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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the plans she has to reintroduce tick treatment for pet animals returning to the UK.

The requirement for tick treatment was dropped as part of the harmonisation of the EU pet travel rules for movement and import of non-commercial dogs following a qualitative risk assessment and economic impact assessment for the introduction of Mediterranean Spotted fever (MSF) and the Brown Dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus.

The evidence which informed these pieces of work has not changed and therefore there is still no strong scientific basis for reintroducing the requirement for tick treatment to control MSF, a zoonotic disease.

Treatments for ticks are readily available and veterinary practices are able to advise on the most appropriate treatments.