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Fertilisers and Red Diesel: Prices

Asked by Rebecca PaulConservativeDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled Answered 16 June 2026UIN 7903

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what contingency plans her Department has in place to support farm businesses in the event of prolonged increases in red diesel and fertiliser prices.

Answered by Stephen Morgan

The Government has direct lines open with domestic fertiliser suppliers, commodity traders and farming stakeholders and is closely monitoring market conditions feeding intelligence into our contingency planning. New tools have been produced to support farmers in increasing fertiliser efficiency.

Government is taking seriously the impacts of the Middle East Conflict on the food and farming sector and is determined to keep costs down for farmers by taking decisive action. This includes slashing the rate for red diesel from 10.18p to 6.48p per litre, meaning red diesel now benefits from an 88% tax discount, saving farmers over £300 million a year.

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