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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the dimensions of cages necessary for the breeding and rearing of game birds that is adequate to avoid stress.

Defra’s Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes provides keepers with guidance on how to meet the welfare needs of gamebirds, including providing appropriate space and facilities to ensure the avoidance of stress. The code recommends that barren cages for breeding pheasants and small barren cages for breeding partridges should not be used, and that any system should be appropriately enriched. The Animal Welfare Act 2006 places a duty on keepers to ensure that the needs of an animal are met to the extent required by good practice.