Written questions

Equal Experts: Data Protection

Commons · Question 127253 · Tabled 14 Apr 2026 · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs · Official record

Answered 21 Apr 2026

Question

Asked by Greg Smith

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether DEFRA has established whether Equal Experts, in conducting the BNG Metric Tool Discovery phase under contract C24064, accessed software products developed by private sector BNG

Answer

Answered by Mary Creagh, 21 Apr 2026

The statutory Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) metric is a Government‑owned tool and is currently only available to users in spreadsheet format. The existing tool has well‑recognised issues relating to accessibility, usability, and data integrity, which the Go...