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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the increase in animal cruelty incidents in the South West in the last 12 months; and what steps his Department is taking to help tackle this increase.

Defra monitors animal welfare offences on a national basis based on data provided by the Ministry of Justice. Defra regularly meets the RSPCA and other stakeholders to discuss animal welfare issues affecting the sector including any trends in animal welfare offences.

Causing unnecessary suffering to an animal is an offence under section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. In 2021, the maximum sentence for this offence was increased to five years imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine.

In addition, the Online Safety Act 2023 requires social media firms to remove online content that could facilitate animal cruelty. Ofcom is currently consulting on how these new requirements should be implemented.