(Isle of Wight) (Con): I thank
the Secretary of State for chatting to me earlier. The export of
live animals somewhat suggests travel by sea and, because we do
not have an abattoir on the Isle of Wight, we have to export
animals to the UK for slaughter before bringing them back. There
are potentially more humane ways of dealing with animals, one of
which would be to have a small-scale abattoir on the Isle of
Wight. On the current small-scale abattoir programme, the
Government are working only with current abattoirs and abattoir
owners. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss how we can
get a small-scale abattoir on the Isle of Wight, so that we can
enjoy the spirit, as well as the de jure benefits, of this
excellent Bill?
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
(): My hon. Friend raises an
important point. The Government have committed £4 million of
additional investment through the smaller abattoir fund,
recognising the importance of reducing animals’ journey times. As
we have discussed separately, I am happy to meet him to discuss
what more we can do in the context of smaller abattoirs particularly
recognising the specific issues of geography in his constituency.
(Penrith and The Border) (Con):
I welcome the comments of the Secretary of State on the
exemptions for the movement of animals for breeding and other
purposes, potentially including sport. However, it would be
helpful if that was made a little clearer in the Bill and the
explanatory notes, so that any doubt is removed. As I said, it is
important that animals are slaughtered close to home. The
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee has produced
reports on that topic, such as “Moving animals across borders”
and many others. One of our key recommendations was that we need
to support the UK abattoir network, and ensure that sufficient
numbers of abattoirs are spread
around the country to reduce the distance to travel. I hugely
welcome the Government’s announcement last week of the £4 million
smaller abattoir fund, which will go a long way to help with that
situation.
Throughout the debate we need to be cognisant of food security,
which came into sharp focus with the pandemic and the war in
Ukraine. Food security is so important for our country, and we
need to be much more resilient in producing food. We need to
think about the workforce issues. Again, I declare an interest as
a veterinary surgeon. An EFRA Committee report recommended that
we keep an eye on the number of vets we train and retain in the
profession. Prior to our leaving the European Union, 90% to 95%
of veterinarians who worked in the meat hygiene sector were from
the EU. We need to keep on our radar the need to staff our
abattoirs and food
processing plants adequately. Last year, we had a crisis in the
pig farming sector, with pigs damming back on farms because they
could not be taken to slaughter to be processed...
(Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD):.. My fear is that the
red tape and the collapse of the workforce in our abattoirs not just the
inability to bring in vets from overseas, but the lack of other
members of the slaughterhouse workforce, mean that many
small abattoirs are under
enormous threat. Four million pounds will not even touch the
sides when it comes to protecting small abattoirs in
Cumbria, which are the best in the country—they are family firms,
they aid animal welfare and they are massively important to our
local economy....
To read the whole debate, OPEN HERE
