Fur farming has, rightly, been banned in the UK for over 20 years and legislation prohibits the keeping and breeding of animals solely or primarily for slaughter for the value of their fur. There are also strict restrictions on some skin and fur products that may never be legally imported into the UK. Those include fur and fur products from cats and dogs, whose import, export and placing on the market is prohibited.
I appreciate that there is considerable support for banning all imports of fur products - while fur cannot be farmed in the UK, it is still possible to import and sell other types of fur from abroad. However, I was pleased to learn the volume of fur that is imported and exported has fallen by 50% in the past five years.
In 2021, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) published a call for evidence on the fur trade in Great Britain, which asked for views on animal welfare and on the social and economic impacts associated with the trade. Around 30,000 responses were received from businesses, representative bodies and individuals, demonstrating the strong public interest in this area.
I know that officials from Defra have been analysing the responses received and have also engaged directly with stakeholders. I hope that Defra continues to build an evidence base on the fur sector, which will then be used to inform any future action on the fur trade. I look forward to reading more information about this in due course.
I am aware of the Private Members' Bill, the Fur (Import and Sale) Bill, which seeks to prohibit the import and sale of fur. The next stage for this Bill, Second reading, is now scheduled to take place on Friday 12 September 2025, although the House of Commons is not expected to be sitting on that date.
Finally, I understand the Animal Welfare Committee has also been considering the issue of responsible sourcing in the fur industry, including the animal welfare standards and safeguards that apply to fur imported into this country. I note that it is due to complete its opinion on the sustainable sourcing of fur this year and I will continue to follow this issue closely.
