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 adequacy of regulations on the use of snares.

An industry-owned code of practice for the use of snares to control foxes in England sets out clear principles for the legal use of snares, using evidence from snare-use research to improve snare deployment and design.

Anyone using snares has a responsibility under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to ensure their activities do not harm protected species or cause any unnecessary suffering. Anyone committing an offence can face prosecution, an unlimited fine or even a custodial sentence.

We are looking at how snares are regulated as part of our continued drive to maintain the highest animal welfare standards in the world, and working to ensure the regulated use of the most appropriate trap and cull method which causes the least suffering whilst providing the greatest protection to crops, game birds or endangered species.