Written questions by Lowe.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Explainer, updated on 19 May 2025, what proportion of UK fish stocks will be subject to shared access with the EU under the new 12-year access arrangement.

Annex 38 of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement sets out which quota and non-quota stocks are subject to access arrangements. The new access arrangements announced on 19 May will give the UK and EU access to the same fish stocks. UK and EU shares of quota stocks are listed in Annex 35 and tables A, B and F of Annex 36 and these shares will remain fixed from 2026 onwards. The average tonnage of non-quota stocks the UK and EU can fish in each other’s waters will remain fixed at the current average tonnage defined in Annex 38.

Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of total UK fish stocks by (a) tonnage and (b) species will remain subject to EU access under the agreement to extend EU access to British territorial waters to June 2038; and what the UK's quotas will be in that period.

Annex 38 of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement sets out which quota and non-quota stocks are subject to access arrangements. The new access arrangements announced on 19 May will give the UK and EU access to the same fish stocks. UK and EU shares of quota stocks are listed in Annex 35 and tables A, B and F of Annex 36 and these shares will remain fixed from 2026 onwards. The average tonnage of non-quota stocks the UK and EU can fish in each other’s waters will remain fixed at the current average tonnage defined in Annex 38.

Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Explainer, updated on 19 May 2025, whether he plans to provide financial support to fishers impacted by the new 12-year access arrangement.

Alongside a new twelve-year fisheries access agreement with the EU, we have announced a comprehensive twelve-year Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund. Fishing and coastal communities will benefit from the £360 million investment to drive growth and boost the sector for the future. We will work with the industry to target investment where it matters most. For example, by considering investment in new technology and equipment to modernise Britain’s fishing fleet, deliver new training and skills to back the next generation of fishers and promote the seafood sector to export our high-quality produce across the world.

Food and Rural Affairs, if they will make it their policy to not provide (a) translation and (b) interpretation for speakers of non-UK languages for services provided by their Department.

Language service needs and spend are assessed to ensure these services offer good value for money for taxpayers while maintaining high standards of service delivery.

Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 7 May 2025 to Question 49171 on Coastal Erosion: Hemsby, if he will meet the hon. Member for Great Yarmouth to discuss the shoreline management for Hemsby.

I met the hon. Member on 12 September to discuss coastal erosion in his constituency. I will ensure that the hon. Member has a meeting with relevant officials.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect Hemsby from coastal erosion.

The shoreline management approach for Hemsby’s coastline is managed realignment, as outlined in the Shoreline Management Plan which has been developed locally. The flood and coastal erosion risk management investment programme includes risk management structures for the coast where it is sustainable and affordable to build them. In areas where it is not, other approaches such as managed realignment will be needed.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether new funding streams will be available to support flood prevention measures in Great Yarmouth constituency.

Delivering on the Government’s Plan for Change, this government is investing a record £2.65 billion over two years, 2024-2025 and 2025-2026, for the construction of new flood schemes, and the maintenance and repair of existing ones. With this funding, 1,000 flood schemes have been or will continue to be supported, better protecting 52,000 properties by March 2026. This year (2025-2026): Great Yarmouth Flood Defences (Epoch 3) is receiving £1,968,000 and Great Yarmouth Flood Defence Scheme Works £730,000. The full list of schemes receiving investment this year has been published online.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support the fishing industry in Great Yarmouth constituency following the UK’s departure from the EU.

As an independent coastal state, we have been able to progress our fisheries management in a way that better supports the needs of our own fishing industry. This includes reforming the way we manage our fisheries, such as through fisheries management plans which will play a crucial role in supporting the long-term sustainability of fishing businesses and delivering growth in coastal communities such as Great Yarmouth. We are also making progress on a wider set of fisheries management reforms, including for example the way we manage discards, the introduction of remote electronic monitoring and trialling new ways to allocate quota. At the same time, our departure from the EU has generated additional fishing opportunities with a quota uplift. For example, it is estimated that the UK secured 126,000 tonnes more in fishing opportunities for 2024 (worth around £133m) than we would have received as a Member State.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether their Department plans to amend its policies on access to (a) toilets, (b) changing facilities and (c) other single-sex spaces in (i) Departmental buildings and (ii) other buildings within their Department’s remit following the Supreme Court judgement in the case of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025.

The Supreme Court ruling made it clear that the provision of single-sex spaces is on the basis of biological sex. Providers should note and follow the ruling. It is important that we ensure dignity and respect for all. Trans people should have access to services they need but in keeping with the ruling. The Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC), as Britain’s equalities watchdog, is developing updated guidance to support service providers. Ministers will consider the EHRC’s updated draft once they have submitted it following further work in light of this ruling. The Government is considering the implications of the Court’s judgment, including what this means for Government buildings.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department’s policies of the Environment Agency’s 2024 Event Duration Monitoring dataset, published in March 2025.

For too long, water companies have discharged unacceptable levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas. The Environment Agency published its annual Event Duration Monitoring (EDM) data on 27 March 2025, which set out details of storm overflow spills in 2024. The regulators are assessing this data and will not let companies get away with illegal activity; where breaches are found, they will not hesitate to hold companies to account. Since 1 January 2025, water companies are required to publish data related to discharges from all storm overflows within one hour of the discharge beginning. The Water (Special Measures) Act 2025 introduces a duty for water companies to publish data related to discharges from all emergency overflows within one hour of the discharge beginning. This will match the pre-existing duty for storm overflows. The Independent Water Commission, led by Sir Jon Cunliffe, will make recommendations to shape further action to transform how our water system works and clean up our waterways for good. A public Call for Evidence closed on 23 April, with all interested parties invited to share their views. The review's final recommendations will be published and shared with the UK and Welsh Governments this summer. This forms the next stage in the Government’s approach to ensuring we have a sufficiently robust and stable regulatory framework to attract the investment needed to clean up our waterways, speed up infrastructure delivery to support house building and restore public confidence in the sector. Looking forward, the government is also committed to taking a systematic approach to improving drainage and wastewater systems. This means looking at the bigger picture – how these systems affect the environment, local communities, and other key priorities like flood prevention, economic growth, and urban development. By doing this, we can make sure policies and services work better together to deliver real benefits for people and nature.

Food and Rural Affairs, what (a) religious and (b) cultural holidays are observed by their Department.

The UK Civil Service only formally observes the Government-set bank holidays.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of abattoirs in enforcing welfare standards during the production of halal meat.

The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. A significant proportion of halal meat comes from animals that are stunned before slaughter. Legislation sets out strict requirements to protect the welfare of animals when slaughtered and there are additional rules that apply when animals are slaughtered by either the Jewish or Muslim method to ensure that animals are spared avoidable pain, suffering, or distress during the slaughter process. Official Veterinarians of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) are present in all approved slaughterhouses in England and Wales to monitor and enforce animal welfare requirements. The FSA has a zero-tolerance policy to animal welfare breaches and will take appropriate action where these occur. In addition to the Official Veterinarian presence, the FSA conduct regular audits to ensure that the animal welfare controls in slaughterhouses are effective. The frequency of these audits are risk based and the results are communicated to Defra. The Department engages regularly with FSA officials on a range of animal welfare topics.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Food Standards Agency on the labelling of (a) halal and (b) kosher meat products in food outlets.

The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. It is for religious authorities to decide if meat is halal or kosher. A significant proportion of halal meat comes from animals that are stunned before slaughter. There are no regulations that require labelling of meat to include the method of slaughter, but where any information of this nature is provided it must be accurate and must not be misleading to the consumer. The Government respects religious freedoms and expects the industry, whether food producer or food outlet, to provide consumers with all the information they need to make informed choices. A consultation on proposals to improve and extend current mandatory method of production labelling was undertaken last year by the previous government. The consultation sought views on options for the production standards behind the label. We are now carefully considering all responses before deciding on next steps. The Department engages regularly with the Food Standards Agency on a range of topics.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage (a) public institutions and (b) restaurants to label halal meat to consumers.

The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. It is for religious authorities to decide if meat is halal or kosher. A significant proportion of halal meat comes from animals that are stunned before slaughter. There are no regulations that require labelling of meat to include the method of slaughter, but where any information of this nature is provided it must be accurate and must not be misleading to the consumer. The Government respects religious freedoms and expects the industry, whether food producer or food outlet, to provide consumers with all the information they need to make informed choices. A consultation on proposals to improve and extend current mandatory method of production labelling was undertaken last year by the previous government. The consultation sought views on options for the production standards behind the label. We are now carefully considering all responses before deciding on next steps. The Department engages regularly with the Food Standards Agency on a range of topics.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will introduce mandatory labelling on meat products to indicate whether animals were stunned prior to slaughter.

The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. It is for religious authorities to decide if meat is halal or kosher. A significant proportion of halal meat comes from animals that are stunned before slaughter. There are no regulations that require labelling of meat to include the method of slaughter, but where any information of this nature is provided it must be accurate and must not be misleading to the consumer. The Government respects religious freedoms and expects the industry, whether food producer or food outlet, to provide consumers with all the information they need to make informed choices. A consultation on proposals to improve and extend current mandatory method of production labelling was undertaken last year by the previous government. The consultation sought views on options for the production standards behind the label. We are now carefully considering all responses before deciding on next steps. The Department engages regularly with the Food Standards Agency on a range of topics.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will bring forward legislation to prohibit the slaughter of animals without being stunned for Halal meat.

The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. There are no plans to bring forward legislation to prohibit the slaughter of animals without prior stunning when slaughtered in accordance with religious rites. Existing legislation sets out the main requirements to protect the welfare of animals when being slaughtered and there are additional rules that apply when animals are slaughtered by either the Jewish or Muslim method without prior stunning to ensure that animals are spared avoidable pain, suffering, or distress during the slaughter process.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of animals were slaughtered without being stunned for the production of Halal meat in the UK in 2024.

Of the 1.035 billion animals processed in English and Welsh slaughterhouses in 2024, an estimated 214.6 million animals (20.7%) were slaughtered to produce halal meat of which an estimated 27.0 million animals (2.6% of all animals processed) were slaughtered for halal meat without being stunned. These figures are calculated using data from a survey carried out at all slaughterhouses operating in England and Wales during the period 12 February to 18 February 2024, under the last Government. We do not hold data that would allow us to accurately estimate the quantity of halal meat that was consumed in 2024.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of how many animals were slaughtered without being stunned for the production of Halal meat in 2024.

Of the 1.035 billion animals processed in English and Welsh slaughterhouses in 2024, an estimated 214.6 million animals (20.7%) were slaughtered to produce halal meat of which an estimated 27.0 million animals (2.6% of all animals processed) were slaughtered for halal meat without being stunned. These figures are calculated using data from a survey carried out at all slaughterhouses operating in England and Wales during the period 12 February to 18 February 2024, under the last Government. We do not hold data that would allow us to accurately estimate the quantity of halal meat that was consumed in 2024.

Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of all meat (a) produced and (b) consumed in the UK that is Halal meat.

Of the 1.035 billion animals processed in English and Welsh slaughterhouses in 2024, an estimated 214.6 million animals (20.7%) were slaughtered to produce halal meat of which an estimated 27.0 million animals (2.6% of all animals processed) were slaughtered for halal meat without being stunned. These figures are calculated using data from a survey carried out at all slaughterhouses operating in England and Wales during the period 12 February to 18 February 2024, under the last Government. We do not hold data that would allow us to accurately estimate the quantity of halal meat that was consumed in 2024.

Food and Rural Affairs, how many farms he has visited since 30 October 2024.

Ministers visit farms and other food production premises regularly.