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 made an assessment of the potential impact of banning the use of electronic shock collars for dogs in England on the number of incidents where dogs that worry livestock are shot.

Very careful consideration was given to potential unintended consequences of banning e-collars controlled by hand-held devices that deliver an electric current to cats or dogs. My Department liaised closely with police chiefs and forces who report that the majority of livestock worrying offences (nearly 7 in 10) occur from unaccompanied dogs. We agree with the police’s recommendation that keeping dogs on leads around livestock and securing dog enclosures offer effective means of preventing livestock worrying, keeping both livestock and dogs safe without the need to use e-collars.