The settlements in the west bank are a fundamental barrier to peace, and a flagrant breach of international law. We condemn the rising and incredibly disturbing settler violence that we have seen over the past year. Last week I announced a new wave of sanctions to target the networks that are supporting this violence, which is the fourth package of sanctions against extremist Israeli settlers under this Government.

In 2022, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) completed an operational transformation programme and launched a new operational modernisation programme in 2023. These aim to improve the quality and cost effectiveness of the delivery of official controls through enhanced capability and better use of technology.

Beyond strategic review programmes, the FSA continually reviews how Official Controls Regulations are implemented in FSA-approved establishments and regularly updates the publicly available Manual for Official Controls. The FSA conducts and commissions research to ensure regulations remain evidence-based and proportionate.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) works closely with the meat industry on the introduction of new technology in abattoirs. Whilst it is for businesses to determine what technology they wish to invest in and deploy, the FSA is keen to collaborate on these initiatives to understand any impacts on regulation and any associated benefits for food safety, animal welfare standards, and business growth. For example, the FSA and industry trade bodies have recently developed a joint protocol for the deployment of automated faecal contamination technology in abattoirs. The FSA also recently commissioned independent research into new technologies in meat official controls, which involved engagement with both trade bodies and individual businesses. This research will be published later this year.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) does not centrally record billing errors for Official Controls in the format requested. Therefore, it is not possible to provide a definitive count of billing errors made in charging food business operators for Official Controls, nor the total monetary value of such errors, for each of the last three years.

The FSA operates financial management and assurance processes designed to minimise errors in invoicing, including routine reconciliation and review procedures. Where errors are identified, these are corrected through our standard processes, and any necessary adjustments are made to ensure that charges accurately reflect the cost of Official Controls delivered.

The FSA continues to keep its billing and assurance processes under review to ensure accuracy, transparency, and fairness for food business operators.

In responding to food and feed safety incidents and foodborne disease outbreaks, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) categorises its handling of incident responses at Routine or Non-routine levels.

Non-routine incident and outbreak responses are escalated where it is considered that their successful management requires levels of resources and authority beyond those available for routine incident handling.

In the calendar years 2021 to 2026, the FSA escalated three meat related incidents and outbreak responses to Non-routine status. This was from a total of 15 Non-routine incidents in that period. All three of these meat related incidents were escalated within the calendar year 2023. The following table shows the number of incidents/outbreak responses escalated to Non-routine status for the calendar years 2021 to 2026:

The UK is deeply concerned by reports of mistreatment of detainees by Israeli forces and raises this issue with the Israeli government. The UK has been consistently clear that all detainees must be treated with dignity and in full accordance with international law, and that such allegations must be thoroughly investigated. The UK continues to call on the Government of Israel to grant the International Committee of the Red Cross immediate and unrestricted access to all detention facilities.

There are no current plans to consider transplants, including stem cell and bone marrow transplants, as part of the Getting It Right First Time programme. The Department is aware of challenges around the timely provision of well-matched stem cell donors, particularly for people from mixed heritage or ethnic minority backgrounds, and therefore instead intends to review the factors underlying this and the system supporting stem cell donation.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) supports evidence‑based use of technology in Official Controls, but inspection requirements in abattoirs are set in assimilated European Union law Regulation, and are prescriptive, and divergence could restrict British access to the EU and other markets. The FSA has commissioned a review of current and emerging abattoir technologies and their potential regulatory use and is sharing learning internationally to inform future modernisation while maintaining food safety and animal health and welfare standards.

The FSA applies a science-based, evidence led approach to delivery of official controls. Decisions are informed by risk assessments, data analysis, and established scientific principles to ensure that controls are proportionate, targeted, and effective, and adopt risk-based decisions, for example in the setting of audit frequencies, microbiological testing requirements for food business operators or its own enforcement activity.

Under Article 1 of assimilated Regulation (EC) 852/2004, meat businesses are legally responsible for the safety and compliance of the food they produce, as in other sectors. However, Official Controls for meat are more prescriptive in legislation than for many other foods, so any move to a different delivery model would require legislative change.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) supports evidence‑based use of technology in Official Controls, but inspection requirements in abattoirs are set in assimilated European Union law Regulation, and are prescriptive, and divergence could restrict British access to the EU and other markets. The FSA has commissioned a review of current and emerging abattoir technologies and their potential regulatory use and is sharing learning internationally to inform future modernisation while maintaining food safety and animal health and welfare standards.

The FSA applies a science-based, evidence led approach to delivery of official controls. Decisions are informed by risk assessments, data analysis, and established scientific principles to ensure that controls are proportionate, targeted, and effective, and adopt risk-based decisions, for example in the setting of audit frequencies, microbiological testing requirements for food business operators or its own enforcement activity.

Under Article 1 of assimilated Regulation (EC) 852/2004, meat businesses are legally responsible for the safety and compliance of the food they produce, as in other sectors. However, Official Controls for meat are more prescriptive in legislation than for many other foods, so any move to a different delivery model would require legislative change.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has for many years published comprehensive information on how its meat charges are made up annually. This information can be found in Cost Data Slides available on its website, at the following link:

https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/charges-for-controls-in-meat-premises

The costs of administering the FSA’s charging and discounts system, including correcting billing errors, are factored into its charges as a proportion of the work carried out by the finance function. As indicated on page 44 of the Cost Data Slides relating to England and Wales, £0.18 million is budgeted for this for the forthcoming 2026/27 financial year. As indicated on page 41, a proportion of this amount relates to billing and collecting charges, which includes correcting billing errors.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) was established by the Food Standards Act 1999 as a non-ministerial Government department. The FSA is accountable to the Westminster Parliament, the Senedd, and the Northern Ireland Assembly through health ministers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland respectively.

