Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
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 to help ensure former race horses are not slaughtered for meat.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Government is committed to the highest standards of animal welfare, including at slaughter. Ensuring the welfare needs of racehorses are well met, both during their racing lives and afterwards, is a priority.
Slaughter in an approved abattoir is a humane option for some horses, provided the animal is fit to transport and the journey time is not excessive. Legislation sets out strict requirements to protect the welfare of horses when slaughtered and official veterinarians of the Food Standards Agency are present in all approved slaughterhouses to monitor and enforce animal welfare requirements.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to introduce a national education programme into equine welfare.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
My Department currently has no plans to introduce a government programme in this area. The governments statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Their Hybrids provides owners and keepers with welfare information concerning equines. The Code of Practice can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/code-of-practice-for-the-welfare-of-horses-ponies-donkeys-and-their-hybrids
In addition, the equine welfare sector promotes good welfare practice through their respective websites and via social media. Advice from the British Horse Society is available at https://www.bhs.org.uk/horse-care-and-welfare/health-care-management/tethering/.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will introduce legislation to increase transparency in (a) investigations, (b) police reports and (c) prosecutions into cases of equine welfare.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 amends the Animal Welfare Act 2006 (the 2006 Act) to provide one of the toughest sanctions in Europe and strengthens the UK's position as a global leader on animal welfare. The 2006 Act’s maximum sentence of five years and/or an unlimited fine applies to the most serious animal cruelty offences, including causing unnecessary suffering, and is a significant step forward in improving animal welfare.
The 2006 Act is backed up by the Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Their Hybrids which provides owners with information on how to meet the welfare needs of their equines, as required by the 2006 Act. 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.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June to Question 187499 on Horses: Animal Welfare, how many times she has met with the (a) British Horseracing Authority and (b) the Horse Welfare Board since 2018; and what discussions she has held with those organisations on horse welfare.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Ministers and Defra officials have regular meetings with the British Horseracing Authority and others involved in the equine sector to discuss the welfare of horses. Lord Benyon has met a number of bodies representing equine sports on frequent occasions including speaking at the National Equine Forum in March 2023, and having meetings with vets and welfare bodies.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to promote (a) safety of racing horses and (b) prevention of horse fatalities resulting from participation in equestrian performance sport.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The British Horseracing Authority (BHA), British racing's governing and regulatory body, is responsible for the safety of racehorses at British racecourses. The BHA works alongside the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare to make horseracing as safe as possible. Officials from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) continue to engage productively with these organisations on equine welfare and safety matters.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential risks to animals from unregulated animal sanctuaries.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Action Plan for Animal Welfare includes commitments to pursuing the licensing of animal sanctuaries and rescue and rehoming centres including for cats, dogs and horses. Defra has been engaging with relevant organisations to monitor trends in the sector and to understand the possible impacts of regulating the sector. Any proposals to bring forward licensing regulations will be subject to a consultation.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to launch a public consultation on the introduction of the regulation of rehoming activities for (a) animal sanctuaries and (b) rehoming organisations in 2023.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Action Plan for Animal Welfare includes commitments to pursuing the licensing of animal sanctuaries, rescue and rehoming centres including for cats, dogs and horses. Defra has been engaging with relevant 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.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to improve animal welfare standards in (a) animal sanctuaries and (b) rehoming organisations.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Action Plan for Animal Welfare includes commitments to pursuing the licensing of animal sanctuaries, rescue and rehoming centres including for cats, dogs and horses. Defra has been engaging with relevant 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.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of levels of animal welfare standards in (a) animal sanctuaries and (b) rehoming organisations; and if she will conduct a public consultation to assess the introduction of regulations for rehoming activities for (i) animal sanctuaries and (ii) rehoming organisations in 2023.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We meet regularly with stakeholders and welfare groups including the Canine and Fe-line Sector Group and the National Equine Welfare Council to monitor trends in the sector.
The Action Plan for Animal Welfare includes commitments to pursuing the licensing of animal sanctuaries, rescue and rehoming centres including for cats, dogs and horses. Defra has been engaging with relevant 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.
Asked by: Gavin Newlands (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if her Department will bring forward legislative proposals on cat breeding that are equivalent to regulations in Scotland.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (the 2018 Regulations) introduced licencing requirements in England for specified activities involving animals: selling animals as pets, providing for or arranging for the provision of boarding for cats and dogs, hiring out horses, dog breeding and keeping or training animals for exhibition.
The 2018 Regulations are due to be reviewed in 2023. This will be an appropriate time to re-examine the scope of the Regulations and consider whether there is evidence to explore potential licencing of additional activities. As part of this review, we are proactively working with partners, including local authorities to collate data that can provide a picture of licensed and unlicensed activities involving animals in England. A wide range of stakeholders including key trade associations and the Canine and Feline Sector Group will be integral to coordinating input from this diverse sector to inform Defra’s review.
Whilst animal welfare is a devolved matter, Defra officials liaise closely with their counterparts across the whole of the UK.