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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the article entitled Mink farming poses risks for future viral pandemics published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on 19 July 2023.

The Government shares the British public’s high regard for animal welfare. Fur farming has been banned in England and Wales since 2000 (2002 in Scotland and Northern Ireland). Fur farming is legal in some countries and cases of infection with influenza A viruses of avian origin and SARS-CoV-2 have been confirmed in farmed mink in these countries in recent years.

Therefore, we remain vigilant and continue to use our established systems to monitor for new and emerging animal health risks through our Veterinary Risk Group and Animal Disease Policy Group and for public health risks through the Human Animal Infections and Risk Surveillance group. We have published a risk assessment on the transmission from animals to humans of influenza of avian origin and SARS-CoV-2 in Mustelidae population.

International collaboration and knowledge exchange on animal health risks including zoonotic pathogens is facilitated through discussions between the UK Chief Veterinary Officer and representatives from the UK’s network of national and international reference laboratories, and their counterparts in the EU and globally through the World Organisation for Animal Health and allied projects. Including through the joint WOAH-FOA Scientific Network on animal influenza OFFLU.