Giant Hogweed

(asked on 18th October 2023) - View Source

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has published advice for local authorities on the (a) control and (b) removal of giant hogweed on land near to public right of way where there may be a risk to public health.


Answered by
Trudy Harrison Portrait
Trudy Harrison
This question was answered on 23rd October 2023

Giant hogweed is listed as a species of special concern under the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019, which makes an offence of planting or otherwise causing giant hogweed to grow in the wild. As giant hogweed is widespread in the UK, there is no legal requirement to report it, nor is it compulsory to remove it. Although there are currently no plans for a large-scale eradication of giant hogweed, we support local eradication projects where this is feasible as part of management measures for this species.

Defra, in collaboration with Natural England and Environment Agency, has published guidance on how to stop the spread and dispose of invasive non-native plants that can harm the environment in England.

The GB Non-Native Species Secretariat website is the primary site for publicly available information on individual invasive species such as giant hogweed and includes links to management guidance documents produced by a range of organisations. The Secretariat carries out many public awareness campaigns, publishes articles, and provides training in which giant hogweed frequently features due to its human health impact.

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