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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will introduce a requirement for a (a) rabies blood test for cats before entry into the UK and (b) wait period post vaccination which is in line with the incubation period of rabies.

The Pet Travel and Illegal import clauses of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill focus on measures to improve welfare of pets entering GB. Recent quantitative risk assessments have concluded that the risk of a pet animal with rabies entering the UK under the pet travel rules is very low. Defra continues to monitor the disease situation.