Matthew is backing calls for more to be done to regulate the sale of exotic pets in the UK. Attending the launch in Parliament of ‘One Click Away’, a report into the online sale of exotic pets, Matthew signed a pledge calling on the Government to 'undertake a review of exotic pet breeding, trade and keeping across the UK’, ‘improve the enforcement of all relevant legislation concerning the sale of exotic pets’ and ‘review the Pet Animals Act 1951 to reflect the increasing sale of animals over the internet’.

Matthew said: “This new report makes it clear that much more needs to be done to improve the regulation of the sale of exotic pets in the UK. The Internet has made exotic pets available at the click of a button, resulting in both mis-selling and unsuitable and sometimes dangerous animals being made readily available to the general public. It’s clear from the new research that the welfare of exotic animals in the UK is often not being adequately met and that existing legislation and its enforcement falls short of protecting these often vulnerable animals.”

The report published jointly by animal welfare charities Blue Cross and the Born Free Foundation finds that hundreds of exotic pets (at the time of the research) are available online on various websites, often poorly or incompletely listed, including:

● From a sample of 1,796 online ads, at least 53 different types of reptile, 37 types of exotic bird, 28 types of exotic mammal, and 7 types of amphibians were advertised for sale.

● Unsuitable animals, including potentially dangerous animals, are widely available for sale to the general public.

● Animals considered particularly vulnerable to welfare problems in captivity, such as primates, chameleons and iguanas, were advertised for sale. ● Animals kept in inappropriate environments or were reported as being in “poor health”

● Animals offered as “swaps” or “quick sales”.

The report calls upon the Government to undertake a number of key actions to ensure the welfare of exotic animals bought and sold online. These include:

● A review of the exotic pet trade

● A review of the Pet Animals Act 1951

● An improvement in the enforcement of legislation

● Stricter criteria for sellers

The report One Click Away: An Investigation into the Sale of Exotic Animals as Pets was launched on 4th November and is available here: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/oneclick

Matthew is pictured signing the Blue Cross and Born Free Foundation pledge board. With Matthew are Virginia McKenna of the Born Free Foundation and Steve Goody, Deputy Chief Executive of Blue Cross.