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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government will make an assessment of the potential merits of transferring responsibility for horse welfare from the British Horse Racing Authority and to an independent body to help ensure the welfare of racehorses.

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) work in collaboration with the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare to make racetracks as safe as possible. It is good to see that the number of racehorse fatalities at racetracks has been falling steadily since 2012. However I am in active discussions with the BHA about how to make horseracing safer and I am not currently seeking to establish a different regulatory body.