Do not let the egg industry decide how to apply official animal welfare standards

If official guidance on animal welfare standards is repealed industry bodies will be put in charge of writing and observing their own new non-statutory guidance on how to comply with the legislation.

This runs the high risk that farm animal welfare legislation, strict enforcement, and penalties will be watered down as industry will be free to apply these as loosely as they can manage.

Further, once this change happens other livestock including cattle, sheep, and pig industries will seek control of their own guidance too.

By signing this petition, we will be able to demonstrate the levels of public disquiet about the changes and express once more how many of the UK’s population care about the welfare of animals.

“Abandoning codes of practice for farm animal welfare is not in the best interests of the animals and will not produce higher quality food.” - Kerry McCarthy, the shadow environment secretary.