Thank you for contacting me about the fur trade and the two events in Parliament on 27th June.
I try my best to attend as many debates and events as I can, parliamentary business permitting. In any case, please be assured that I will read any briefing provided carefully.
I appreciate that there is considerable support for banning all imports of fur products. Fur farming has been banned in the UK for 20 years but while we were members of the EU, we were obliged to allow it to be imported. The Government sought views on animal welfare through a call for evidence and 30,000 responses were received from businesses, representative bodies and individuals, demonstrating the strong public interest in this area.
Ministers have been reviewing the evidence gathered both from the call for evidence and wider engagement with the industry. I understand that the Government will be publishing a summary of responses in due course, which I look forward to reading.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
Craig Whittaker MP
June 2023