Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 considering (a) transitional measures, (b) grace periods and (c) temporary arrangements to prevent compliant owners of dogs registered on the Index of Exempted Dogs from breaching the law due to a lack of available insurance.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026.
Defra has published guidance on our GOV.uk page and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Defra will update registered owners and share further guidance which will be published on GOV.uk in early June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 compliant third‑party insurance becoming unavailable while remaining a mandatory condition of exemption on owners of dogs registered on the Index of Exempted Dogs.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026.
Defra has published guidance on our GOV.uk page and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Defra will update registered owners and share further guidance which will be published on GOV.uk in early June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 impact of the Dogs Trust Companion Club third‑party insurance scheme for exempt dogs ceasing on 30 June 2026 on owners’ abilities to comply with the exemption conditions under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026. The department is working closely with Dogs Trust, the Devolved Governments and the insurance sector to find a workable solution for dog owners.
Defra has published guidance on GOV.UK and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Further guidance will be made available on GOV.UK in June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 has held discussions with (a) insurance providers and (b) other relevant organisations on the provision of replacement or alternative third‑party insurance arrangements for exempt dog owners.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026. The department is working closely with Dogs Trust, the Devolved Governments and the insurance sector to find a workable solution for dog owners.
Defra has published guidance on GOV.UK and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Further guidance will be made available on GOV.UK in June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that compliant third‑party liability insurance remains reasonably available to owners of dogs registered on the Index of Exempted Dogs after June 2026.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026. The department is working closely with Dogs Trust, the Devolved Governments and the insurance sector to find a workable solution for dog owners.
Defra has published guidance on GOV.UK and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Further guidance will be made available on GOV.UK in June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that statutory obligations imposed on exempt dog owners remain reasonably capable of being complied with.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026. The department is working closely with Dogs Trust, the Devolved Governments and the insurance sector to find a workable solution for dog owners.
Defra has published guidance on GOV.UK and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Further guidance will be made available on GOV.UK in June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 (a) introduce, (b) support and (c) facilitate a replacement insurance scheme similar to the Dogs Trust Companion Club.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Defra is working to ensure owners of banned breed dogs can remain compliant with the legal requirement to hold third-party public liability insurance beyond 1 July 2026. The department is working closely with Dogs Trust, the Devolved Governments and the insurance sector to find a workable solution for dog owners.
Defra has published guidance on GOV.UK and contacted all registered owners to inform them that no action is required at this stage. Further guidance will be made available on GOV.UK in June.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 impact of operating different deposit return scheme frameworks in different parts of the UK on costs for (a) producers and (b) retailers.
Answered by Mary Creagh
A new organisation called UK Deposit Management Organisation Ltd (UK DMO) will run the scheme. It’s a not-for-profit group, led by businesses. They were officially appointed in May 2025 (England & NI) and June 2025 (Scotland).
The Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) across England, Northern Ireland and Scotland have been designed with interoperability in mind to ensure the schemes look and feel like one scheme in all three nations.
I and my officials remain in close working partnership with the Welsh Government as they develop further detail of their scheme, and it is reassuring that they have decided to align their scheme launch date with DRS in the rest of the UK.
Government will continue to work closely across the sector, and now with UK DMO, to ensure the smooth implementation of the DRS for businesses and consumers. We will also maintain regular engagement with retailers, producers and interested groups to monitor implementation progress.
Each nation has or will set out the costs of their schemes in their respective impact assessments. The full impact assessment for England and Northern Ireland was published when the regulations came into force in January of this year and can be found here.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department taking to ensure that the Deposit Management Organisation can operate effectively in the context of the Welsh government’s decision to proceed with a scheme that includes glass.
Answered by Mary Creagh
The regulations allow the Deposit Management Organisation(s) for England and Northern Ireland to work in an interoperable way with any other deposit return schemes.
We previously published agreed interoperability requirements which would ensure that schemes can operate as one, including commitments to single registration and reporting, processes for reciprocal takeback of material, single logos and the same deposit level. These requirements currently apply for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Officials are working closely with the Welsh Government as they develop their regulations to ensure interoperability between the schemes where possible.
Asked by: Ashley Fox (Conservative - Bridgwater)
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 impact of the inclusion of glass in the Welsh government's deposit return scheme on businesses in other parts of the UK.
Answered by Mary Creagh
The UK Government acknowledges the concerns raised by businesses in relation to differences in approach to Deposit Return Scheme across the UK. We will continue to engage with the Welsh Government on this matter as they finalise their policy positions and legislation. The Welsh Government will be responsible for developing an impact assessment of their scheme.