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 potential impact of the new powers she will be able to exercise from 1 January 2028 to revoke or vary abstraction licences without paying compensation, on food production and farm profitability in Shropshire.

The Environment Act 2021 provides new powers to improve water resilience and protect the environment through Abstraction Permit Reviews. The review is planned for 2028-2035.

Farmers are being supported through water resilience initiatives, including upcoming funding for on-farm reservoirs and support for establishing Water Abstractor Groups to increase agriculture's input into water resource planning.