Will the Minister provide a list of the organisations/individuals who were consulted prior to the publication of The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (Wales) Regulations 2021?
The first public consultation on the banning of third party sales of puppies and kittens ran for 12 weeks and closed on 17 May 2019. The consultation was published on the Welsh Government website and publicised in newsletters and via various social media platforms. It looked at key evidence regarding what stage the government should intervene in largescale breeding premises and address concerns about animal welfare. There were 458 responses to the consultation.
A final eight-week public consultation on the banning of commercial third party sales of puppies and kittens was published on 22 June 2020. Respondents were asked nine questions relating to the general policy, economic impacts, the provisions of the draft Regulations and impacts on the Welsh language. There were 226 responses. Responses were received from the general public, third sector organisations, and the British Veterinary Association and other enforcement bodies.
Alongside the formal public second consultation, Welsh Government worked with Children in Wales, through its Young Wales initiative, to conduct a children and young person’s consultation (in effect a third consultation process). The report was published on the Welsh Government website alongside the summary of responses for the main consultation and is available at https://gov.wales/ban-commercial-third-party-sales-puppies-and-kittens-young-peoples-consultation
There were no individual meetings with any of the organisations listed in your questions, officials have regular contact with third sector organisations via the Animal Welfare Network Wales and the Companion Animal Welfare Group Wales and are members of the Pet Animals Advisory Group, which provides advice to England, Scotland and Wales on the online selling sector.