Chamber and committees

Why can the same commitment not be delivered through the bill?

The policy note states that class A eggs are rarely imported, as you said. How many eggs are imported?

Yes.

It is a wide question, but, for the sake of time, it can be answered in a couple of sentences. What are your takeaways from COP26 on land use and the rural economy, and what are your hopes for the next stage of COP15 with regard to biodiversity on land?

Professor Smith, in the light of our earlier conversation, should agriculture be taken out of the 2020 baseline and recalculated in a different way?

The UK Government is to ban the keeping of primates as pets in England to ensure that the care of primates is kept up to zoo-level standards. It is also phasing out the ownership of primates in general. Will the Scottish Government follow suit?

I will try to make my contribution nice and succinct. Our exit from the EU could bring challenges and opportunities. There is an opportunity for us to strengthen animal welfare, but where do the witnesses believe the deficiencies to be? Strengthening animal welfare might include welfare labelling, ending sow stalls and perhaps bringing in gene editing to increase biodiversity. Livestock transport has been mentioned. Where are the issues? What are the most important priorities? Professor Dwyer, you seem to be managing the panel well, so I will start with you.

Can I ask Dr Boyden a supplementary question, convener?

Your comments on strengthening the protections for animal welfare with regard to the pet trade and companion pets were really interesting, but will the data collection issues that you and Dr Yeates have highlighted be dealt with on a UK-wide basis? Are animals being imported into Scotland that we do not know about and that cannot be traced through having a common framework across the country? Does the issue need to be looked at from both a devolved and a UK-wide perspective?

With regard to the veterinary, phytosanitary and other checks, including those relating to the management of biosecurity, that Scotland can carry out, what should we be doing to provide protections for not just animal welfare but biosecurity on imported goods coming into Scotland? What can Scotland do to ensure that any such system is of the highest standard and that we have the highest-quality capacity and capability in that respect?