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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with EU negotiators on the inclusion of UK animal welfare standards within the proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement.

We will agree a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement to make agrifood trade with our biggest market cheaper and easier, cutting costs and red tape for British producers and retailers, and helping to reduce the pressure on prices and increase choice in the shops.

The agreement will cover SPS standards and controls and also wider agrifood rules related to food labelling, organics, and key marketing standards and compositional standards.

Details are subject to negotiation, but we have been clear about the importance of being able to set high animal welfare standards.