Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to recent reports of the inhumane treatment of dogs in a government-run facility in Mauritius, if he or officials of his Department will make representations to the Government of Mauritius on taking steps to ensure the humane treatment of dogs held in that facility.

The mistreatment of any animal is to be deplored. The UK Government is committed to raising standards of animal welfare at home and abroad, and we believe that it is necessary to work with governments around the world to gain agreement to animal welfare standards. Our High Commissioner in Port Louis raised the issue of the treatment of stray and abandoned dogs recently with the Mauritian authorities. The High Commission regularly meets representatives of the Mauritian Government to discuss values championed by the UK and will continue to do so.