To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of the National Sheep Association’s letter to Government on 26 August 2022 on its concerns about the potential impact of banning e-collars on the numbers of livestock killed by dogs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 29 September 2022 to Question 53520 on Animal Welfare: Electric Shock, what data her Department holds on the level of discomfort that e-collar systems cause in (a) livestock and (b) dogs; and if she will commission research in this area.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department (a) holds any data and (b) has conducted any research on the number of dogs injured by e-collars.

The best proven method of preventing a dog from attacking livestock is to keep the dog on a lead when exercising around other animals, as advised by farmers and other keepers of livestock. The statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Dogs includes guidance on how to keep dogs safe and under control. The code is available here: Code of practice for the welfare of dogs - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Defra’s research into electric shock collars is available here: Science Search (defra.gov.uk) .