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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Animal and Plant Health Agency’s inspections regime at (a) the Port of Dover and (b) other UK ports for animals suspected of contravening regulations on (i) smuggling and (ii) biosecurity.

The inspections that take place at Dover, as well as other UK ports, are part of a broader end to end risk and or intelligence based import regime including official veterinary certification from exporting countries, Welfare in Transport Regulations and other regulatory frameworks that are used to manage biosecurity risks and the welfare of animals entering the country. These regulatory frameworks are based on current risk levels and can change if disease risk levels change.