Let me be clear – there is no place in this country for animal cruelty, and I recognise the importance of ensuring that those who abuse animals are met with the full force of the law.
The previous Conservative Government had a strong record on improving animal welfare standards in farming and across the board. This includes the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024, which bans the export of live animals including cattle, sheep, and pigs for slaughter and fattening from Great Britain; the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021, which increased the maximum prison sentence for animal cruelty from six months to five years; the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022, which recognises vertebrate animals as sentient beings for the first time; the Animals (Penalty Notices) Act 2022, which created new financial penalties for those who commit offences across animal health and welfare against farmed animals, zoo animals and pets; and the Glue Traps (Offences) Act 2022, which bans the use of glue traps in England in all but the most exceptional circumstances.
After dither and delay, the Government finally published its Animal Welfare Strategy in December 2025. I find it astonishing that, during an economic crisis, rising unemployment and the highest taxes on record, the Labour Government is prioritising a blanket ban on trail hunting. Banning trail hunting is not about animal welfare, it is about the Prime Minister's weak leadership and nothing more than an attempt to manage his unruly backbenchers. However, it marks yet another assault on the rural way of life by this Government. The Conservatives are clear, that if any laws are broken by specific trail hunts, then the perpetrators should be prosecuted. To be clear, lawful trail hunting is not fox hunting. Lawful trail hunting following a scent across land with dogs and horses is not detrimental to animal welfare.
In addition, the Government's reforms to farm animal welfare risk favouring overseas farmers over British farmers by allowing substandard overseas imports to undercut our already high animal welfare standards.
Disappointingly, the strategy failed to include any urgency on much-needed reforms and actions for the veterinary sector, which is facing a workforce shortage, which not only maintains standards, but should be driving the enhancement of animal health and welfare standards. This needs to be made a priority.
The Government must work with farmers and listen to the concerns of industry to ensure any reforms are affordable, practical, effective and, at their heart, promote animal welfare.