Adrian Ramsay, Waveney Valley MP, calls out animal welfare 'moral failing' in Government debate

An MP has called on the Government to introduce extra animal welfare protections due to an ongoing 'moral failing' during a debate.

Adrian Ramsay, MP for the Waveney Valley constituency, led the Westminster Hall debate on Tuesday in a bid to introduce extra animal welfare safeguards in farming.

He told MPs recent undercover footage of piglets being violently killed at a farm in Lincolnshire was not an isolated incident, and instead a symptom of failings in policy and enforcement.

Mr Ramsay said: "The treatment of farm animals in the UK is a reflection of our values as a society, yet millions of animals endure lives of confinement, pain and neglect.

"It speaks to a moral failing, a disconnection from the suffering hidden behind supermarket shelves."

He said these practices should be addressed with more independent inspections, extra money to carry them out, as well as meaningful penalties if breaches were found.

The debate was linked to a petition launched by Dame Joanna Lumley calling on the Government to end the use of cages and crates for all farmed animals.

The petition reached the 100,000-signature target for a debate to take place in Parliament, scheduled for June 16 — in Suffolk, a total of 1,719 residents signed the petition.

Mr Ramsay suggested a range of measures to address the ongoing problems, including higher penalties, mandatory CCTV, statutory minimum standards and a ban on imports which did not meet these standards.

Farmers, he said, should not be demonised and, instead, be supported by the Government and given incentives so they can make adjustments to their farms.

Mr Ramsay added the Government should take care in drafting its planning reform bill to not opening loopholes for so-called mega-farms.