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Written question asked by Alex Cunningham (Labour) on Wednesday, 19 July 2023, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 4 September 2023. It was answered by Rebecca Pow (Conservative) on Wednesday, 13 September 2023 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Food: Production

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) agriculture and (b) horticulture businesses have access to adequate water for food production.

Answer

The Government is committed to strong domestic food production and the Plan for Water sets out the actions we are taking to secure water supplies, including for the agriculture and horticulture sectors. The Government and the Environment Agency are working with the sectors to help them improve the resilience of water supplies for the future.

The package of support includes improvements to water resources planning and investment in infrastructure, for example by aiming to increase the amount of water stored by the agriculture and horticulture sectors to support food production and protect the water environment. This includes £20 million of grants to help farmers with the costs of building on-farm water reservoirs and irrigation equipment, through two rounds of the Water Management Grant under the Farming Investment Fund.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
195039
Session
2022-23
Subjects
Agriculture Food Horticulture Production Water supply
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk