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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to reintroduce rabies blood testing with an extended wait period before entering the UK after the UK has left the EU.

Defra takes the threat to public and animal health posed by animals entering the United Kingdom seriously and requires appropriate rabies vaccination for pet animals (cats, dogs and ferrets) entering the country, as well as other high risk species entering zoos or pets destined for the pet trade.

Pet travel between EU Member States and from some lower risk third countries requires a rabies vaccination followed by a 21 day waiting period. For third countries with higher rabies risk stricter rules apply involving a rabies titration test and waiting period. A quantitative risk assessment was carried out in 2011. They assessed the risk of a pet animal with rabies entering the UK under the EU pet travel rules as very low.

Defra has no plans to amend the rabies controls for pet animals, rabies susceptible species for zoos or the pet trade entering the United Kingdom but continues to monitor the disease situation and will undertake a further, formal risk assessment if the evidence indicates that one is warranted.