Missed opportunity to lock in welfare improvements
PRESS conferences, wall-to-wall TV coverage, news stories, podcasts, memes, even ads — it seems something Covid-19related is available to watch, read or experience everywhere we turn. It sometimes seems hard to believe that there is anything else going on in the world right now…..and yet, if we think back only a few months, the same accusation was being made about Brexit.
Our weary eyes may now be drawn entirely in another direction and yet June marks the mid-point of 2020, the Transition year where all the Brexit loose ends were due to be resolved.
Although there is little media focus, Government are continuing to debate on legislation to manage the UK’s exit from Europe and within the las week, MP’s debated important issues in amendments to the
Agriculture Bill.
The amendment, which would have guaranteed that food imports have to meet the UK’s high standards for animal welfare and food safety, was debated recently and voted down by a narrow margin.
This amendment would have given cast-iron assurances that imports produced to lower animal health and welfare standards will not be accepted as part of future trade deals.
Many initiatives to raise farm animal welfare, such as rearing pigs in outdoor units or banning battery hens, increase the cost of production and, therefore, the cost of the end product.
The veterinary profession campaigns for continued innovation to improve farm animal welfare and has been keen to ensure that all food entering the UK conforms to the high standards we set for our own food production. That way, all producers can compete on a level playing field.
Although the government made a manifesto commitment to maintain and enhance animal welfare standards, it feels like they have missed a golden opportunity to lock in welfare improvements and help UK farmers achieve the continued improvements they strive for.