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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of using raised laying cages for breeding pheasants and partridges on the welfare of those birds.

The Government remains firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and is aware of the strong public feeling on keeping gamebirds in cages. As stated in the Animal Welfare Strategy, the Government will improve its understanding of the welfare issues on how gamebirds are reared in the gamebird sector through issuing a call for evidence.