My colleagues and I take the welfare of all animals very seriously and the UK has some of the highest welfare standards in the world. As the highest ranked G7 nation on World Animal Protection's Animal Protection Index, the UK is a world leader on animal welfare.
Much progress has been made over the last few years on animal welfare in the UK. This includes passing the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act, recognising the sentience of vertebrate animals and some invertebrate animals. In addition, the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act introduced tougher sentences for cruelty, increasing maximum sentences.
Regarding farmed animals, the previous Conservative Government’s Action Plan for Animal Welfare set out the ambition to improve the welfare of farmed animals across the board while working closely with the industry to ensure the sector can deal with the significant challenges currently being faced around the world, and still move towards sustainable higher welfare farming practices.
For example, the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway prioritised areas for additional improvement in the health and welfare for pigs, cattle, sheep and poultry. One of these priorities included supporting producers to transition away from confinement systems as well as to other higher welfare practices and systems.
I have noted comments in relation to the use of cages for animals as well as the calls to bring forward a consultation to ban the use of cages and close confinement systems in England to the 5th January 2025. While I do not believe that the time is right to consult on cage reforms, I will continue to monitor this issue closely. There is a need to work carefully with the pig and poultry industries, and any decisions made on cage reforms would need to fully consider the implications for both animal welfare and the real risks to the continued viability of the sectors concerned.
I am informed that the market is already driving the move away from using cages for laying hen production, with over 60 per cent of eggs coming from free range production. Regarding pigs, the UK is ahead of most other pig producing countries in terms of zero confinement farrowing, in that 40 per net of the national sow breeding herd farrow freely on outdoor pig units with no option of confinement.
I do share your concerns about the issues raised and support the gradual and continual improvement in farm animal health and welfare that the Pathway provides through partnership between government, farmers, vets, the wider industry and the supply chain.
As your local MP, I will follow this closely on your behalf and, of course, if you have specific concerns about the welfare of an animal, I recommend reporting it to the police or the RSPCA.
