Under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA), licensed establishments are responsible for ensuring the welfare of animals in their care at all times, including during extremes of temperature. All such establishments must comply with ASPA, the Code of Practice for the Housing and Care of Animals Bred, Supplied or Used for Scientific Purposes, and relevant licence conditions. This includes requirements for daily checks of animal welfare and environmental conditions, and for breaches or potential breaches of licence conditions to be reported to the Secretary of State.

In addition to a programme of announced and unannounced inspections, the Animals in Science Regulation Unit (ASRU) assesses compliance through reviews of establishment arrangements, and regular engagement with establishments. These arrangements are not limited to routine inspections.

ASRU’s regulatory oversight is informed by a risk assessment of the licensed establishment, including factors such as the species held and the type of work conducted. Where appropriate, ASRU may request updates on operational matters and environmental conditions, including temperature monitoring, to ensure that appropriate standards of animal welfare are maintained.

The Home Office does not hold records as to whether inspections coincided with periods when Government heat-health alerts were in force. Inspection frequency is determined in line with the requirements of ASPA and ASRU’s risk-informed approach.

The IPCC report reaffirms the importance of net zero. On 19 October, we launched the net-zero strategy, supporting up to 440,000 jobs and leveraging up to £90 billion in private investment by 2030. Our strategy sets out clear policies and proposals for keeping us on track for our coming carbon budgets and our ambitious NDC.

Of course I always take the noble Baroness’s comments back to the department for discussion, as she well knows. I think that she is being a little unfair with her comments and I know that she would not want to be. The Chancellor has also announced £3.8 billion-worth of funding for domestic low-carbon heat installation systems, social housing decarbonisation and public sector decarbonisation—we talked about that in our statement a few days ago. It is important to bear in mind that many communities in

the UK—people who live on remote islands et cetera—rely on their air services. Domestic aviation accounts for less than 1% of UK emissions. I also remind the noble Baroness that the Chancellor recently announced considerable funding—something like £180 million—for sustainable aviation fuel.