London, 17th July 2024 Today (Wednesday 17th July ), the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) is disappointed at the absence of any animal welfare measures in the King’s Speech delivered by HM King Charles III to mark the opening of Parliament today. The speech contained a comprehensive overview of the Government’s priorities for the upcoming Parliamentary Session but lacked any measures to advance animal welfare. Farm animals are 95% of UK animals directly affected by humans, they must be at the forefront of government thinking on animal welfare. Approximately 85 % of all animals far ..read more

We often pride ourselves as a nation of animal lovers, yet this self-proclaimed title comes into question when we consider our treatment of farmed animals on factory farms. How can we truly, proudly claim this honour if we don’t address their welfare, or strive to make Change happen for them? As a society, the inconsistency between our affection for our beloved companion animals and our sometimes-wilful blindness to the suffering of farm animals on industrial factory farms is stark. Indeed, the introduction of the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 recognises in law that animals have the capa ..read more

The Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation welcomes the Conservative 2024 Manifesto which features a number of pledges to continue ongoing commitments to improve animal welfare. These include tackling puppy smuggling and livestock worrying, and to introducing a ban on the import of hunting trophies. These pledges to remain committed build on the Conservative Party’s recent legislative achievements in animal welfare, such as the historic Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act and the new Pet Abduction Act 2024. Since 2019, other notable legislation has been enacted, including the Animal We ..read more

London, 24h May 2024 Today (Friday 24th May) the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has welcomed Patron Anna Firth MP’s Pet Abduction Bill passing its Remaining Stages in the House of Lords led by Lord Black. During the Bill’s Third Reading in the House of Commons, Anna Firth MP asserted that: “This bill will send a signal that we take animal welfare seriously in the UK”. She added that “Pets need to be recognised in law for the sentient beings they are…. This Bill is the opportunity to do that”. The Pet Abduction Bill will make dog and cat abduction a specific offence and make prov ..read more

London 20th May 2024 Today 20th May, the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) is delighted the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act has received Royal Assent. This means the legislation has been officially signed into law. This follows the Bill passing its final stages in the House of Lords on 14th May and having passed all of its stages in the House of Commons after receiving widespread MP support across parties. The key Manifesto commitment to end live exports for fattening and slaughter has been successfully delivered, sending a strong signal overseas that Great Britain takes its ..read more

London 17th May 2024 Today the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has welcomed the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Bill passing its Remaining Stages in the House of Commons led by former Secretary of State for Defra Dr Thérèse Coffey MP. The Bill will strengthen the law regarding the offence of livestock worrying, including changing what constitutes an offence and provide increased powers for investigation of suspected offences. It will deliver part of Defra’s 2021 Action Plan for Animal Welfare, which pledges to ‘ensure effective powers are available to tackle ‘livestock ..read more

London, 14th May 2024 Today (14th May) The Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) is delighted the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill has passed its Third Reading in the House of Lords. This follows the Bill passing its Report Stage on 8th May in the House of Lords and Committee Stage on 14th March, having already passed all of its stages in the House of Commons. The Bill has now completed all of its stages and will soon receive Royal Assent in order to become law and ban live exports for slaughter and fattening. Throughout its passage in the House of Commons and the House of Lords ..read more

London, 10th May 2024 Today (Friday 10th May) the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) welcomed Patron Anna Firth MP’s Pet Abduction Bill passing its Second Reading in the House of Lords led by Lord Black. During the Bill’s Third Reading in the House of Commons, Anna Firth MP asserted that: “This bill will send a signal that we take animal welfare seriously in the UK”. She added that “Pets need to be recognised in law for the sentient beings they are…. This Bill is the opportunity to do that”. The Pet Abduction Bill will make dog and cat abduction a specific offence and make provision ..read more

London, 19th April 2024 Today (Friday 19th April) Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has welcomed Patron Anna Firth MP’s Pet Abduction Bill passing its Remaining Stages in the House of Commons. This follows the Second Reading which took place on 19th January and Committee Stage on 31st January. During the Third Reading, Anna Firth MP asserted that: “This bill will send a signal that we take animal welfare seriously in the UK“. She added that “Pets need to be recognised in law for the sentient beings they are…. This Bill is the opportunity to do that“. The Pet Abduction Bill will mak ..read more

London, 2nd April 2024 Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has welcomed a Consultation launched in Scotland on banning the use of cages to house laying hens for egg production. The Consultation will seek views on phasing out the use of enriched cages and will run for 12 weeks until 25th June 2024. The Scottish announcement cites important polling from 2020 which shows 88% of the British public consider using cages in farming is cruel and 77% of those surveyed supported a complete ban on the use of cages in farming. Over 1.1 million hens were housed in cages in Scotland as of February ..read more