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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made of the welfare conditions of animals kept by local authorities in public parks.

Defra has made no specific assessment of the welfare conditions of animals kept by local authorities in public parks.

Local authorities that keep or exhibit animals must comply with the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, which set statutory minimum welfare standards and are enforced by councils. These are supported by statutory guidance available here.

Defra completed a post-implementation review of the 2018 Regulations in 2023, which found they have improved welfare standards and should be retained while identifying areas for refinement. The review can be found here.