Rishi Sunak faces strain from Carrie Johnson-backed group over animal welfare
Rishi Sunak is being urged to incorporate a raft of animal welfare measures within the subsequent Tory manifesto.
The Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation (CAWF) – which counts Carrie Johnson amongst its patrons – has at the moment printed proposals together with banning fur and foie gras imports and ending cages for laying hens.
Exclusive polling by Opinium for the influential marketing campaign group reveals 64 % would really feel extra positively a few political social gathering dedicated to animals.
CAWF co-founder Lorraine Platt stated: “As the voice for animal welfare within the Conservative Party, it’s our hope the measures set out in our manifesto at the moment might be pledged within the upcoming 2024 normal election manifesto.
“Today’s polling reveals just how highly Britain regards animal welfare as a voting consideration, with more than two-thirds of those polled feeling more positively about political parties who demonstrate a strong commitment to animals.”
Some 53 percent of those surveyed said the Tories should do more on animal welfare if re-elected at the general election, expected next year.
Just a quarter of 2019 Conservative voters said the party should do about as much as they are doing at the moment.
Crawley MP Henry Smith, who is a patron of CAWF, said: “We know that the UK is a nation of animal lovers, with policies to advance animal welfare ranking highly in the minds of the electorate when they cast their vote.
“It is therefore crucial that the Conservative Party pays close attention to the recommendations in today’s publication and ensures the 2024 manifesto adopts the same compassionate, conservative commitments which have rewarded the party in recent years.”
The marketing campaign group’s manifesto proposals embrace enshrining core requirements for animal welfare in future commerce agreements.
They are calling for obligatory animal welfare labelling on meat merchandise and extra safety for farmed fish.
They additionally need to see pig farrowing crates – slim steel cages mom pigs are stored in for weeks each time they offer start – phased out in tribute to murdered MP Sir David Amess, who campaigned on the problem.
Other proposals embrace banning snares used to entice wild animals, a timetable to finish animal experiments and new penalties for homeowners whose canine fatally assault one other canine.
It comes as quite a few commitments from the 2019 manifesto – together with the Brexit promise to ban reside animal exports – are but to be delivered after Boris Johnson’s Kept Animals Bill was scrapped to the fury of campaigners.
The Government has insisted manifesto pledges could be stored via single-issue laws.
Lord Goldsmith, a patron of CAWF and shut ally of Mr Johnson, criticised the axing of the flagship animal welfare laws in a scathing resignation letter yesterday as he stop as worldwide setting minister.