Contingency plans in place for possible food shortages if Iran war continues, minister confirms – UK politics live

Peter Kyle did not dispute Times’ report that under a ‘reasonable worst-case scenario’ supermarkets might start running out of some items

Good morning. ‘We don’t comment on leaks,’ is the usual government response to an unsanctioned lobby scoop. But this morning Peter Kyle, the business secretary, took a different response. Asked about a Times splash saying the government is making plans to deal with possible food shortages in the summer, caused by the Iran war, he told Sky News:

It is difficult for me, because, of course, these leaks are very unhelpful. But when people do read it, they need to be reassured that we are doing this kind of planning, and we are doing this kind of scenario planning.

Britain could face shortages of chicken, pork and other supermarket goods this summer if the war in Iran continues, a secret government analysis has found.

Officials have drawn up contingency plans for a “reasonable worst-case scenario” amid fears that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz will lead to shortages of carbon dioxide (CO₂) which is critical to the food industry …

I can tell you, because I’m in these meetings, the prime minister has been there since the very start, and he is going through personally and driving deep dives into lots of areas of resilience throughout our economy.

People should be reassured that we are doing this kind of action behind the scenes to keep resilience in our economy, so that when the full extent of what may or may not emerge, because this situation is still unfolding in the Middle East, you have a government that is acting with creativity and boldness.

If any of these things change, I will be up front with the public about it in advance so that we can prepare. But right now, people should go on as they are, enjoying beer, enjoying their meats, enjoying all the salads.

But also there are critical uses for CO₂ – MRI scanning, for example, water purification; it’s involved in our nuclear industry, our civil nuclear power industry, some defensive uses for it as well.