Rachael Maskell MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said:

“Despite some warm words from Andrea Leadsom today, her department’s continued failure to outline a plan for Brexit is deeply disappointing. Rural communities, and the farming and fishing industries that help sustain them, deserve better.

“What’s more, as the Environmental Audit Committee highlights, the Government’s silence on whether important EU environmental protection laws will be maintained is also a matter of serious concern. No matter where they live, people in this country deserve legal protections for their right to clean air and water, and I continue to urge the Government to guarantee that existing levels of protection will not be watered down.”