Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
What steps her Department is taking to tackle the drugging of dogs for use by buskers.
There are already laws and regulations in place to protect animals used by buskers. Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is a criminal offence to cause unnecessary suffering to an animal, and to administer an injurious or poisonous drug to an animal. Specific concerns about the welfare of dogs used by buskers can be reported to local authorities, the police or the RSPCA.