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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to support tenant stock-rearing farmers with the costs of (a) rising feed, (b) energy and (c) national insurance costs.

The Government’s New Deal for Farmers includes a raft of new policies and major investment to boost profits for farmers.  We have allocated a record £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament.

With regard to these specific issues:

1. The UK agricultural sector is highly resilient and adaptable and operates in an open market with the value of commodities established by those in the supply chain. We have seen evidence of this particularly in recent years following global events such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. It is recognised that there are a wide range of factors which can affect livestock production. These include the impacts of price, input costs, currency fluctuations, and market demand. Defra’s “Agriculture in the UK 2024” report published earlier this year found that feed prices overall have fallen. The government will continue to monitor the issue.
2. The Government recognises that some businesses, in particular small businesses, may still be struggling to pay their bills. These businesses should contact their supplier to discuss their options. Non-domestic consumers with contracts agreed at higher prices may benefit from approaches such as ‘blend and extend’ contracts, where the original, higher, unit rate is ‘blended’ with a new lower rate, spreading the cost over the course of a longer contract. In the long-term, the Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently. The creation of Great British Energy will help us to harness clean energy with less reliance on volatile international energy markets and help in our commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030.
3. The Government has protected the smallest businesses from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. That means more than half of businesses with NICs liabilities either gain or see no change this year.