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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on deforestation-free products on levels of beef exports.

The European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is EU Legislation, and therefore guidance in respect of regulatory compliance is under the responsibility of the European Commission and the Government has not made an assessment of the impact on beef exports. We are aware that the European Commission has recently published additional guidance that stakeholders have been calling for. The EU Commission has also proposed an extra 12-month phase-in period to give stakeholders additional time to prepare. If approved by the European Parliament and the Council, it would make the law applicable on 30 December 2025 for large companies and 30 June 2026 for small and medium enterprises.