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 assessed the potential implications of levels of workforce availability of sheep shearers on animal welfare.

With a national flock of around 30m sheep, Defra recognises the good work that British Wool does in delivering training for domestic sheep shearers, the importance that shearing sheep plays in managing the health and welfare of the UK flock, and the continued challenges that the industry faces each year in sourcing sufficient numbers of trained shearers.

We continue to work closely with the industry in addressing these challenges.