To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs whether he intends to introduce mandatory licensing for pet grooming parlours.

The pet grooming sector is not licenced in any other part of the United Kingdom (UK) and I am not aware of any evidence to suggest that there is an immediate need to regulate the sector here.

Pet groomers in Northern Ireland, as in the rest of the UK, already have a legal duty to ensure that the needs of animals in their care are met and they can be prosecuted for causing any unnecessary suffering to those animals.

That said, my Department intends to explore whether or not there is merit in regulating pet grooming during this mandate as part of its wider review of companion animal establishments.