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1695523

registered interest
date	12/03/2024
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	Dogs: 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 is taking steps to support animal welfare organisations in tackling (a) ear cropping and (b) puppy smuggling.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	18249
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2024 answer text <p>Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is an offence in England and Wales to carry out a non-exempted mutilation, including the cropping of a dog’s ears. The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 creates tougher penalties for anyone convicted of such an offence face, either being sent to prison for up to five years, or receiving an unlimited fine, or both.</p><p> </p><p>Defra supports the work of the Pet Advertising Advisory Group (PAAG) which includes in its membership some of the country’s key animal welfare organisations. To ensure that advertisements for pets are legal and ethical, PAAG has developed a set of advertising standards which several of the UK’s largest classified websites have agreed to meet. The standards prohibit engaged websites from hosting adverts for dogs whose ears have been cropped.</p><p> </p><p>Defra regularly engages with stakeholders, including veterinary and animal welfare professionals, on a range of animal welfare issues, including the illegal smuggling of pets into the UK.</p><p> </p><p>The Government supports the Private Members’ Bill, Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill, introduced by the hon. Member for North Devon on restricting the importation and non-commercial movement of pets. The Bill will contain powers that will enable future regulations for commercial and non-commercial movements of pets into the UK including prohibiting the import of dogs with cropped ears.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 22/03/2024 13:02:29 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1695524

registered interest
date	12/03/2024
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	Dogs: 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 steps he is taking with local authorities to enhance enforcement against (a) puppy smuggling and (b) the sale of dogs with cropped ears.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	18250
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2024 answer text <p>Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is an offence in England and Wales to carry out a non-exempted mutilation, including the cropping of a dog’s ears. The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 creates tougher penalties for anyone convicted of such an offence face, either being sent to prison for up to five years, or receiving an unlimited fine, or both.</p><p> </p><p>The Government supports the Private Members’ Bill, Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill, introduced by the hon. Member for North Devon on restricting the importation and non-commercial movement of pets. The Bill will contain powers that will enable future regulations for commercial and non-commercial movements of pets into the United Kingdom including prohibiting the import of dogs with cropped ears.</p><p> </p><p>Defra regularly engages with stakeholders, including local authorities, on a range of animal welfare issues, including the smuggling of pets into the UK and the cropping of dogs’ ears.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 22/03/2024 12:56:08 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1683104

registered interest
date	17/01/2024
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	Dogs: 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 steps his Department is taking to prevent euthanisation of healthy dogs in (a) Dewsbury constituency and (b) the UK.
tabling member constituency	Dewsbury
tabling member printed	Mark Eastwood
uin	10294
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/02/2024 answer text <p>In 2021, we worked closely with the veterinary profession to provide greater assurance that alternatives to euthanasia are explored before a healthy dog is put down. Following these discussions, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons agreed that vets should scan the microchip in these circumstances to check whether anyone else has an interest in the dog who might provide an alternative to euthanasia. This has been included in the guidance underpinning the Code of Professional Conduct. This applies to all veterinary surgeons practising in the United Kingdom.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 09/02/2024 17:11:23 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4807 label Biography information for Mark Eastwood

1682180

registered interest
date	15/01/2024
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	Dogs: 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 tackle the (a) cropping of dogs ears and (b) importation of dogs with cropped ears.
tabling member constituency	Putney
tabling member printed	Fleur Anderson
uin	9678
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/01/2024 answer text <p>Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 it is already an offence in England and Wales to carry out non-exempted mutilations on dogs, this includes the cropping of dog’s ears.</p><p> </p><p>In August 2021, we consulted on proposed changes to the commercial and non-commercial movements of pets into Great Britain including the importation of dogs with cropped ears.</p><p> </p><p>We are carefully reviewing the feedback from our consultation and wider engagement with stakeholders, and a summary will be published in due course.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 22/01/2024 16:53:08 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4788 label Biography information for Fleur Anderson

1676997

registered interest
date	11/12/2023
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	Dogs: 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 he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to regulate the rehoming of dogs.
tabling member constituency	Luton North
tabling member printed	Sarah Owen
uin	6342
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/12/2023 answer text <p>The Action Plan for Animal Welfare sets out our reform programme, including proposals for the licensing of animal sanctuaries and rescue and rehoming centres for cats, dogs and horses. Defra has been engaging with rescue and rehoming organisations to understand their views and the possible impacts of regulating the sector. Any proposals to bring forward licensing regulations will be subject to a consultation.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 18/12/2023 13:35:48 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4777 label Biography information for Sarah Owen

