Government Response

The Government responded to this petition on Tuesday 28th May 2019

The use of glue traps is a lawful method of pest control in England. The onus is on operators to act within the law by ensuring that their activities do not cause any unnecessary suffering.

Key elements of use of glue traps are to ensure that periods between inspections are kept to an appropriate minimum and any animal found on the trap is dealt with quickly and humanely. Other options for pest control should have been considered (like spring traps and containment traps) and found to have failed, or to be inappropriate, before the use of glue traps/sticky boards is implemented.

The onus is on operators to act within the law and to consider their responsibilities in ensuring their activities do not cause any unnecessary suffering. For example, the time spent by animals in traps should be minimised and the frequency of trap inspection should take account of species-specific requirements and the circumstances under which the trap is being used. Animals should be dispatched humanely as soon as they are discovered.

If any person believes an individual is using illegal methods of pest control or inflicting unnecessary suffering on animals, the matter should be reported to the police. It would be for the courts to decide whether the method of entrapment caused any suffering, and if so if this was unnecessary, in any particular case that was brought before them.

The Government believes that the current legislation provides sufficient protection for animals caught in traps. There are, therefore, no current plans to ban the use of glue traps.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs