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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what statutory assurances the Government has put in place to ensure that food standards will be maintained or enhanced following the passage of the Retained EU Law Bill.

Government is in the process of analysing and assessing retained EU law to determine what should be preserved as part of domestic law, and what should be repealed, or amended. This work will determine how we use the powers in the Bill.

In reviewing retained EU law, HM Government’s aim is to ensure that food law is fit for purpose and the UK regulatory framework is appropriate and tailored to the needs of UK consumers and business. The UK has world leading standards of food safety and quality, backed by a rigorous legislative framework but it is only right that we should evaluate REUL to ensure it continues to meet our needs. While this is an opportunity for review, maintaining the UK’s high food standards remains our priority. HM Government remains committed to promoting robust food standards nationally and internationally, to protect consumer interests, facilitate international trade, and ensure that consumers can have confidence in the food that they buy.

More information on decisions with regard to individual pieces of retained EU law will be provided in due course.