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 a policy on the protection of horses during racing.

As with all kept animals, racehorses are protected by the provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. This means that owners and keepers must not cause their animals unnecessary suffering and must provide for their welfare. Failure to do so could result in an unlimited fine, or up to six months’ imprisonment, or both. We have already announced that the custodial maximum penalty will be increased to five years’ imprisonment.

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) is responsible for horse safety at racetracks in Great Britain. The BHA works with the RSPCA to ensure that racecourses are as safe as possible. The percentage of racehorse fatalities at racetracks is low (0.18% of runners in 2017), however, as I have previously made clear, there is more work to be done to reduce that number further.