Dogs Trust yesterday gave evidence to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee in Parliament, as part of the groups Oral Evidence Session on Pet Welfare & Abuse.
Dr Paula Boyden, Dogs Trust Veterinary Director, spoke to the committee about several issues, including unscrupulous breeding, importation of dogs and puppy smuggling, abuse and mutilations, pet behaviour and the cost-of-living pressures on the animal welfare sector, as well as prevention and enforcement.
The EFRA Committee is a select committee comprised of cross-party MPs, which exists to scrutinise the administration, spending, and policy of the Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Committee members include Conservative MP Dr Neil Hudson, Labour MP Rosie Duffield, and SNP MP Steven Bonnar.
Today’s meeting marked the first oral evidence session which the group are running, as part of their Inquiry into Pet Welfare & Abuse.
Eight attendees were invited to speak as part of the session, and this evidence, in addition to written evidence submitted prior to the event, will be put into a report which, with EFRA’s recommendations, will be presented to the Government.
Dr Paula Boyden, Dogs Trust Veterinary Director, said: “We’d like to thank the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee for having us take part in yesterday’s Oral Evidence Session on Pet Welfare & Abuse. It was a fantastic opportunity to share our experience on a number of important issues – ranging from puppy smuggling to the cost-of-living. I hope this inquiry encourages the government to implement real changes which will help improve animal welfare.”
The session comes after the Government dropped its pledge to implement the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill.
The Bill would have brought in measures which would have clamped down on the horrific puppy smuggling trade, which sees dogs smuggled into the UK in horrific conditions, and dogs with mutilations, such as cropped ears, being brought into the UK for sale.
Dogs Trust has campaigned for over ten years to stop the abhorrent puppy smuggling trade and has been urging the Government to make good on its manifesto promise to crack down on the issue.
Dr Boyden added: “We are very disappointed that, despite clear backing from the public, 65,000 of whom have emailed the Prime Minister pleading with him to pass the Kept Animals Bill to protect animals, it was blocked multiple times from passing through Parliament and has now been dropped.
While Westminster continues to play political games, dogs are suffering horrific journeys to Great Britain, often without food and with little water, to be sold to unsuspecting buyers.
“When is the Government going to put the needs of animals before political point-scoring?”
For more information about the work Dogs Trust is doing to help end puppy smuggling, please visit – https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/how-we-help/the-future/puppy-smuggling
