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

A message from Chris and Lorraine Platt, Co-Founders of Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation London, 27th March 2024 As the Easter weekend approaches and our minds turn to spring, our newsfeeds will soon be full of images of newborn chicks. Yet, for many of the chicks born this week in the UK egg industry, a miserable life in a tiny cage is what lies ahead. This Easter Sunday, it will be exactly two years since Defra promised to take action on the use of cages for laying hens. On 31st March 2022 the Defra Secretary of State pledged to kickstart the legislative process to end cages, by launch ..read more

London, 22nd March 2024 Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) is delighted that John Spellar MP’s Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill passed Second Reading in the House of Commons today. The Bill, which would end trophy hunting imports to Great Britain, delivers a critical Conservative Party Manifesto commitment. It also reflects a key component of Defra’s 2021 Action Plan for Animal Welfare. During the Second Reading MPs across parties attended to show their strong support, including Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation Patrons Henry Smith MP and Theresa Villiers MP. Above ..read more

The Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation urges MPs to attend and support the Second Reading of the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill led by John Spellar MP on Friday 22nd March. This marks a final opportunity for the Government’s Manifesto commitment to end trophy hunting imports to be delivered. However, we are aware this will be a difficult stage to pass due to a minority of opposition. It is therefore critical that as many MPs as possible attend and vocalise their support. The case for this Bill is very simple… It delivers a democratic Manifesto commitment which the vast majority ..read more

London, 15th March 2024 Today (Friday 15th March) Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has welcomed Selaine Saxby MP’s Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill passing its Second Reading in the House of Commons. This follows the First Reading which took place on 6th December. The Bill will make provision for and in connection with restricting the importation and non-commercial movement of dogs, cats and ferrets. Taking action to crack down on the illegal smuggling of dogs and puppies was part of the Conservative Party Manifesto and delivers a key component of Defra’s Act ..read more

London, 15th March 2024 Today (Friday 15th March) Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) was delighted to welcome Patron the Rt Hon. Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to discuss animal welfare priorities at the CAWF offices. We were pleased to speak with Michael Gove about a range of animal welfare issues, from delivering Manifesto commitments to end live exports for fattening and slaughter and end trophy hunting imports, to mandatory animal welfare labelling, implementing Animal Welfare Committee recommendations on fish welfare, and ending c ..read more

London, 12th March 2024 Today (Tuesday 12th March) Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has welcomed the launch of Defra’s Consultation on fairer food labelling. This follows the Defra Call for Evidence on mandatory labelling in 2021. The Consultation is designed to make it easier for consumers to make informed decisions when purchasing food and allow them to choose products that align with their values. It will run for 8 weeks and seek views on proposals to improve transparency and consistency through improved country of origin, and animal welfare labelling in the UK. Specifically, i ..read more

London, 28th February Yesterday (27th February) evening Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation welcomed the passing of the Animal Welfare (Primate Licences) (England) Regulations 2023 through the House of Lords, banning the keeping of primates as pets in England from 2026 unless strict standards have been met. The new law delivers on an important Conservative Manifesto commitment and part of Defra’s Action Plan for Animal Welfare (2021), while also building on the recent primate consultation. Under the new regulations, private primate keepers will be required to hold a licence, issued by ..read more

London, 28th February 2024 Today (Wednesday 28th February) Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) has expressed concern following the publication of a new report by the Animal Welfare Committee which recommends the law is changed in England and Wales to allow chickens and turkeys weighing less than 10kg to be lifted by two legs. The Animal Welfare Committee advice was sought following a conflict between retained EU legislation on the protection of animals during transport and the English and Welsh Code of Practice. The retained Council Regulation 1/2005 Annex I, chapter 3, section 1.8 ..read more