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 has taken, since the debate in the House on legislation of the sale of puppies and kittens on 4 September 2014, to brief local authorities on the requirements for people in the business of breeding dogs to obtain a relevant licence.

As I promised during the debate, my Department has written to all local authorities reminding them that the overriding factor when considering whether a dog breeder should be licensed is whether they are in the business of breeding and selling dogs. We also pointed out that local authorities can add conditions to individual pet shop licences restricting the species of animals sold. I have placed a copy of the letter in the House libraries.