The FSA’s annual report and accounts are laid before the Westminster Parliament, the Senedd, and the Northern Ireland Assembly. The 2024/25 report is available at the following link:

https://www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/media/document/Westminster%20Annual%20Report%20and%20Accounts%202024-25.pdf

The FSA is accountable to Parliament directly through select committees and regularly engages with them. The Chief Executive of the FSA recently gave oral evidence to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee in October 2025 and the Industry and Regulators Committee in January 2026.

The official controls legislation, Regulation (EU) 2017/625, sets clear requirements to undertake ante-mortem and post-mortem official inspections and the verification of compliance with food law, animal health, and welfare rules in slaughterhouses and game handling establishments. To perform these official controls, it is necessary to have official physical presence.

This level of regulatory presence is limited to those activities identified as presenting the highest risk to the food chain. Meat processing establishments are not generally subject to such supervision unless they are also engaged in those high-risk activities.

Conformance with these requirements is critical to protect public health, animal health and welfare, assure food safety and underpin international trade in products of animal origin.

The legislation provides for certain flexibilities in the way official controls are delivered.

The legislation is drafted to reflect scientific evidence, research and data with a strong focus on public health, animal health and welfare whilst minimising unnecessary burden for businesses.

Other industries are also subject to a regulatory framework for inspections and verification which is proportionate to the risks they present.

The UK Stem Cell Strategic Forum’s 2022 report, A ten-year vision for stem cell transplantation and cellular therapies, set out a number of recommendations for improving data collection for haematopoietic stem cell transplantation and cellular therapy (HSCT-CT) to drive improvements in care and treatment of HSCT-CT patients, including those with graft-vs-host disease. The report is available at the following link:

https://www.nhsbt.nhs.uk/who-we-are/performance-and-strategy/stem-cell-and-advanced-cellular-therapy-strategy/

Following on from the report recommendations, the forum has established a HSCT-CT Data Commission to create an enhanced, accessible, and sustainable data model for UK HSCT-CT data, with collaboration across the British Society of Blood and Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, the UK Aligned Registry, NHS England and the devolved counterparts, patients, academia, and industry. The Department will consider any proposals made by the commission.

The Department is also exploring how to support the report’s recommendations on data through the extension of the Department’s stem cell programme funding.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is re-evaluating brexucabtagene autoleucel following managed access through the Cancer Drugs Fund to determine whether it should be recommended for routine National Health Service funding. NICE’s draft guidance, published in December, does not recommend it as a clinically and cost-effective use of National Health Service resources. The Government recognises that any potential withdrawal for future patients with mantle cell lymphoma will be concerning, but these decisions are rightly taken independently and based on the available evidence. Under an arrangement between NHS England and the company, if NICE’s final guidance does not recommend routine use, patients who started treatment during the managed access period can continue their treatment.

NICE is an England-only body. Medicine availability decisions in the devolved administrations are for the relevant devolved governments.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is re-evaluating brexucabtagene autoleucel following managed access through the Cancer Drugs Fund to determine whether it should be recommended for routine National Health Service funding. NICE’s draft guidance, published in December, does not recommend it as a clinically and cost-effective use of National Health Service resources. The Government recognises that any potential withdrawal for future patients with mantle cell lymphoma will be concerning, but these decisions are rightly taken independently and based on the available evidence. Under an arrangement between NHS England and the company, if NICE’s final guidance does not recommend routine use, patients who started treatment during the managed access period can continue their treatment.

NICE is an England-only body. Medicine availability decisions in the devolved administrations are for the relevant devolved governments.

The Government recognises the important contribution that the hotel and wider hospitality sectors make to the economy, to local communities and to the UK’s appeal as a destination for domestic and international tourists. The potential impacts of changes on this sector are carefully considered as part of policy development.

Where changes are made, relevant impact notes and assessments are published at fiscal events and otherwise as necessary, in line with the Government’s usual practice. The Treasury also engages regularly with the hospitality sector to understand the challenges they face.

The Government continues to provide targeted support to the hospitality sector through the tax system and other policies and keeps all areas of the tax system under review, with future decisions taken at fiscal events under the normal process.

At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since the pandemic, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic.

To respond to those who are seeing large increases, the Government has already acted to limit increases in bills, announcing a support package worth £4.3 billion package at the Budget.

The Government is also introducing new permanently lower tax multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates will benefit over 750,000 properties.

The Government has heard concerns from hotels about the ways they are valued for business rates and has committed to reviewing this.

At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since the pandemic, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic.

To respond to those who are seeing large increases, the Government has already acted to limit increases in bills, announcing a support package worth £4.3 billion package at the Budget.

The Government is also introducing new permanently lower tax multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates will benefit over 750,000 properties.

The Government has heard concerns from hotels about the ways they are valued for business rates and has committed to reviewing this.

At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since the pandemic, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic.

To respond to those who are seeing large increases, the Government has already acted to limit increases in bills, announcing a support package worth £4.3 billion package at the Budget.

The Government is also introducing new permanently lower tax multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates will benefit over 750,000 properties.

The Government has heard concerns from hotels about the ways they are valued for business rates and has committed to reviewing this.