What the new Prime Minister means for animal welfare

The leadership contest was dominated by debates about the cost-of-living and energy crises, fiscal and economic policy, and the candidates’ records in government. Animal welfare was almost entirely absent as the threat of a desperate winter for the UK looms ahead. 

The future of animal welfare 

Whilst the cost-of-living crises is the public’s paramount concern, this does not mean we can afford to ignore other pressing issues.  

Factory farming is the biggest cause of animal cruelty in the world and animals are reared, transported, and slaughtered in horrendous conditions. Industrial livestock drives climate heating, pollution, antibiotic resistance, and destroys wild animal habitats. Our food system is broken, and we must urgently take steps to create a humane and sustainable food system.  

Across the world, wild animals and their habitats are treated as commodities and ruthlessly exploited on an industrial scale. This threatens their welfare, our wellbeing, and the health of our planet. They are abused by people for entertainment, for medicine, for pets, for products and more. We must disrupt the commercial exploitation of wild animals and champion wildlife-friendly alternatives.  

What can we expect from a Liz Truss government? 

Under Boris Johnson’s leadership, the government made some important strides in animal welfare that enjoyed enormous popular support. It committed to introducing the Action Plan for Animal Welfare (APAW) which included ground-breaking measures to protect wild and farmed animals; it also promised to protect animal welfare standards in farming post-Brexit and its environmental plan put a focus on redirecting subsidies to pay for public goods including animal welfare.  

The Truss government is likely to be less sympathetic to animal welfare issues. As environment secretary, the Prime Minister planned to repeal official guidance on animal welfare standards that would deregulate the farming industry. As Secretary of State for International Trade she prioritised trade deals over animal welfare that will allow imports of meat, produced using farming practices that are illegal in the UK, to be sold to the British consumer.  

However, we were pleased that the Prime Minister has committed to pass the long-awaited Kept Animals Bill. The Bill will put an end to the cruel export of live animals for fattening and slaughter and the keeping of primates as pets, among other measures. The new Prime Minister must honour the government’s animal welfare commitments and introduce the Action Plan for Animal Welfare in full. The plan includes several key protections for animals. These are:  

• A ban on the domestic sale and advertising of unacceptable wildlife practices abroad, such as elephant rides, where elephants are often subjected to repeated beatings with hooks or sticks to learn to submit.  
• A ban on the importation of hunting trophies into the UK.  
• A ban on the import and sale of fur and foie gras that would prevent millions of animals being exposed to barbaric ‘production methods.’  

What next? 

Meaningful change for animals must start with honouring the commitments already made by Boris Johnson’s government. 72% of the British public want the Government to pass more laws designed to improve animal welfare and protect animals from cruelty, so our current crises should not be used as an excuse to halt this agenda.

The government must also protect animal welfare standards when striking new trade deals by not allowing low welfare imports into the UK market. After a summer that saw widespread drought, flooding and wildfires around the world, we are at a critical junction when it comes to addressing the climate crisis and industrial livestock’s contribution.

The government must introduce measures to stop the growth of factory farming in the UK and abroad and support a transition to a sustainable and humane food system. The lives of animals, people and planet share a deep interconnection and animal protection should become a priority issue of global importance. 

Image credits: Hero image: Cristofer Maximilian - unsplash.com/@cristofer | News icon: Gemma Evans - unsplash.com/@stayandroam

72% of the British public want the Government to pass more laws designed to improve animal welfare and protect animals from cruelty.