Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed grouped question UIN question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1365564

	registered interest
	date	02/11/2021
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with the Sentencing Council on updating the Sentencing Guidelines for animal cruelty offences following the enactment of the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021.
	tabling member constituency	Stockton North
	tabling member printed	Alex Cunningham
	uin	68252
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/11/2021 answer text <p>The Secretary of State meets with the Chairman of the Sentencing Council periodically to discuss a wide range of relevant issues.</p><p> </p><p>The Council is independent of Parliament and Government and decides on its own priorities and work plan for developing and revising guidelines. To reflect the higher maximum penalties introduced by the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021, the Council is currently developing a revised guideline for animal cruelty offences, and plans to consult on that revision in due course. The Council has also published interim guidance for offences committed on or after 29 June 2021 to take account of the increase in maximum penalties. This can be found at: <a href="https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/offences/crown-court/item/animal-cruelty-interim-guidance/" target="_blank">https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/offences/crown-court/item/animal-cruelty-interim-guidance/</a>.</p> answering member constituency South Suffolk answering member printed James Cartlidge question first answered 08/11/2021 16:51:07 answering member 4519 label Biography information for James Cartlidge
	tabling member	4122 label Biography information for Alex Cunningham

1384138

	registered interest
	date	01/12/2021
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the animal welfare implications of the shortage of workers in the processed meat sector; and what steps they are taking to address this.
	tabling member printed	Baroness McIntosh of Pickering
	uin	HL4606
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2021 answer text <p>Farmers have reported an overstocking of pigs on farms because of staff shortages in processing plants. This has the potential to lead to welfare issues for pigs on farm, due to overcrowding. The Government has implemented a number of measures to address the backlog and to reduce any on-farm animal welfare implications. Defra is not aware of any animal welfare issues in other meat processing sectors due to a shortage of workers.</p><p> </p><p>The package of measures that Defra has provided to help to alleviate the backlog of pigs on farms and to ease potential welfare implications includes temporary work visas for up to 800 pork butchers and Private Storage Aid (PSA) and Slaughter Incentive Payment (SIP) schemes to facilitate an increase in the throughput of pigs through abattoirs.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, in England and Scotland, the two meat levy bodies, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board and Quality Meat Scotland, suspended the statutory levy for pig farmers and producers during November 2021.</p><p> </p><p>The Government will continue to monitor the evolving situation and is working closely with the industry through this challenging period.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park question first answered 17/12/2021 14:20:35 answering member 4062 label Biography information for Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
	tabling member	384 label Biography information for Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

1384605

	registered interest
	date	03/12/2021
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a mandatory duty for local authorities to employ an Animal Welfare Officer.
	tabling member constituency	Harlow
	tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
	uin	86559
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/12/2021 answer text <p>Local authorities are responsible for enforcing certain animal-related activities which are licensed, such as pet selling, dog breeding and selling, animal boarding, riding schools and the exhibiting of animals. Therefore, every local authority at district level will have access to officers who enforce animal welfare standards. Local authorities have powers, under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, to investigate allegations of animal cruelty or poor welfare. Local authorities must be allowed to decide how to enforce the 2006 Act based upon local priorities and resources.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 13/12/2021 15:12:48 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1401271

