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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to announce whether the temporary ban on the importation of dogs and cats from Romania, Belarus, and Poland will continue beyond October 29th 2022.

The UK Government has made the difficult decision to extend the temporary suspension of commercial cats, dogs, and ferrets (including rescue animals) dispatched or originating from Ukraine, Belarus, Romania, and Poland for a further eight weeks to the 29 October 2022.

We continue to engage with competent authorities in impacted countries, the European Commission, and external partners (including rescue and rehoming charities) to gather data and information to enable us to keep the biosecurity risks to Great Britain under review. The measure is under constant review based on the evidence provided to ensure it is proportionate to the risks posed.

The Government appreciates the work of rescue and rehoming organisations who work to ensure that unwanted and abandoned animals are given the opportunity to find a forever home whilst complying with our animal health and welfare legislation.

Given this is a fluid situation it may not always be possible to give advance notice of any extension to the measure. We continue to engage with external partners including rescue and rehoming organisations based here and abroad, veterinary experts and carriers on the impact and future of the measure.

That is why this is only a temporary measure, to ensure that we protect our biosecurity at this challenging time. Given the consequences of getting this wrong, I hope you will understand why we are being cautious.