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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to regulate dog and cat rescue services.

Rescue and rehoming establishments in England must provide for the five basic welfare needs of the animals set out in the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

This Government will introduce the most ambitious plan to improve animal welfare in a generation. The Department has initiated a series of meetings with key animal welfare stakeholders as part of the development of an overarching approach to animal welfare. We will be outlining more detail of plans in due course.