Asked by: Richard Arkless (Scottish National Party - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the illegal transport of farmed puppies from the Republic of Ireland and southern Europe into the UK.
Answered by George Eustice
All movements of puppies into the UK that are not covered by the Pet Travel Scheme are subject to the provisions of the Council Directive 92/65/EEC (Balai Directive). This is implemented by the Trade in Animal and Related Products Regulations 2011. Commercial movements of puppies may be subject to a post-import check at the place of final destination by the Animal and Plant Health Agency.
Responsibility for enforcing the Trade in Animal and Related Products Regulations 2011 falls to local authorities. They are also responsible for enforcing welfare in transport legislation which makes it an offence for anyone to transport animals or cause animals to be transported in a way likely to cause injury or unnecessary suffering to them.
The act of smuggling puppies in contravention of the animal health and welfare requirements may give rise to the commission of a number of different criminal offences depending on the circumstances of the illegal import. Defra is working with interested parties with a particular interest in improving the collection, analysis and use of intelligence relating to this illegal trade. We are also aware that some EU countries, such as the Republic of Ireland, have recently tightened up their regulatory requirements for puppy breeding, which we hope will also have a positive impact on the problem of illegal trade.
Asked by: Richard Arkless (Scottish National Party - Dumfries and Galloway)
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 seek a ban on the sale of puppies from retail outlets; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by George Eustice
Under the Pet Animals Act 1951 local authorities can already apply conditions to individual pet shop licences. This includes, for example, restricting the species that can be sold. The power to apply conditions to an individual licence is in section 1(3) of the 1951 Act and is intended to help secure the welfare requirements set out in that section.
Asked by: Richard Arkless (Scottish National Party - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent progress has been made with the US and Scottish Governments on lifting the US import ban on haggis.
Answered by George Eustice
The United States does not accept imports of haggis containing sheep lungs. Former Secretary of State for Defra, Owen Paterson, lobbied US authorities during his visit in 2014 and the Government continues to encourage the US to adjust its ban on UK haggis. Scottish haggis producers are developing a US-specific recipe to allow them to access the market once the wider EU negotiations on lifting the Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy restrictions on EU lamb are concluded.