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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the barriers to adoption of agricultural robotics by small and medium-sized farms.

Defra recognises that small and medium-sized farms can face barriers to adopting any new technology, including high upfront costs, access to finance, skills requirements, uncertainty over returns, connectivity constraints, and integrating new technologies into existing farm businesses. Through the Farming Innovation Programme and ADOPT, Defra is supporting innovation, testing and adoption.