Labour’s new environment team says it will take on big businesses and supermarkets in order to halt pollution and stop farmers from being ripped off if it wins the next election.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has been criticised in the past for being too soft on polluting companies, and not using its full powers to stop water companies from spilling sewage. Farming groups have also criticised its close relationship with supermarkets, when farmers have felt ripped off by rising prices not being passed down the supply chain to their struggling businesses.
