I am a passionate believer in high standards of animal welfare, and I’m proud of the fact that the UK is a world leader in this field. That’s exactly as it should be. By way of background, I was one of a group of backbenchers that campaigned to increase the penalties for people who abuse animals from six months in prison to five years. I also spoke out in favour of a ban on the ivory trade, later announced by the Government. These two measures alone were hailed by the RSPCA at the time as representing “a fortnight of incredible news for animal welfare in the UK”.
I am glad that ministers are committed to improving our world-leading standards through a series of ambitious reforms, as outlined in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare. The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill will bring in some of the world’s strongest protections for pets, livestock and kept wild animals. The Bill will curb pet smuggling by reducing the number of pets, including cats, that can travel under pet travel rules. The Bill also grants new powers to the Environment Secretary to enact regulation concerning the import of cats, dogs and ferrets for the purpose of promoting their welfare.
In August 2021, the Government launched an eight-week consultation on proposed restrictions to the commercial and non-commercial movement of pets into Great Britain. I am aware that this consultation did not include proposals to increase the minimum age of kittens imported or non-commercially moved to six months or ban the import of heavily pregnant or declawed cats. I understand that this is because there is limited evidence of a significant illegal trade in cats or significant numbers of low welfare movements. In 2020, for example, no pregnant cats and only 17 kittens under the age of 15 weeks were seized.
That said, I know that my ministerial colleagues are currently analysing the responses to the consultation. They will carefully weigh the evidence submitted to them, and I would be happy to raise your concerns with them.