Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:57 pm on 13 May 2020.
Thank you. At the current time, we haven't committed to a zoo scheme because zoos were able to apply for funding from the economic resilience scheme, which, as you appreciate, is unique to Wales. So, that funding was there right from the beginning, really, for zoos. But what we did do back probably about three or four weeks ago now—I think it was around 24 April—officials wrote to all the zoos in Wales with details of the existing schemes from which they would be eligible for funding. But we also issued a questionnaire alongside that correspondence so that we could identify what key animal welfare concerns were out there with the zoos. As you say, there are some very large zoos; I'm very well aware of the Welsh Mountain Zoo in your constituency, and some are very small, so I think it was really important to get a feeling from all of them about what the issues were.
I also wanted to see if there were any funding gaps that were out there that we needed to look at. At the current time, about 17—. Certainly, the last time I asked Christianne, about 17 responses had been received. That included from two animal exhibits, so they're not licensed zoos, so it was about 15. Most have indicated that they've been able to access the funding that was already available, and either they've received or they've applied for the funding from various Government schemes. We then wrote again to them all giving them a further update, I think probably at the beginning of this week. So, we will obviously keep a close eye on it but, at the moment, I'm not bringing forward a specific scheme because I don't think there is the need for that at the moment. But obviously, animal health and welfare are very important, so we'll keep it under review.