1656711

registered interest
date	01/09/2023
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	Dogs: 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 her Department will make an assessment of the impact of breeding brachycephalic animals as pets on the welfare of those animals; and whether her Department plans to bring forward measures to help safeguard the welfare of brachycephalic animals that are bred to be kept as pets.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, West Derby
tabling member printed	Ian Byrne
uin	197139
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/09/2023 answer text <p>Defra meets regularly with a range of animal welfare and companion animal sector organisations and is kept abreast of concerns relating to brachycephaly in companion animals. Brachycephalic companion animals bred to be sold and kept as pets are already protected under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (the 2018 Regulations). The 2018 Regulations require anyone in the business of breeding and selling dogs and/or who breeds three or more litters of dogs in a twelve-month period, as well as anyone in the business of breeding and selling rabbits or cats as pets, needs to hold a valid licence issued by their local authority.</p><p> </p><p>Under the 2018 Regulations, licensed dog breeders are prohibited from breeding dogs if it can be reasonably expected that on the basis of their genotype, phenotype or health, this would lead to welfare problems for the mother or the puppies, and licensed pet sellers are required to protect any animals bred for sale as a pet from pain, suffering, injury and disease.</p><p> </p><p>To support consumers and reduce the opportunities available to unscrupulous breeders and sellers, Defra maintains a national communications campaign (<a href="https://getyourpetsafely.campaign.gov.uk/" target="_blank">Petfished</a>) to raise awareness of issues associated with low-welfare and illegal supply of pets.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 11/09/2023 15:23:19 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4831 label Biography information for Ian Byrne

1656752

registered interest
date	01/09/2023
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	Dogs: 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 her Department is taking steps to (a) promote the Brachycephalic Working Group Strategy 2022-2025, (b) prevent images of dogs with brachycephaly being used in (i) advertising, (ii) marketing and (iii) social media and (c) help prevent the illegal importation of brachycephalic dogs.
tabling member constituency	Cynon Valley
tabling member printed	Beth Winter
uin	197152
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/09/2023 answer text <p>Defra officials participate in the UK Brachycephalic Working Group’s (BWG) meetings to assist in identifying opportunities for improvements and engagement in relation to responsible dog ownership and dog health and welfare. The department also supports the work of the Pet Advertising Advisory Group (PAAG) and endorses their Advertising Standards, which can be found here: <a href="https://paag.org.uk/advertising-standards/" target="_blank">How to buy a pet - Advertising Standards (paag.org.uk)</a>. Defra promotes the work of the UK BWG and PAAG when press or communications opportunities arise.</p><p>To support consumers and reduce the opportunities available to unscrupulous breeders and sellers, Defra maintains a national communications campaign (Petfished) to raise awareness of issues associated with low-welfare and illegal supply of pets, which provides a list of red flags for buyers to look out for when searching for a pet online. The step-by-step guide on buying a dog includes a reminder to ensure that the dog’s physical features have minimal adverse impacts on their physical well-being and welfare.</p><p>It is not illegal to import dogs into Great Britain solely on account of them being brachycephalic.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 11/09/2023 15:20:41 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4809 label Biography information for Beth Winter

1647924

registered interest
date	26/06/2023
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	Dogs: 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, with reference to the Answer of 28 May 2021 to Question 4718 on Dogs: Animal Welfare, when she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to prohibit the (a) importation and (b) non-commercial movement of dogs into the UK that have been subject to (i) ear cropping and (ii) other low welfare practices; and if she do so before the end of this parliamentary session.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, West Derby
tabling member printed	Ian Byrne
uin	191195
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2023 answer text <p>As outlined in our 2021 Action Plan for Animal Welfare, the Government has an ambitious agenda for animal welfare and conservation reforms, which we plan to take forward during the current Parliamentary session and beyond. We will continue to introduce and support legislative and non-legislative reforms where possible.</p><p> </p><p>A single-issue Bill which takes forward this manifesto commitment would enable us to bring forward bans on the import of young puppies, heavily pregnant dogs and those with mutilations such as cropped ears and docked tails which we have previously consulted on.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 12/07/2023 09:13:35 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4831 label Biography information for Ian Byrne

1625169

registered interest
date	02/05/2023
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	Dogs: 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 steps her Department is taking to help tackle the cropping of dogs’ ears.
tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
uin	183516
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/05/2023 answer text <p>The cropping of a dog’s ears is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Now that the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 has come into force, anyone convicted of such an offence, faces being sent to prison for up to five years, or receiving an unlimited fine, or both.</p><p> </p><p>The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill includes powers to introduce restrictions on pet travel and on the commercial import of pets on welfare grounds, via secondary legislation. In August 2021, the Government launched a consultation on how these powers should be used, including proposals to ban the import of dogs with cropped ears and docked tails.</p><p> </p><p>We are carefully reviewing the feedback gathered from our consultation and wider engagement with stakeholders, and a summary will be published in due course.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow grouped question UIN 183518 question first answered 09/05/2023 14:10:54 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq

1625355

registered interest
date	02/05/2023
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	Dogs: 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 steps her Department is taking to tackle trends in the level of cropping of dogs’ ears.
tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
uin	183518
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/05/2023 answer text <p>The cropping of a dog’s ears is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Now that the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 has come into force, anyone convicted of such an offence, faces being sent to prison for up to five years, or receiving an unlimited fine, or both.</p><p> </p><p>The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill includes powers to introduce restrictions on pet travel and on the commercial import of pets on welfare grounds, via secondary legislation. In August 2021, the Government launched a consultation on how these powers should be used, including proposals to ban the import of dogs with cropped ears and docked tails.</p><p> </p><p>We are carefully reviewing the feedback gathered from our consultation and wider engagement with stakeholders, and a summary will be published in due course.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow grouped question UIN 183516 question first answered 09/05/2023 14:10:54 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq