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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of wilding on (a) reducing the carbon footprint, (b) the area of productive land and (c) levels of (i) badger population and (ii) TB.

Wilding or rewilding is the restoration of ecosystems to the point where they are more regulated by natural processes.

The government is supporting a number of initiatives to create wilder landscapes across England, as part of a broader approach to nature recovery. However, rewilding is not appropriate in all situations, and we must balance priorities including food production.

We continue to assess how land use change, including the restoration of natural processes, can contribute to net-zero, food security and supporting the farming sector.