Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 2:36 pm on 15 September 2021.

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Photo of Samuel Kurtz Samuel Kurtz Conservative 2:36, 15 September 2021

That will be disappointing for farmers across Wales to hear.

Finally, Minister, I expect many Members across this Chamber would have received a huge range of correspondence from constituents regarding concerns about gaps in Welsh equine ID legislation. Although my colleagues and I have warmly welcomed the mandatory microchipping of horses in Wales, concerns remain about the accuracy of paper passports currently used to trace horses, as well as the low number of microchipped equines entered onto the central equine database. I'm aware that the UK Government is going to be consulting on changes to equine identification and traceability later this year, so what steps are you taking to ensure significant improvements to the system, including the digitisation of equine passports, as the British Horseracing Authority started in July, and providing a frictionless service to safeguard the welfare of horses?