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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the report entitled Potential role of veterinary flea products in widespread pesticide contamination of English rivers, published in the Science of the Total Environment Journal in January 2021, what steps he is taking to prevent toxic insecticides contaminating rivers across England.

Defra, the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) and the Environment Agency (EA) are working closely together to improve our understanding of the risks posed by chemicals in the water environment and to respond appropriately. This includes EA monitoring of rivers for insecticides and other pesticides to enable us to identify and act upon any emerging issues associated with their use and occurrence in the environment.

Parasiticides are used in veterinary medicines for the treatment of fleas and ticks on cats and dogs. It is possible that following their use, some parasiticides may reach the aquatic environment. However, the environmental exposure assessments conducted for such flea products consider the exposure of the aquatic environment to be acceptably low. Recent research has estimated that the contribution of veterinary medicine parasiticides to the levels of these chemicals of concern in UK waterways to be less than 3% of the total. Such products are accompanied by advice, to users, to keep treated animals out of watercourses for 2 to 4 days after treatment and to avoid washing products off into the sewage system. Therefore, existing steps are taken to reduce the exposure of the environment from parasiticides used to treated animals. We urge people to continue to follow the manufacturer's instructions on the safe use and disposal of all veterinary products, including flea treatment products, and their packaging.

Due to concerns and uncertainties raised by previous research and monitoring data, the VMD commissioned research in 2019 to investigate the potential environmental exposure pathways for flea and tick products. This work aims to assess the significance of their use as veterinary medicines on the aquatic environment. This research is due to be completed in March 2023. In addition, parasiticides may also enter the environment from several other sources such as ant/cockroach/fly bait products, products used in greenhouses, and possibly from products used to protect wool, cotton and synthetic materials. The relevance of these exposure routes is yet to be elucidated.

Pending the findings from this commissioned research, and other available evidence, currently the VMD does not intend to change the existing regulatory controls on veterinary medicines, including the use of flea treatments for pets and the existing risk mitigation warnings, which protect animal health, human health and the environment.

Defra will continue to consider the scientific evidence to inform any policy decisions or other interventions.