Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the proposed ban on third party sales of puppies will prohibit breeders that breed dogs outside England from selling those dogs in England.
Answered by Baroness Prentis of Banbury
It will be for the local authority responsible for licensing a business to be satisfied that a licence holder has bred the animals they are selling. Defra has updated the statutory guidance on pet selling, and this also covers how to be assured that someone offering a puppy for sale has bred it themselves. The law does not explicitly prohibit sales by someone who is licensed to sell a puppy in England having bred that puppy outside of England. However Defra’s recently launched Petfished campaign provides further guidance for the public on how to source puppies responsibly and this includes signposting to reputable suppliers (like Kennel Club Assured Breeders or licensed breeders) and advising that prospective buyers should always ask to see the puppy interacting with its mother and siblings where it was bred prior to making any purchasing decisions.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October 2019 to Question 1779 on Agriculture: Seasonal Workers, whether her Department plans to publish data from the seasonal workers pilot scheme prior to the conclusion of the evaluation of the outcomes of that pilot scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
The numbers of visa applications made, approved and refused under Seasonal Workers Pilot scheme are published in the quarterly Immigration statistics. This information is available on the Gov.uk website at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-june-2019/list-of-tables
The Home Department and Defra have established a regime to monitor and evaluate the Pilot against its objectives and expected benefits. We will publish the outcomes of the evaluation process of the Pilot once that evaluation is complete.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many inspections the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority has undertaken on farms employing workers under the seasonal workers pilot scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
The Home Office are best placed to answer any queries about the requirements and obligations on the scheme operators to safeguard Pilot workers including the number of inspections performed by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the outcomes of the seasonal workers pilot scheme since that scheme opened; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by George Eustice
Defra and the Home Office have established a regime to monitor and evaluate the Pilot against its objectives and expected benefits. We will publish the outcomes of the Pilot evaluation process for both the first year and the second year of the Pilot once those evaluations are complete.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many workers have (a) entered and (b) left the UK under the seasonal workers pilot scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
As of June 2019, Pilot operators had recruited all 2,500 workers and the majority of these workers have entered the UK. Visa applications will continue throughout the year and some workers will be required for later in the season for the harvesting of winter vegetables. Return rates will be carefully monitored as part of the ongoing evaluation of this Pilot.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the geographical distribution by region is of workers that have entered the UK under the seasonal workers pilot scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
This is a nationwide Pilot, with a nationwide quota. We have placed a specific duty on the selected scheme operators to ensure that all regions of the UK benefit from this Pilot and we are monitoring the distribution of workers across the four regions of the UK: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Pilot monitoring information that we have received to date shows that the spread across these regions is proportionate with regional demand.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has received all information that operators are required to provide from the Seasonal Workers Pilot Scheme.
Answered by George Eustice
The collation of information and data to monitor the Pilot is ongoing. The Pilot operators are working cooperatively with Defra and the Home Office to provide information for the effective monitoring and evaluation of the Pilot and have to date provided all required information.
Asked by: Alex Norris (Labour (Co-op) - Nottingham North and Kimberley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 May 2019 to Question 257548, what further collaboration his Department is planning with (a) the Animal and Plant Health Agency and (b) Border Force following that meeting with the Immigration Minister.
Answered by David Rutley
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), as an executive agency of Defra, delivers Defra’s animal health and welfare and plant health policy, including in the area of illegal dog imports, which was discussed at the Ministerial meeting in question. APHA and Defra colleagues are in continual communication about how to best shape and deliver this important policy area.
Regarding further collaboration between Defra and Border Force, we are taking forward our work to disrupt illegal imports of dogs as part of a wider refresh of our engagement at points of entry. Specifically, this includes APHA working more closely with Border Force to further improve operational processes at port, as well as exploring options for more mutual sharing of intelligence and intelligence led work.