Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Food Security

Thursday 14 November 2024 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial Questions on Food Security were held on 2024-11-14.
  • Ann Davies inquired about steps being taken to improve food security and raised concerns over future trade deals with the US potentially undermining standards.
  • Neil Hudson expressed concerns that Labour's proposed tax on family farms could jeopardize food security and rural communities.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Ann Davies PC Caerfyrddin
Brexit Business & Trade Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

The question arises from concerns about the impact of trade deals on food security and local farming.

Question

What steps he is taking to improve food security. Today, the Chancellor is hailing the benefits of free trade in a plea to Donald Trump. However, any future trade deal with the United States will enable cheap food, such as hormone-treated beef, to flood our markets, which would be devastating for farmers and food security. Will the Secretary of State take this opportunity to rule out any trade deal that undermines our British farmers?

Answer from Daniel Zeichner

We have always been very clear that we will do nothing in trade deals that would undermine this country's important standards.

Answered
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Q2 Ann Davies PC Caerfyrddin
Brexit Business & Trade Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

Concerns about future trade deals with the United States potentially undermining British food standards and local farming.

Question

Today, the Chancellor is hailing the benefits of free trade in a plea to Donald Trump. However, any future trade deal with the United States will enable cheap food, such as hormone-treated beef, to flood our markets, which would be devastating for farmers and food security. Will the Secretary of State take this opportunity to rule out any trade deal that undermines our British farmers?

Answer from Daniel Zeichner

We have always been very clear that we will do nothing in trade deals that would undermine this country's important standards.

Answered
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Q3 Neil Hudson Con Epping Forest
Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

The question addresses concerns about a proposed family farm tax that may jeopardize the future of British farming and food production.

Question

Food security is national security, and underpinning it are farmers and farmland. Labour's ill-judged and heartless family farm tax will put all of that in jeopardy: family farms lost; tenant farmers unable to continue farming; communities hollowed out; rural mental health damaged; and precious food-producing land lost to developers or investors. No farms, no food. No farmers, no food. Will the Government please now admit that they have got this catastrophically wrong? Will they do the right thing by reversing this farm tax to protect our country's food security?

Answer from Daniel Zeichner

I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his place. Let me say once again that it is important to treat this subject carefully. We must look at the facts and listen to people who know about it. I was asked earlier by someone else whether this measure was wrong, but we should look at what Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies and other tax experts have said. There are many ways in which this can be managed, and I encourage the hon. Gentleman to join me in reassuring British farmers about their future.

Partly answered

Not addressed: reversing the family farm tax

How: Looking At Facts, Listening To Experts

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