce these in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason 31 councils were granted Transitional Provisions under The Environment Act 2021 (Commencement No. 9 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2024.

We have set out that every local authority will be required to collect food waste for recycling by 31 March 2026. In some exceptional circumstances, certain local authorities may need longer to implement separate food waste collections for households due to long-term waste disposal contracts that run beyond 31 March 2026. We engaged extensively with affected local authorities and required that they provide evidence that their waste disposal contract presents an unavoidable barrier to the introduction of food waste collections by 31 March 2026. We will continue to work with local authorities to identify whether they can bring forward food waste collections and the associated benefits before the end of their transitional arrangement.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many veterinarians or veterinary experts were employed by Animal and Plant Health Agency in each of the last five years.

The following table shows the number of veterinary roles in the Animal and Plant Health Agency in England, Scotland and Wales. These include veterinary roles in science, field and service delivery, and veterinary advice. Year (January)Number of veterinary staff in APHA20253462024337202332620223162021367

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the readiness of UK agencies to respond in the event of a Foot and Mouth outbreak.

All exotic disease control and prevention measures are kept under regular review as part of the government’s work to monitor and manage the risks of exotic disease. The framework for this is set out in the Contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals in England, supported by the Foot and Mouth Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain. Current Government policy reflects our experience of responding to past outbreaks of exotic animal disease and is in line with international standards of best practice for disease control. The Animal and Plant Health Agency, APHA, leads government action on animal disease control and has outbreak response plans in place. When outbreaks of FMD or other exotic notifiable disease occur Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) stand up their well-established outbreak structures to control and eradicate disease, restore normal trade, and assist local communities’ recovery. These include measures to contract companies to support eradication and provide additional veterinary capacity. Response times are kept under regular review, and APHA is in the planning stages of a national exercise to test and validate our response to an outbreak of FMD, scheduled for 2025/26.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of necessary vaccinations to support the government’s commitments regarding biosecurity and animal health.

Defra is aware that the new government has inherited ongoing issues with the availability of some veterinary vaccines, and concerns regarding potential detrimental impacts on animal health and welfare. In the short term, Defra helps facilitate the use of alternative products via a special imports scheme that enables vets to access vaccines authorised outside of the UK. Defra held a roundtable with the pharmaceutical industry and stakeholders on 11 February 2025 where it was announced that work with wider stakeholders to develop and publish an action plan will be prioritised and launched this year. This is supported by Baroness Hayman, who is keen that the UK becomes a global leader in veterinary vaccines.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of councils have (a) applied for and (b) received exemptions from food waste processing under the Simpler Recycling’s mandatory food waste collection requirements, due to commence between 2025-2027.

We have set out that every local authority will be required to collect food waste for recycling by 31 March 2026. Commencement regulations named a total of 31 local authorities that were provided with a bespoke transitional arrangement, delaying food waste collection requirements. It was deemed that these local authorities needed longer to implement separate food waste collections for households due to barriers presented by long-term residual waste disposal contracts that run beyond 31 March 2026. We engaged extensively with affected local authorities. Where the evidence demonstrated that existing long-term waste disposal contracts presented an unavoidable barrier to the introduction of food waste collections by 31 March 2026, transitional arrangements were provided by Defra. We will continue to work with local authorities to identify whether they can bring forward food waste collections and the associated benefits before the end of their bespoke transitional arrangement.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is planning to review the role of waste incineration in the management of residual waste in England; and what his plans are for proposed incineration facilities that have not yet begun construction.

Over the last 14 years, recycling rates stalled, meaning too much waste is dealt with unnecessarily through incineration or thrown in landfill. On 30 December, Defra published the Residual waste infrastructure capacity note and an accompanying statement, in which we have set out that government will only back new waste incineration projects that meet strict new conditions. Proposals for new facilities will have to maximise efficiency and support the delivery of economic growth, net zero and the move to a circular economy. By publishing this analysis we are supporting decisions makers and local communities to engage directly with developers on new proposals and ow these will benefit local communities. The analysis published shows that there remain certain areas in England where significant volumes of household waste are sent to landfill. There is also a need to divert non-household wastes away from landfill. Waste incineration should not compete with greater waste prevention, preparation for re-use, or recycling; and we are committed to ensuring only necessary facilities are consented in the future. Incineration plays an important role in diverting waste from landfill and is usually the best management option for most residual waste and existing approvals for facilities that have not yet begun construction are unaffected by this announcement. However, this Government has publicly urged developers and investors to review the data published and the Government’s ambitions and what this means for proposals at all stages in the process, including those that have already secured the necessary permissions.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to consult on phasing out the use of cages for layer hens in England.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Wokingham, Clive Jones, on 31 October 2024, PQ UIN 11121 .

Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to publish the results of the consultation entitled the Fur market in Great Britain, published on 31 May 2021.

Ministers are reviewing policies, which will be announced in due course, including the consultation on the Fur Market in Great Britain. Defra is continuing to build the evidence base on the fur sector. This includes commissioning our expert Animal Welfare Committee on what constitutes responsible sourcing of fur. The report that they produce will support our understanding of the fur industry and help inform our next steps. Labour Government will introduce the most ambitious programme for animal welfare in a generation.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the publication entitled The review for implementation of Schedule 3 to The Flood and Water Management Act 2010, published by his Department in January 2023, whether he plans to take steps to implement Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 to require the formation of sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS) approval bodies.

Planning policy requires that Sustainable Drainage Systems are included in all new major developments, unless there is clear evidence that this would be inappropriate. The Government is currently assessing how best to implement its ambitions on sustainable drainage, while also being mindful of the cumulative impact of new regulatory burdens on the development sector.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to protect the welfare of farmed fish at slaughter.

Legislation on the protection of animals at the time of killing requires that farmed fish are spared avoidable pain, distress or suffering during their killing and related operations. In 2023 the Animal Welfare Committee’s updated Opinion on the welfare of farmed fish at the time of killing was published. A GB-wide farmed trout joint Government and industry working group is now examining the issues raised in the report to explore the potential options for more detailed welfare at killing requirements. The Scottish Government are also working closely with the salmon industry.