King's Speech 2023 - Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill

Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill

• Now that we have left the European Union, we can end live animal exports, further strengthening our animal welfare protections and delivering on our manifesto commitment.

• The Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill will ban the export of cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and horses for slaughter and fattening from Great Britain, stopping unnecessary stress, exhaustion and injury caused by exporting live animals.

• We have already stopped the export of live animals; this Bill brings a permanent ban into effect and prevents any future exports.

What does the Bill do?

• We are a nation of animal lovers and have some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world, which we continue to strengthen even further.

• The UK was the first country in the world to pass legislation to protect animals and we are currently joint top of the World Animal Protection’s Index. This Bill builds on our proud animal welfare record further by preventing unnecessary journeys of animals being exported abroad.

• Our meat exports carry a premium internationally because of our high welfare standards. This Bill reinforces our position as a world leader on animal welfare, boosting the value of British meat and helping to grow the economy.

• The Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill delivers on our commitment to animal welfare by:
• • Fulfilling the Government’s manifesto commitment to end excessively long journeys for slaughter and fattening by banning the live export of cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and horses. It will prevent unnecessary long export journeys, instead using shorter and less stressful domestic journeys.
  • Ensuring animals are slaughtered domestically, in high welfare UK slaughterhouses and preventing the export to unknown and likely lower welfare slaughterhouse conditions.
  • Taking advantage of Brexit freedoms which mean the UK can ban live animal exports which was prevented under EU rules.
  • Our new rules will still allow live animal exports in other circumstances, for example, for breeding and competitions, provided they are transported in line with legal requirements aimed at protecting their welfare.
  • • No animals have been exported for slaughter from Great Britain since we announced our intention to bring forward a ban in 2021. Our bill makes this permanent.
    • Alongside the Bill we are pursuing wider measures on animal welfare:
    • • Funding for farmers: we are supporting farmers to improve animal welfare conditions, for example through funding annual vet visits for all livestock farmers and new equipment and upgraded farm infrastructure.
      • Support for small abattoirs: we are introducing a £4 million Smaller Abattoir Fund, opening by the end of 2023. The fund will improve animal health and welfare and help sustain our network of smaller abattoirs, providing a valued service to local farmers and helping to maintain reduced journey times for livestock to slaughter.

    Territorial extent and application

    • The Bill will extend and apply to England and Wales and Scotland.

    Key facts

    • The Government’s 2020 consultation on ending live animal exports showed that 87 per cent of respondents agreed that livestock and horses should not be exported for slaughter and fattening.
    • Long journey times pose welfare risks such as stress, exhaustion and injury. From a welfare perspective, animals should only be transported when necessary, and journey durations should be minimised. The shortest direct to slaughter export journey from GB to continental Europe in 2018 was a journey time of 18 hours. Most domestic journeys to slaughter in the UK are significantly shorter.
    • Journeys of unweaned calves from GB for fattening in Spain were found to last on average 60 hours and often even longer.
    • As the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has said “The RSPCA wants to see an end to the practice of exporting live farm animals for slaughter or further fattening […] Farm animals should be slaughtered as close to the place where they are reared as possible. There should then be a carcass- only export trade.”
    • The Government has already delivered a raft of measures to ensure the welfare of animals:
    • • Tougher sentences for animal cruelty: The Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 increased maximum sentences from six months up to five years.
      • New laws on animal sentience: The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 recognises in law that all vertebrate and invertebrate animals are sentient beings.