Hen cages and pig farrowing crates to be banned under new plans

As part of a slew of plans to raise animal welfare legislation, the government is hoping to ban the use of hen cages. The steps also included removing pig farrowing crates from use during birth and breastfeeding to discourage them from rolling over to their children. To avoid unfair competition for British farmers, the National Farmers' Union said that regulations should also require imports to be produced to the same level. Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said the reforms, which include banning trail hunting and puppy raising, was the most

progressive animal welfare policy in a generation,

but Conservatives said it showed Labour did not care about rural Britain.

By 2030, the government intends to implement the new plan. The government is considering outlawing Frankenchickens - a term used by animal rights campaigners to describe fast-growing breeds. The government was lifting the bar for farmed animal welfare, Anthony Field, founder of Compassion in World Farming UK, said. Individual hens are already outlawed in the United Kingdom, where the RSPCA estimates that 80% of hen eggs are free range. This new regulation would prohibit the use of larger so-called colony cages that contain multiple chickens. The RSPCA's head of public affairs, David Bowles, said that removing the final 20% of hens from cages does not pose a

significant commercial issue. President Tom Bradshaw urged the government to ensure that imported food was not produced to a lower standard than would be permitted in the United Kingdom. He warned that this could result in British farmers being exposed to unfair competition from cheaper products around the world.

If we do not make the changes we need to have in our manufacturing processes here within our import standards, we're going to export our industry overseas,

he told BBC Radio 4's Today program. As part of our trade policy, the Department of Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) states that it will not lower food quality and maintain high animal welfare requirements. It says that it will

always investigate whether overseas produce has an unfair advantage and any effect that may have. The National Pig Association said it would be following the next steps closely on farrowing crates, as well as more flexible methods. The BBC has contacted the British Poultry Council for clarification.

Meanwhile, the RSPCA said a puppy farm ban could be a real game changer and that it would collaborate with the government on drafting the rules to "make sure there are no loopholes. Puppy raising is a term used to describe the practice of raising dogs in crowded areas where they produce multiple litters a year to maximize profits. According to animal rights campaigners, the procedure can result in long-term health problems in puppies. A large number of dogs are not currently unlawful to breed. Breeders raising three or more litters a year in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland must obtain a licence. The government has announced that it would launch a consultation on whether or not it would introduce a new registration scheme for all dog breeders and that the health and safety requirements for licences will be updated.

The government is also planning to outlaw the use of snare traps in the countryside, as well as announcing that there will be no consultation on the proposed ban on trail hunting in 2026. Trail hunting involves using a rag with a natural scent to lay a trail ahead of a hunt, which is followed by the hounds, but live animal scents can be picked up by the pack instead. Reynolds told the BBC that although Labour had previously outlawed fox hunting in 2004,

we have seen that people are attempting to get around the ban by using trail hunting in certain instances.

Clearly, this is also a problem of enforcement, not just the rules,

she said, but we are determined to move forward, which is why banning trail hunting is in the animal welfare scheme.

We know that it is sometimes used as a smokescreen for fox hunting.

But Tim Bonner, the Countryside Alliance's chief executive, said it was

unbelievable

that the government will continue to invest more parliamentary time on hunting.

Revisiting this pointless and divisive topic is completely unnecessary,he said.People from all around the countryside will be shocked that after Labour's assault on family farms and its neglect of rural areas, it would be a political priority to ban trail hunting and snares used for fox control. Kevin Hollinrake, the Conservative chairman, described the ban as a attack on rural Britain and British culture, accusing the government of "punishing the law-abiding majority that support legal trail hunting.