Asked by: Danny Kruger (Reform UK - East Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will issue guidance to her Department on using the term (a) assisted suicide when referring to procedures that involve ingesting poison prescribed by a doctor with the intent to die and (b) euthanasia when referring to the delivery of a lethal injection by a doctor.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
There are currently no plans to issue guidance on using the terms assisted suicide, when referring to procedures that involve ingesting poison prescribed by a doctor with the intent to die, and euthanasia, when referring to the delivery of a lethal injection by a doctor.
Asked by: Danny Kruger (Reform UK - East Wiltshire)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps with Ofcom to undertake a review of the adequacy of guidance to the media on the reporting of (a) assisted suicide, (b) euthanasia and (c) other suicide cases.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Guidance on how broadcasters report assisted suicide, euthanasia and other suicide cases is a matter for Ofcom as the UK’s independent broadcasting regulator. Ofcom are required by law to keep the Broadcasting Code and any accompanying guidance under review.
In the UK, there is an independent self-regulatory regime for the press. The Government does not intervene in what the press can and cannot publish or oversee the work of press regulators.
Asked by: Mark Eastwood (Conservative - Dewsbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent euthanisation of healthy dogs in (a) Dewsbury constituency and (b) the UK.
Answered by Mark Spencer
In 2021, we worked closely with the veterinary profession to provide greater assurance that alternatives to euthanasia are explored before a healthy dog is put down. Following these discussions, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons agreed that vets should scan the microchip in these circumstances to check whether anyone else has an interest in the dog who might provide an alternative to euthanasia. This has been included in the guidance underpinning the Code of Professional Conduct. This applies to all veterinary surgeons practising in the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department has issued in compensation to people who have given up their XL Bully dog to be euthanised in (a) Solihull constituency and (b) England.
Answered by Mark Spencer
Defra has issued £12,200 in compensation for the euthanasia of XL Bully Dogs in England and Wales as of the 8th January 2024. Defra does not collate this data by constituency. Therefore, we are unable to provide the number of applications received from Solihull.
Asked by: Dean Russell (Conservative - Watford)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help support veterinary practices following the ban on American XL Bully dogs.
Answered by Mark Spencer
The Government has produced specific guidance for vets relating to their role in the neutering and euthanasia of XL Bully dogs. Vets can refer to the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Code of Conduct with regard to their professional responsibilities.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Covid-19 Zoo Animal Fund.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Zoo Support Fund and subsequent Zoos Animal Fund were set up to help those zoos and aquariums most effected by the coronavirus pandemic. No formal assessments of the schemes have been carried out but both funds aimed to avoid unnecessary euthanasia of zoo animals due to income reductions and to preserve animal welfare.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Covid 19 Zoo Support Fund.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Zoo Support Fund and subsequent Zoos Animal Fund were set up to help those zoos and aquariums most effected by the coronavirus pandemic. No formal assessments of the schemes have been carried out but both funds aimed to avoid unnecessary euthanasia of zoo animals due to income reductions and to preserve animal welfare.
Asked by: Lord Beamish (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) dogs and (b) horses in service with the Armed Forces have been euthanised in each of the last five years up to 28 June 2023.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
Our working animals provide an invaluable service to our troops, and every effort is made to rehome them at the end of their service life. Decisions are taken by the Military Working Animal rehoming board following an extensive assessment of the animals and any potential new home. Sadly, there are some occasions where it is not possible to rehome an animal safely. Service animals are only euthanised for one of two reasons; either due to a veterinary condition causing unnecessary suffering or because the animal poses an unacceptable risk to public safety.
Collation and verification of Military Working Animal End of Service data, including information on deaths and euthanasia, is undertaken annually. The below table reflects the number of Military Working Dogs (MWDs) and Military Working Horses (MWHs) euthanised in the calendar years 2018 to 2022. All were carried out by qualified veterinary surgeons.
Calendar Year | Reason for Euthanasia | |||
Veterinary condition causing unnecessary suffering | Unacceptable risk to safety | |||
MWDs | MWHs | MWDs | MWHs | |
2018 | 29 | 11 | 10 | 0 |
2019 | 16 | 10 | 5 | 0 |
2020 | 18 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
2021 | 12 | 11 | 1 | 0 |
2022 | 16 | 9 | 4 | 0 |
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with the Welsh Government on devolving powers in relation to assisted dying.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
There have been no discussions with the Welsh Government on devolving powers in relation to assisted dying.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department holds data on the (a) number and (b) reasons of people who have requested assisted dying from a medical practitioner.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
The Government does not collect data on the number or reasons of people who have requested assisted dying from a medical practitioner.