Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Prioritising British Produce: Public Bodies

Thursday 20 March 2025 · 2 questions

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Minister committed to ensuring 50% of public procurement is of British produce.
  • The Secretary of State announced monitoring of food bought in the public sector.
  • The Minister acknowledged the urgency of supporting farm incomes under current pressures.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Noah Law Lab St Austell and Newquay
Business & Trade Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

The MP references the government's commitment to ensuring that half of public sector food supply comes from local producers or those certified to higher environmental standards.

Question

I welcome the Minister’s commitment to ensuring that 50% of public procurement is of British produce. Given the significant £5 billion of bargaining power that this represents, what steps is he taking to ensure that this leads to fairer prices for farmers and supports the fundamental operating profitability of the sector?

Answer from The Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs (Daniel Zeichner)

We are absolutely determined to make the best of this opportunity, not least because the previous Government did not know how much we were actually buying. The Secretary of State has announced that we will monitor the food bought in the public sector, and that will inform our policy of making sure that British farmers make the most of the opportunity for public procurement.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific actions to ensure fairer prices and profitability were not detailed.

How: We Are Determined To Make This Happen

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Q2 Alistair Carmichael Lib Dem Orkney and Shetland
Brexit Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

The MP references the Secretary of State's commitments at the Oxford farming conference in January, expressing concern about farm incomes under pressure due to recent changes.

Question

The Secretary of State spoke about a plan for change including a commitment to public sector procurement, but it is now March. With the closure of the basic payment scheme and the ending of the sustainable farming incentive, farm incomes are under real cash pressure in the here and now. When will we hear more detail about these commitments?

Answer from The Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs (Daniel Zeichner)

As I said in response to my hon. Friend the Member for St Austell and Newquay, the first thing we needed to do was establish how much we are actually buying, and that is now in progress. I absolutely get the point about the urgency.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific timeline or details on support measures were not provided.

How: We Are Determined To Make This Happen

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