Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has held discussions with her Brazilian counterpart on the UK’s deforestation footprint in that country, and in particular on the production and export of cattle and cattle products to the United Kingdom.

At COP26, Brazil committed to eliminating illegal deforestation by 2028 as well as an 18 metre hectare target for forest restoration by 2030. During my [Minister Ford] visit to Brazil on 12-14 March, I stressed the importance of Brazil implementing these commitments quickly. COP President Alok Sharma did the same during his visit in the same month.

UK ministers and officials regularly engage with the Government, businesses and communities in Brazil on a range of environmental issues including sustainable agriculture, low-carbon growth and tackling deforestation. Our support for sustainable development in Brazil is well known and consistent. In addition, the world-leading due diligence provisions in the UK Environment Act 2021 will help address illegal deforestation across UK supply chains.

We remain committed to working with the Governments of all countries in whose territory the Amazon stands to address these issues.