Jon Trickett MP: More needs to be done to protect animals

Jon Trickett MP writes: ​I totally agree. The humane treatment of animals is the benchmark of a civilised society. Animals are sentient beings and I believe we have a moral duty to look after their well-being. Too often, we fall short of this benchmark because the law is simply not up to scratch.

For many years now I have been calling for animal rights laws to be strengthened. The last Labour government made significant progress in the 2006 Animal Welfare Act, which put into law the most fundamental piece of animal welfare legislation for nearly a century. In addition, the 2004 Hunting Act made hunting with hounds a criminal offence.

Unfortunately, animal welfare has not been a priority for this Conservative government over the last 13 years. Let’s take a look at their record.

We know that despite the hunting ban, there is overwhelming evidence that our beautiful foxes are still being terrorised and slaughtered across the country. It’s clear that the current laws are not strong enough to combat illegal hunting but the Conservatives refuse to do anything about it. Could this be anything to do with the fact the Conservative Party has accepted £1 million in donations from individuals linked to hunts?

In addition, the Bill the Conservatives promised in their manifesto to ban trophy hunting was scrapped and they have also u-turned on banning fur and fois gras. All in all, their record is not one to be proud of.

Therefore, I was pleasantly surprised to see that after considerable pressure from animal rights organisations the government has brought forward the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill.

Millions of farmed animals in our country have been subjected to long journeys across the continent for fattening and then slaughter, which causes unnecessary physical and mental suffering for the animals. It’s a cruel practice.

This Bill will ban the transport of livestock including cattle, horses, sheep, goats, pigs and wild boar, but not poultry, for export from or through Britain for fattening and slaughter abroad.

I welcome the Bill, which I believe is long overdue. I congratulate organisations like the RSPCA who have waged a long campaign to have these exports banned.

If the Bill continues its path through both Houses of Parliament then it will be a step forward. However, I would like to see legislation that goes much further.

I want the next Labour government to implement the strongest animal welfare laws that our country has ever seen. That means doing what the Conservatives have refused to do: banning fur and fois gras, banning trophy hunting and strengthening the ban on fox hunting.

I hope the Animal Welfare Bill is implemented quickly. And I hope that the General Election comes as soon as possible so that we can elect a government that will treat the issue of animal welfare with the level of importance that it deserves.