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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the spread of the invasive species of demon shrimp, dikerogammarus haemobaphes.

Defra’s “Check, Clean, Dry” campaign promotes good biosecurity to help slow the spread of invasive non-native species and, in particular, prevent their introduction to uninfected waterbodies. It is widely promoted to, by and amongst water users including water companies, anglers and recreational boaters. Government agencies routinely follow its good practice. Our focus has been on limiting the spread, when Dikerogammarus haemobaphes was identified in Great Britain it was already widespread within the canal and river network; as such eradication is not considered feasible.

The Environment Agency has recently adopted a regulatory position that will reduce this risk and incentivise the water industry to develop methods for water transferred in this way to prevent the spread of these species. This is one of a number of invasive non-native species that can be spread through untreated water transferred from one region to another by water companies.