Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations his Department has received on whether placing geographical indicators for products on a UK legal basis through the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill will mean that those indicators are recognised by EU member states; and if he will make a statement.

The government regularly discusses the protection of geographical indications (GIs) at both ministerial and official levels with industry and relevant stakeholders.

We are planning to use the EU (Withdrawal) Bill to transfer into domestic law the EU schemes that currently protect our GIs. This will ensure that UK GIs which are already registered remain protected in the UK after we leave the EU.

Future protection for current UK GIs in EU member states, and for EU GIs in the UK, is subject to negotiations with the EU. Producers outside the EU are already able to participate in the EU's GI schemes when selling onto the EU market. In the same way, after we leave the EU new UK GIs will be able to apply for protection under the EU GI scheme.