Thank you for contacting me about the Government’s Action Plan for Animal Welfare.
My ministerial colleagues and I share your high regard for animal welfare. Since 2010, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has had a strong track record in reforms. This includes: a ban on the use of conventional battery cages for laying hens; mandatory CCTV in slaughterhouses across England; a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses; the strongest ivory ban in the world; mandatory microchipping of dogs; and new regulations for minimum standards for meat chickens; and the modernisation of the licensing system for dog breeding and pet sales.
Building on these steps, in May 2021, the Government published an ambitious Action Plan for Animal Welfare, setting out future forms for this Parliament and beyond. The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 raises the maximum sentence for animal cruelty from six months to five years. In addition, the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 formally recognises animals as sentient beings in domestic and establishes the Animal Sentience Committee, consisting of experts within the field, to ensure that animal sentience is considered when developing policy across Government.
Legislation requiring the microchipping of cats has now been passed, requiring cat owners to microchip their cat by 10 June 2024. This will make it easier for lost or stray pet cats to be reunited with their owners and returned home safely. Further, the Government has announced that it will be extending the Ivory Act to cover five endangered species: hippopotamus, narwhal, killer whale, sperm whale and walrus.
Further, the Government supports the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill, which will ban the import of hunting trophies for specific species, as well as the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Bill, which will ban the advertising and offering for sale of unacceptably low animal welfare activities abroad. Both Bills continue to make good progress through Parliament and recently completed all stages in the House of Commons.
The Government’s key priorities on animal welfare are on delivering the measures in the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill through single measure Bills. This includes a ban on live exports, for example.
Regarding cages, I am aware that the Government is committed to exploring the use of cages, supporting the industry to do so in a way which underpins the UK’s food production and does not have any unintended animal welfare or business impacts. In recognising some of the challenges that numerous sectors in farming have faced, I understand that my ministerial colleagues do not believe that the time is right to consult on cage reforms. I am informed that the market is already driving the move away from using cages for laying hen production, and that the proportion of eggs from caged hens has steadily decreased from 47 per cent of total throughput in Q4 of 2017 to 21 per cent in Q1 of 2023.
I am assured that the Government will continue to work with the sector maintain and enhance high standards of welfare. For example, the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway will prioritise areas for additional improvement in the health and welfare for pigs, cattle, sheep and poultry. I know that one of the Government’s priorities for the pathway includes supporting producers to transition away from confinement systems. More broadly, the Government will continue to improve biosecurity to control endemic diseases, and on meat chickens, producers are being encouraged to implement the Better Chicken commitment which would require the use of slower growing breeds and lower stocking densities.
Of course, if you have specific concerns about the welfare of an animal, I recommend reporting it to the police or the RSPCA.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
Craig Whittaker MP
July 2023