	registered interest
	date	10/01/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the Government’s policy is on the use of cages in respect of (a) pets, (b) poultry farming, (c) livestock farming and (d) game farming.
	tabling member constituency	Buckingham
	tabling member printed	Greg Smith
	uin	100710
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/01/2022 answer text <p>The Government is delivering a series of ambitious reforms, as outlined in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/action-plan-for-animal-welfare" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/action-plan-for-animal-welfare</a>). One of the ways we wish to improve the welfare of farm animals is strengthening protections against animal confinement. We are actively exploring options to phase out the use of cages in farming, including the use of enriched cages for laying hens, farrowing crates for pigs and cages for breeding pheasants and partridges. Ending the use of cages would have a significant impact on some sectors of the farming industry and so we would need to undergo a public consultation.</p><p>For pets, the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations, introduced in 2018, require businesses that carry out activities involving animals to obtain a valid licence from their local authority. Licences must meet strict statutory minimum welfare standards which are enforced by local authorities who have powers to issue, refuse or revoke licences. The 2018 Regulations are supported by statutory guidance which provides specific information about the conditions for each activity. This includes guidance on the size of cages that should be sold in the course of selling animals as pets:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-activities-licensing-guidance-for-local-authorities" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-activities-licensing-guidance-for-local-authorities</a></p><p> </p><p>Current requirements on how farmed livestock should be kept, including detailed provisions on accommodation, are set down in The Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007 with further guidance provided in Defra’s species-specific farm animal welfare codes.</p><p> </p><p>For gamebirds, the Statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes provides keepers with guidance on how to meet the welfare needs of their gamebirds as required by the Animal Welfare Act 2006. It recommends that barren cages for breeding pheasants and small barren cages for breeding partridges should not be used and that any system should be appropriately enriched.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill grouped question UIN 100711 question first answered 18/01/2022 13:57:04 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	4778 label Biography information for Greg Smith

1401272

	registered interest
	date	10/01/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how his Department defines a cage for (a) pets, (b) poultry farming, (c) livestock farming and (d) game farming.
	tabling member constituency	Buckingham
	tabling member printed	Greg Smith
	uin	100711
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/01/2022 answer text <p>The Government is delivering a series of ambitious reforms, as outlined in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/action-plan-for-animal-welfare" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/action-plan-for-animal-welfare</a>). One of the ways we wish to improve the welfare of farm animals is strengthening protections against animal confinement. We are actively exploring options to phase out the use of cages in farming, including the use of enriched cages for laying hens, farrowing crates for pigs and cages for breeding pheasants and partridges. Ending the use of cages would have a significant impact on some sectors of the farming industry and so we would need to undergo a public consultation.</p><p>For pets, the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations, introduced in 2018, require businesses that carry out activities involving animals to obtain a valid licence from their local authority. Licences must meet strict statutory minimum welfare standards which are enforced by local authorities who have powers to issue, refuse or revoke licences. The 2018 Regulations are supported by statutory guidance which provides specific information about the conditions for each activity. This includes guidance on the size of cages that should be sold in the course of selling animals as pets:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-activities-licensing-guidance-for-local-authorities" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-activities-licensing-guidance-for-local-authorities</a></p><p> </p><p>Current requirements on how farmed livestock should be kept, including detailed provisions on accommodation, are set down in The Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007 with further guidance provided in Defra’s species-specific farm animal welfare codes.</p><p> </p><p>For gamebirds, the Statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes provides keepers with guidance on how to meet the welfare needs of their gamebirds as required by the Animal Welfare Act 2006. It recommends that barren cages for breeding pheasants and small barren cages for breeding partridges should not be used and that any system should be appropriately enriched.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill grouped question UIN 100710 question first answered 18/01/2022 13:57:04 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	4778 label Biography information for Greg Smith

1404013

	registered interest
	date	18/01/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of establishing an animal welfare commissioner to produce an annual report on the state of animal welfare in England.
	tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
	tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
	uin	106816
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/01/2022 answer text <p>This Government is committed to high levels of animal welfare, and we have set out over 40 areas in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare, published in May 2021.</p><p> </p><p>The Animal Welfare Committee is a non-statutory expert committee which advises Defra and the Scottish and Welsh Governments on the welfare of animals, and would be the most appropriate body to produce reports on the state of animal welfare. The Animal Welfare Committee considers the welfare of farmed animals, companion animals and wild animals kept by people.</p><p> </p><p>In 2020, the Animal Welfare Committee published a report on ‘The Animal Welfare Issues Related to Covid-19 – Short Term’, followed by a second report on ‘The Animal Welfare Issues Related to Covid-19 – Medium to Longer Term’. The Animal Welfare Committee’s reports are available on its website: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/animal-welfare-committee-awc" target="_blank">Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 25/01/2022 13:54:03 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq

