Celebs, MPs, animal protection organisations and Number 10’s Larry the Cat  have joined forces to call on the Prime Minister to prioritise legislation that recognises animals as sentient beings and enacts a duty to protect them when formulating and implementing policy, before the UK departs the EU.

Celebrity video messages of support for the #BetterDealforAnimals campaign were played at a Parliament event yesterday attended by 28 MPs and Peers. Videos can be watched here.

Read ‘Animal sentience after Brexit’ by Alex Mcdonald here. 

Larry the cat tweeted in support of the campaign: “I was delighted to receive more than 100,000 signatures from my friends at #BetterDealForAnimals as part of their campaign for animal sentience to be recognised; perhaps it could be called #LarrysLaw #BetterDealForAnimals.”

Vital protections

In his first speech as PM, Mr Johnson said: “Let’s promote the welfare of animals that has always been so close to the hearts of the British people.”

Yet as it stands, deal or no deal, animals will lose vital legal protections on 31st October because EU laws recognising that they are sentient will no longer apply.

The #BetterDealForAnimals campaign is supported by forty of Britain’s largest and most effective animal charities including the RSPCA, Humane Society International, World Animal Protection and Compassion in World Farming.

Campaigners stress that failure to bring forward the ‘sentience’ law would make animals vulnerable to the government creating new laws, policies or trade deals that don’t take animals’ welfare needs into account.

For example, new trade deals could be agreed that would permit imports of lower welfare animal products – such as chicken carcasses washed in chlorine to mask low welfare standards, and meat and dairy produced from hormone-treated animals. See more examples of potential post-Brexit animal harm here. 

Animal welfare

Despite one of the most fraught days in Parliament’s history, 28 MPs and Peers from 5 political parties prioritised animals and attended the event, sponsored by Shadow Secretary of State for Environment Sue Hayman MP, Alistair Carmichael MP of the Lib Dems and Deidre Brock MP from SNP, to show their support for the new animal protection law.

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Zac Goldsmith MP gave the keynote address and pressed that he would find the earliest possible opportunity to introduce animal sentience legislation adding it’s hard to exaggerate how important animal welfare issues are to me, and as long as I am Minister for Animal Welfare, I’ll use every opportunity I can to advance this agenda.”

A Parliamentary e-petition, signed by more than 100,000 UK animal lovers, which calls for sentience to be recognised in law before we leave the EU closed on 27th August and was handed in to Number 10 Downing Street yesterday.

The petition had already prompted a Parliamentary debate on animal sentience, but due to the chaos in parliament the debate has now been knocked down the priorities list and rescheduled to November.

Sonul Badiani-Hamment from World Animal Protection, a #BetterDealForAnimals campaign partner, said “It’s been over 18 months since the government declared that it would recognise in law that animals can think and feel, and afford them legal protection accordingly after Brexit.”

Prioritising legislation 

Badiani-Hamment continued: “May’s government left this languishing and despite encouraging words from Mr Johnson, we’re now just weeks from leaving the EU with no legislation or parliamentary time in sight.

“With government and parliament fighting between themselves, animals are being entirely forgotten.

“Mr Johnson should listen to Larry the Cat, celebrities, MPs and the millions of animal lovers across the country and ensure animal sentience legislation is prioritised at the first opportunity.”

Claire Bass, Executive Director of Humane Society International UK, a #BetterDealForAnimals campaign partner, said: “Rescue puppy Dilyn has landed on his paws taking up residence at Number 11 this week, and Larry the cat looks relaxed on his window ledge, but the welfare of millions of other animals hangs in the balance.

“Mr Johnson has made promising proclamations about the importance of animal welfare but the clock is ticking to turn words into laws.

“The Prime Minister must listen to the public, MPs, celebrities and, of course, his in-house feline and canine special advisers, and prioritise legislation to ensure that animals don’t lose legal protections as a result of Brexit.”

This Article

This article is based on a press release from Wold Animal Protection. 

The #BetterDealForAnimals campaign has already been backed by over 100 MPs and peers across all parties.