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Agriculture: Animal Welfare

Asked by Kerry McCarthyLabourDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsTabled Answered 4 September 2026UIN 19885

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information from individual farm animal welfare inspections is routinely published, and what assessment she has made of whether those arrangements provide adequate public scrutiny of animal welfare standards.

Answered by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

This Government understands the importance of transparency in relation to the welfare of farmed animals. Multi Annual National Control Plan (MANCP) reports include national data on the number of farm inspections completed by APHA, the welfare scores from those inspections and any subsequent enforcement action are reported at a national level. From 2026 Local Authority inspections will also be included in this report. This Government considers that this provides sufficient overview of animal welfare enforcement data.

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