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

To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of consignments of products of animal origin are subject to sanitary and phytosanitary checks (1) when entering the UK and (2) when exported from the UK to the EU, and what these checks entail.

Sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) checks on products of animal origin entering Great Britain are risk-based and focus on high and medium risk consignments, prioritising those that present the highest food safety and biosecurity risks. Port Health Authorities and relevant local authorities also have the power to inspect goods at their discretion or if they are deemed to pose a risk to biosecurity. Consignments of low-risk animal products are also subject to intelligence-led controls. The checks conducted will vary according to each individual consignment and commodity type and may range from visual inspections to lab sampling as appropriate. Defra does therefore not hold information on the precise proportion due to the dynamic nature of our biosecurity controls.

The EU determines the checks that are required for SPS goods entering the EEA at their Points of Entry. Exporters to and importers into the EU are obliged to present their goods to an appropriate Border Control Post, where the selection for checks is made. This data is held by the EU. GB imports are similarly required to present goods for checks at an appropriate BCP but clearance mechanisms are in operation to allow most of them to enter the UK without stopping at a BCP.