Written question asked by Jim Dowd (Labour) on Wednesday, 30 November 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 2 December 2005. It was answered by Ben Bradshaw (Labour) on Monday, 12 December 2005 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Animal Welfare

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many animal sanctuaries she estimates are open to the public in England;

Answer: Because animal sanctuaries are not regulated there is a lack of comprehensive data on their numbers in England. The Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) which accompanied the Animal Welfare Bill, published on 14 October 2005, gave a conservative estimate of 700 sanctuaries in England and Wales based on previous consultations with animal sanctuary interests. It is not known what percentage of animal sanctuaries are open to the general public.

Secondary information