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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of rent increases in agricultural tenancies on UK food production; and what support the Government is offering tenant farmers.

Defra monitors farm rents in England annually and the most recent farm rents data publication shows changes in farm rents per hectare vary according to the type of tenancy agreement, type of farmland and by location. A range of economic factors can affect UK food production including output prices, input costs, global trade, market demand and public support policies.

Schemes delivered under the farming budget are open to tenants to help them produce food and also deliver environmental benefits. The Government has appointed a Commissioner for the Tenant Farming Sector to support collaborative relationships across the tenanted sector.