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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking tackle illegal puppy and kitten farms in the context of the withdrawal of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill.

The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill did not contain any measures to tackle illegal puppy or kitten farms directly.

However, the Government is committed to delivering its manifesto commitment on puppy smuggling. We plan to take forward puppy smuggling measures as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Regarding illegal puppy and kitten farms, we have taken significant steps to improve and update the laws on domestic cat and dog breeding to crack down on unscrupulous breeders who breed pets purely for financial greed at the expense of animal welfare.