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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Government Response to the e-petition entitled Introduce national limits on horse breeding, published on 4 August 2021, what estimate his Department has made of the number of equine sanctuaries and rescue centres that are operating in Great Britain; how many and what proportion of those centres his Department has been in communication with; how often his Department has communicated with them in the last three years; and when that communication began and what form it took.

We continue to have close engagement with the equine sector to support our positive action to protect and improve the welfare of animals.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had regular contact with equine stakeholders such as World Horse Welfare and the British Horse Council to assess the health of the sector.

A group of animal welfare charities released a report titled “Britain’s Horse Problem” in December 2020 which raised a number of issues including overbreeding. Recommendations from the report include the need for responsible ownership of equines as well as the enhanced promotion of the Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Their Hybrids. We continue to engage with the sector on the issues presented in the report. The Code of Practice can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/code-of-practice-for-the-welfare-of-horses-ponies-donkeys-and-their-hybrids

The Action Plan for Animal Welfare demonstrates our commitment to a brighter future for animals both at home and abroad. Our reform programme includes pursuing the licensing of animal sanctuaries and rescue and rehoming centres including for horses. This mirrors a recommendation from “Britain’s Horse Problem”. Defra has been engaging with rescue and rehoming organisations to understand their views and the possible impacts of regulating the sector. Any proposals to bring forward licensing regulations will be subject to a consultation.