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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether zoo animals being transferred between the UK and EU countries will be covered by the new sanitary and phytosanitary agreement.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

Our priority is to secure a long-term UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement aimed at reducing trade barriers to enable the safe and efficient movement of goods, including zoo animals. As announced at the UK-EU Leaders’ Summit on 19 May 2025, the UK and EU have agreed to work towards a common Sanitary and Phytosanitary Area. With the principles and framework of a deal agreed, we will now negotiate the detail of an agreement that reduces administrative burden by streamlining SPS checks and certification, while upholding the UK’s commitment to ensure its biosecurity is protected within this future framework.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to produce updated public guidance on the ban on primates from April 2026.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

Accompanying guidance to the Animal Welfare (Primate Licences) (England) Regulations 2024 was published on 10 July 2025.

The guidance can be found at:

• Licensing process for keeping primates - GOV.UK
• Licence conditions for primate keepers (Schedule 1) - GOV.UK
• Callitrichids: licence conditions for keepers (Annex A) - GOV.UK

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve the monitoring of marine mammal strandings.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The UK Government funds the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP), operating since 1990, it annually reports upon threats facing marine mammals through carrying out post-mortems on stranded animals: CSIP.

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 effectiveness of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 in reducing the number of dangerous wild animals being kept in private homes.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

The main purpose of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 (the DWAA) is to ensure that where private individuals keep such animals, including on a farm, they do so in circumstances which create no risk to the public.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve soil health.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We are actively working to improve soil health across England by measuring and monitoring the national condition of soil, encouraging the uptake of sustainable soil management practices and protecting soil to be resilient to climate change impacts.

Monitoring soil health is essential for evaluating changes to soil and identifying improvements to soil health. Through the Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment Programme we are gathering data to build a robust national baseline of soil health in England and to develop a Healthy Soil Indicator under the Outcome Indicator Framework – this indicator will assess and monitor soil health.

Through our agri-environment schemes we are paying farmers for actions that protect and improve soil health and promote sustainable soil management, for example the use of herbal leys, planting cover crops, and no-till farming.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department have made of the effectiveness of local authorities in enforcing the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

Defra has completed a post-implementation review (PIR) of the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, including consideration of enforcement, which can be found here.

The Government is considering the findings of the PIR and will be outlining more detail on next steps in due course.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve the monitoring of marine mammal bycatch incidents.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The UK Government funds a comprehensive bycatch monitoring programme which provides essential observer data on incidents of sensitive species bycatch, including marine mammals. This programme reports annually on estimated rates of sensitive species bycatch in fisheries around the UK and will continue to collect and report this data.

The Government also funds Clean Catch which is a collaborative research programme dedicated to better monitoring, reducing, and, where possible, eliminating bycatch of sensitive species in UK fisheries. Clean Catch run several projects to improve monitoring of marine mammal bycatch. These include a self-reporting app for fishermen to record bycatch, trials of Remote Electronic Monitoring, and a recent report on fishermen’s views on barriers to, and opportunities for, improved engagement in addressing sensitive species bycatch.

Links:

Bycatch Monitoring Programme

Clean Catch REM

Clean Catch app

Clean Catch report

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help support responsible dog ownership.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to encourage responsible dog ownership, to ensure dog control issues are addressed before they escalate and to make sure the full force of the law is applied. As part of this work, we have reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. The taskforce is considering four themes: education, training for both dogs and their owners, enforcement, and improving data on dog attacks. We look forward to receiving the findings and recommendations from the taskforce in due course.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve the welfare of farm animals transported within the UK.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

All farm animals transported in the UK are protected by comprehensive legal requirements aimed at protecting their welfare. These include the provision of sufficient space, feed and water, ensuring that vehicles used are fit for purpose and secure and that all drivers/attendants are appropriately trained to maintain the welfare of animals in their care. Animals must be fit for transport, and all transporters are required to ensure that, when transporting animals, they do so in a way that avoids causing pain, suffering or distress. The legislation is supplemented by guidance on GOV.UK, including specific advice on transporting animals in extreme weather.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will confirm whether it plans to maintain the Smaller Abattoir Fund.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

Defra recognises the vital role smaller abattoirs play in supporting local livestock producers and maintaining a resilient and competitive food supply chain.

The Government will continue to work to simplify and rationalise our grant funding from 2026 onwards following the Spending Review and subsequent business planning to ensure our grants are targeted towards those who need them most and where they can deliver the most benefit for food security and nature.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department plans to conduct a consultation on the potential impacts of the Animals (Low Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023 coming into force.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given to the hon. Member for Newport West and Islwyn, Ruth Jones, on 10 July, PQ UIN 65379.

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 adequacy of the capacity of local authorities to enforce regulations on zoo licensing.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

The Government published new Standards of Modern Zoo Practice for Great Britain on 24 May 2025, which will come into force from May 2027.

