Responding to the announcement, Jacqui said:

“We’re really pleased that these proposals will bring an end to the commercial sale of kittens in pet shops and by any person that has not bred the kittens themselves in England, but it is vital that the rest of the UK follows suit to make the ban effective.”

“In addition, we would like to see regulations brought in for cat breeding as, unlike dog breeding, this remains unregulated in the UK. Potential buyers are currently unable to go to a licensed cat breeder. Regulation of commercial cat breeding would provide safeguards for cat welfare. We’d urge the Government to consider regulating cat breeding, something we called in for our 2015 Manifesto for Cats.”

Jacqui also spoke about the harrowing stories from Cats Protection branches, where cats have been looked after following their abandonment in being bred and sold as kittens. She says: “Only last week we heard of a breeder offering a very young sick kitten for sale. The other four kittens in the litter had sadly died.”

She added: “We are delighted to join the Secretary for State for the announcement of this consultation and will be submitting a full response to Defra making these points.”

Click here for more information on Cats Protection’s advocacy work and the Manifesto for Cats