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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of cases of feline infectious peritonitis in Cyprus on (a) biosecurity and (b) feline health in the UK.

A single nine-month-old kitten imported from Cyprus in August has been diagnosed with Feline Infectious Peritonitis as a result of being infected with a strain of Feline Coronavirus contracted in Cyprus. While this virus is estimated to have killed 8,500 cats in Cyprus (in the first half of this year, mostly in the large feral cat population) the risk to UK cats is very low.

We will continue to use our established systems to monitor feline coronavirus through our Veterinary Risk Group and Animal Disease Policy Group, and review our domestic or import policies should risks change.