Westminster’s Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs committee has published its final report following its Pet Abuse and Welfare inquiry.
The parliamentary committee of MPs has come up with a number of recommendations that the Government will now need to consider and form a reply, including proposals aimed at improving local authority licensing.
OATA was one of the organisations/individuals who submitted a response to the inquiry, something we do regularly to raise awareness about the issues that are relevant to our industry.
And we would support the committee’s ideas on local authority licensing, including its suggestion about improving the training of inspectors. This is something OATA has long called for, and was the reason behind the launch of our own Local Authority Training programme. For Pet Sales, inspectors are most likely to encounter fish, and reptiles, when they visit pet shops so it is vital they understand what to expect and look out for with these species when they visit a premises.
Taking part in these types of consultations is an important aspect of a trade association’s work, to ensure that the voice of the aquatics industry is considered.
You can read our response here and the full Efra report here.