Speeches by Green.

“I am keen to understand the consequences of the accommodation and the facilities not being where you want them to be when you are trying to recruit and retain some of the most qualified people, who the private sector could probably snaffle up quite quickly. We are offering them substandard accommodation. What are the c…”

“Thank you for that; that was really comprehensive and helpful. How long will it take until you have the comprehensive system that you are looking for, because it sounds like there is a lot of—?”

“I would like to ask about the recruitment and retention of vets. Dr Lewis, what actions are you taking to address the vacancy rate among APHA vets?”

“To draw out the mental health aspect you mentioned, what specifically are you doing on that front that will help going forward?”

“David Hill and Professor Middlemiss, do you have a perspective on what more can be done to improve the attractiveness of the public sector in the veterinary sector?”

“David, I was going to invite you in.”

“My next question—”

“I would like to turn to the processes and systems that are in place. Dr Lewis, why have you not made more progress in improving and modernising the systems that you currently use to enable efficient and effective responses to outbreaks?”

“What is the plan to reduce the number of paper-based manual entry-type tasks?”

“With the timeframe that you have just referred to, does that mean that by the end of that timeframe you will have stopped using paper-based forms in their entirety, or is that just the beginning of the rolling out of your transformation? What is the timeframe that we are looking at here?”

“May I ask David Hill why, more than 10 years since it was first mooted, we have still not managed to deploy a comprehensive animal tracing system in the UK?”

“I did not quite catch that last bit—can you say it again?”

““Reverse engineering” is the phrase I would use.”

“Winter 2027 for those species?”

“Does the spending review give you the funding you need to deliver that programme on time?”

“My final question is related to a question that a colleague asked earlier about the devolved nations. I assume that the delivery of this programme is also contingent on the devolved nations and their systems playing ball, for want of a better way of putting it.”

“So it is still contingent on their timeframes as well?”

“I do agree, and I thank my hon. Friend for raising the animal welfare point. It is legal to ride a horse down our public roads, but they are being put in unfair danger. On a busy dual carriageway with vehicles travelling at speeds of up to 70 mph, the lives of innocent road users and of the animals themselves, as my ho…”

“I agree. These races happen in my constituency on a fairly regular basis and I have similar stories to share. One such race took place this weekend. Residents of Chalfont St Peter and Gerrards Cross have their weekends disrupted by pony and trap racing events, also known as sulky racing, far too often. During these eve…”

“I beg to move, That this House has considered the regulation of pony and trap racing on public roads. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Stringer. The debate is about the regulation of pony and trap racing on public roads but, to be more specific, there is no regulation and it is sorely needed. If someo…”