1453405

	registered interest
	date	22/03/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the effectiveness of the star system for animal activity licensing process.
	tabling member constituency	Romford
	tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
	uin	144850
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/03/2022 answer text <p>The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 were developed to help improve welfare standards across a range of activities involving animals that are licensed by local authorities.</p><p> </p><p>We are committed to learning from implementation and to make improvements where necessary and evidenced. There is a statutory requirement to complete a Post Implementation Review of the legislation by October 2023. We will consider the effectiveness of the associated guidance including the star rating system alongside this work.</p><p> </p><p>As part of planning for this review, we are proactively working with partners, including local authorities, to collate data that can provide a picture of licensed and unlicensed activities involving animals in England. Key trade associations such as the Pet Industry Federation and the Canine and Feline Sector Group will be integral to coordinating input from this diverse sector to inform Defra’s review. This is an ongoing project and one which will benefit from close involvement of the sector in the development of a strong evidence base.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 29/03/2022 16:04:37 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1458247

	registered interest
	date	19/04/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve animal welfare.
	tabling member constituency	Hitchin and Harpenden
	tabling member printed	Bim Afolami
	uin	155893
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2022 answer text <p>This Government published the Action Plan for Animal Welfare on 12 May 2021, setting out over 40 commitments on animal welfare and conservation. Since its publication, a programme of primary and secondary legislation has started to take forward many measures, alongside some non-legislative reforms.</p><p> </p><p>We delivered our Manifesto commitment to increase the maximum prison sentence for animal cruelty from six months to five years through the Animal Sentencing Act. This came into force in June 2021.</p><p> </p><p>The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill has successfully completed its Parliamentary passage and is awaiting Royal Assent. It establishes an Animal Sentience Committee to consider how individual central government policy decisions take account of animal welfare. It also recognises that decapod crustaceans and cephalopod molluscs are sentient.</p><p> </p><p>The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill has completed its Commons Committee Stage and, following the passing of a carryover motion by the House, will continue its passage in the next Session. The Bill delivers manifesto commitments relating to banning live exports, banning primates as pets, and tackling puppy smuggling. It also includes the new pet abduction offence in response to a recommendation from the cross-government Pet Theft Taskforce.</p><p> </p><p>We are supporting two Private Members Bills. The Animal (Penalty Notices) Bill is awaiting Royal Assent and the Glue Trap (Offences) Bill is awaiting its Third Reading in the House of Lords.</p><p> </p><p>Alongside these legislative reforms, Defra has launched Calls for Evidence on welfare labelling and the fur trade and launched consultations on puppy smuggling and zoo licensing standards. Defra has also published government responses to consultations on implementing and enforcing the Ivory Act, banning the shark fin trade, introducing welfare in transport reforms, mandating cat microchipping and banning trophy hunting.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 26/04/2022 15:11:46 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
	tabling member	4639 label Biography information for Bim Afolami

1462581

	registered interest
	date	12/05/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban the advertising and offering for sale of attractions, activities, or experiences that cause distress to animals, such as low welfare elephant venues.
	tabling member constituency	East Renfrewshire
	tabling member printed	Kirsten Oswald
	uin	1188
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2022 answer text <p>We will bring forward one of the toughest bans on the import of hunting trophies in the world and we are exploring a range of legislative options to further protect animals abroad.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill grouped question UIN 1187 1511 1557 question first answered 17/05/2022 10:51:30 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	4413 label Biography information for Kirsten Oswald

1462786

	registered interest
	date	13/05/2022
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reason an Animals Abroad Bill was not included in the Queen’s Speech; and if he will take steps to introduce a ban on the (a) advertising and (b) offering for sale of (i) attractions, (ii) activities and (iii) experiences at low-welfare elephant venues.
	tabling member constituency	Rotherham
	tabling member printed	Sarah Champion
	uin	1511
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2022 answer text <p>We will bring forward one of the toughest bans on the import of hunting trophies in the world and we are exploring a range of legislative options to further protect animals abroad.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill grouped question UIN 1187 1188 1557 question first answered 17/05/2022 10:51:30 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
	tabling member	4267 label Biography information for Sarah Champion