Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of existing legislation regulating the online sale of pets.

We have passed new legislation which replaces the existing law on the sale of pets. Under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 it is clear that anyone in the business of selling pets, whether online or from a traditional pet shop, will need a licence from their local authority. The new regulations come into force on 1 October and will be enforced by local authorities.