March 2026

As outlined in our manifesto, this Government are committed to bringing an end to the use of snare traps. We set out this commitment in our animal welfare strategy, and are actively looking to bring a ban on snares into force as quickly as possible.

Parliamentary appearance by Richard Baker

I thank the hon. Member for his interest, and share his view that the use of snare traps is cruel and indiscriminate. We are looking at and consulting on whether we can introduce a closed season for hares.

I set out further details of the 2026 sustainable farming incentive offer at the National Farmers Union conference last month. We are streamlining action and reducing complexity, so that more farmers can access funding. The offer will be simpler and fairer, with priority access in June for small farms, and farms not already in receipt of environmental land management scheme agreements.

It was a pleasure to meet my hon. Friend and farmers from Buckinghamshire at the farm in his constituency for our rural summit, at which we discussed SFI and other issues. At the end of last year, the Government decided to extend expiring mid-tier agreements. I understand that farmers are concerned about any gap in their support, and we are looking to see what we can do to fix that problem.

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his very thoughtful question. I have heard that from farmers in different parts of the country, and I know it is an issue in his constituency. We are looking to see what we can do, because there are many whose agreements are expiring towards the end of the year, and the second window will open in September. The intent to act is there, but we must ensure that we have the systems in place to enable that to happen.

I respectfully disagree with the hon. Gentleman’s analysis. We are simplifying the SFI precisely because we want more farmers to benefit from it. At the moment, 25% of SFI funding goes to just 4% of farms, and we do not think that is right. We are simplifying the scheme, so that it is easier and less costly to administer. We have new leadership at the Rural Payments Agency, as he will know, and the cap he talked about affects only a tiny minority of those who already have an agreement. [Interrup

Parliamentary appearance by Ian Sollom

Yesterday, I launched the land use framework, a blueprint for how we can make the most of our land. We will shortly be publishing our waste crime action plan to give the Environment Agency police-style powers to crack down on these criminal networks. Earlier this week, we announced more than 600 flood defence projects. Earlier this month, I led the first agrifood trade mission to Washington to promote the new 13,000 tonne beef quota. I also took part in the second UK-Ireland summit, alongside th

Parliamentary appearance by Ian Sollom

Capita’s management of the civil service pension scheme—the latest in a string of failures—is a total disaster. My constituents are dealing with errors and delays, and are struggling to make ends meet, yet we are rewarding Capita by handing it another multimillion-pound contract. Can we have a debate about preventing repeated awards to failing contractors, and upholding Labour’s manifesto commitment to the biggest insourcing programme in a generation?

This Labour Government are committed to doubling the size of the co-operative and mutual sector, as we laid out in our manifesto. We already have some very successful agricultural co-operatives such as Arla and Openfield, which benefit the farmers in those co-operatives and their local communities.

Parliamentary appearance by Josh Dean

The right hon. Lady had 14 years to do what she is talking about.

Let me gently point out to the right hon. Lady that on Monday the Prime Minister announced a £53 million package to help rural communities that are reliant on heating oil. On waste crime, I will take no lectures from the right hon. Lady, because the Conservatives had 14 years in government to address waste crime. In 2018 they had a review on what to do about waste crime, and they did precisely nothing.

Parliamentary appearance by Anneliese Midgley

Parliamentary appearance by Paul Davies

We have promoted and protected farmers in trade deals, unlike the previous Government, who sold them down the river with the US and Australian trade deals.

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue. Like the viewers of “Dirty Business” and my hon. Friend, I share the public’s anger about the decades of failure and neglect in our water system. The programme was very distressing and upsetting. I have extended an invitation to Heather Preen’s mum, Julie, to meet with me. I can reassure my hon. Friend that the Government are determined to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas. We have already banned unfair bonuses for water bosses. We are s

Parliamentary appearance by Mary Creagh