One of the objectives of updating the Standards has been to make requirements clearer to aid local authority enforcement of the zoo licensing system. The Department will continue to work with the UK Zoos Expert Committee (ZEC), the Animal and Plant Health Agency and local authorities to ensure the Standards are effectively implemented.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of primates being kept as pets in the UK.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

The Department does not collect or hold data on the number of primates being kept in the UK.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the increase in Food Security Agency charges for the 2025/26 financial year on small and medium-sized abattoirs.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) conducts and charges for official controls, inspections, in abattoirs, which help to ensure that food hygiene and animal welfare standards are met. The controls are an intrinsic component in our food system which provide reassurance for the wider food industry and consumers, as well as trading partners to facilitate meat exports. Information on the 2025/26 charge rates is available on the FSA’s website at the following link:

https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/charges-for-controls-in-meat-premises

As in previous years, the impact of charges is offset by a taxpayer-funded discount which provides the greatest proportional support to smaller businesses. The impact of the support on different sized food businesses in England and Wales for 2025/26 is set out in the Cost Data Slides which the FSA has published at the following link:

https://www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/media/document/Meat%20hygiene%20cost%20data%202025-2026%20_1.pdf

The FSA is currently conducting an evaluation of the support provided via the discount and will assess the impact of any changes it might propose in the light of this evaluation.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the potential impact of the Renters Rights Bill on the number of renters who will not be able to request a pet.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Renters’ Rights Bill will give all private rented sector tenants the right to request a pet, which landlords will not be able to unreasonably refuse.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to hold discussions with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the potential impact of measures in the Autumn Budget 2025 on the farming sector.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Chancellor of the Exchequer holds regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on a range of issues.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle the designer breeding of (a) brachycephalic cats, (b) bully cats, (c) hybrid cats and (d) other cats.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner

Defra commissioned the Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) to examine the welfare implications of current and emergent feline breeding practices. The report can be found here. The Government is carefully considering its recommendations.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many times the Floods Resilience Taskforce has met since September 2024; and on what dates.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Flood Resilience Taskforce meets quarterly to coordinate and drive forward work on national flood resilience by national and local government and partners including the emergency services, environment and farming sectors and community groups.

Since its launch, it has met four times: on 12 September 2024, 5 February 2025, 21 May 2025, and 8 September 2025 and discussed matters including preparations for autumn and winter flooding, flood insurance and reform of the floods funding formula. The fourth meeting is scheduled for 8 September 2025.

Taskforce members also meet frequently on specific issues. Examples include events on flood forecasting and warning, held on 19 December 2024, a briefing on the National Flood and Erosion Risk Assessment on 17 January 2025, and a roundtable on 20 January 2025 on delivering natural flood management.

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 3 September 2025 to Question 71412 on Slaughterhouses, how much funding has been issued from the Smaller Abattoir Fund since July 2024.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Since July 2024, the Rural Payment Agency has paid £406,545 to customers of the Smaller Abattoir Fund.

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 3 September 2025 to Question 71412 on Slaughterhouses, how much funding is remaining in the Smaller Abattoir Fund.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The total funding remaining for the Smaller Abattoir Fund is £704,928.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to increase the number of cats being microchipped.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

From 10 June 2024, all owned cats in England over 20 weeks of age must be microchipped and registered on a compliant database. The legislation is intended to improve pet welfare by increasing the likelihood of reuniting lost or stray pets with their keepers.

Defra works closely with stakeholders to communicate pet microchipping requirements to the public.

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 are taking to help increase the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of vets in the public sector.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra is aware of the numerous challenges facing recruitment and retention of qualified veterinary surgeons into Government roles. The Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Food Standards Agency have been looking at ways to increase recruitment into Government and Defra has been working with the vet sector at blockers and options to support recruitment and retention.

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 hold discussions with the Animal and Plant Health Agency on their ability to respond to category five animal disease outbreaks.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency regularly discuss capacity and capability to manage disease outbreaks at a variety of governance boards including the Outbreak Readiness Board and the Disease Emergency Response Committee.

APHA has dealt with multiple disease incidents in 7 of the last 10 years, including concurrent outbreaks of bluetongue and avian influenza since 2023.

In the Public Accounts Committee hearing on 4 September, Defra acknowledged that a category 5 outbreak would pose challenges and explained that there are contracts and agreements in place that would enable draw down of additional veterinary and administrative capacity.

Outbreak structures and governance are set out in the ‘Contingency Plan for Exotic Notifiable Diseases of Animals in England’ published on GOV.UK. This is reviewed annually.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of adopting the 5 per cent rule for smaller abattoirs on the abattoir sector.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Working with Devolved Governments, Competent Authorities, and industry stakeholders, Defra has considered the potential merits of adopting the livestock unit regulatory flexibility (5% Rule) for smaller abattoirs, as part of its commitment to identifying opportunities to ease regulatory and administrative burdens on the sector.

Agriculture