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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he plans to take to prevent the use of neonicotinoid pesticides in off-the-shelf pet treatments.

Whilst these substances have been authorised for pesticide use, their use in animals requires authorisation as veterinary medicinal products under a different legislative framework with differing factors coming into consideration. Parasiticides, such as those containing imidacloprid, play an essential role in protecting both animal and human health against fleas and ticks and their associated vector-borne diseases. The VMD also recognise the concerns regarding the potential contribution of flea and tick treatments to the levels of imidacloprid currently being detected in UK surface waters. The VMD is currently gathering evidence around this issue and has led on the formation of a cross-governmental Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PiE) Group, with the aim is to develop a co-ordinated strategy to reduce the impacts of pharmaceuticals on the environment.