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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much the Government has spent on campaigns to encourage the microchipping of pets in each of the last three years.

The Government is committed to microchipping pets. There has not been Government spending on specific campaigns to encourage microchipping of cats and dogs in in the last three years. However, the Government promotes microchipping in the statutory codes of practice for the welfare of cats, dogs and horses. In addition, the Government’s Petfished campaign, which encourages responsible pet acquisition, advises people to ask whether a cat or dog is microchipped before buying.

The Microchipping of Dogs (England) Regulations came into effect in 2016 and we launched a public consultation on compulsory cat and dog microchipping and scanning in England in December 2020 which highlighted the importance of cat and dog microchipping.

The Equine Identification (England) Regulations 2018 require that all equines in England (except those semi-wild ponies permanently resident in certain designated areas) must be microchipped from 1 October 2020. Government comms campaigns were launched in July and September 2020 to remind those in England with horses born before 1 July 2009 (which were provided with a grace period in the interim) of the legal requirement to have them microchipped by 1 October 2020. Details of the cost of these campaigns is not however available.

This is a devolved matter and this response relates to the situation applying in England.