Policy Questionnaire for Candidates

Hunting ban

Will you support the ban on hunting with hounds, and the thorough enforcement of the ban? YES / NO

Following widespread public opposition to hunting with hounds and several free votes in the House of Commons to abolish the practice, the ban has finally passed into law. Liberal theory itself recognises that the legitimate sphere of personal freedom does not extend to violence towards others.

For more details see the hunting with hounds manifesto.

Reform of Animal Protection Policy institutions

Will you support the replacement of current policy-making institutions that affect animals with a new Animal Protection Commission? YES / NO

Existing government institutions that affect the interests and welfare of animals - such as the Home Office Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate and relevant divisions within the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - appear to have become dominated by industries and institutions that use animals and cause suffering. There are concerns that these bodies fail to protect animal welfare as regulations require, and take insufficient account of public opinion. With respect to animal experimentation, two-thirds of the public do not trust the regulatory system, and only 6% trust government statements. (1)

For more details see the institutional reform manifesto.

Ban battery egg farming

Do you support a ban on all caged and battery egg farming by 2009? YES / NO

Battery farming of eggs - involving 21 million hens every year - is arguably the cruellest form of farming in the UK. Current EU plans to replace conventional battery cage with 'enriched' battery cages by 2012 fail to tackle the problem. 'Enriched' battery cages share many of the serious welfare problems common to the conventional battery cage. All cages - whether traditional battery or so-called 'enriched' - are inherently cruel and cause laying hens to suffer throughout their lives.

A recent MORI poll revealed an overwhelming 86 percent of people think battery cage systems are cruel, and 78 per cent believe the government should ban them now, as a priority. The EU proposals are minimum standards, and member states are free to implement higher standards in national law.

For more details see the battery egg farming manifesto.

Tackling factory farming

Do you support measures to end the factory farming of animals - including broiler chickens, turkeys, ducks, other birds, pigs and cows - through measures such as reduced stocking densities, decreased growth rates, banning of cruel methods designed to maximise productivity, mandatory provision of enrichment to enable animals to better fulfil behavioural needs, banning of genetic modification of farmed animals, and reform of economic support to discourage factory farming? YES / NO

Hundreds of millions of animals are intensively - or 'factory' - farmed in Britain every year. Many of the techniques involved are acknowledged to potentially cause severe physical and psychological suffering. To take just one example, more than 800 million chickens were slaughtered in the UK during 2003 to provide poultry meat. The life span of an unconfined chicken can be up to 10 years, yet table fowls or broilers reach adult size and are slaughtered at six weeks of age. These enforced and unnaturally rapid growth rates mean that the animals spend a significant period of their short lives in chronic pain. Furthermore, around 100,000 chicks/birds die every day because of a number of ailments related to their lack of fitness. (2) 80% of the public would like to see better welfare conditions for farmed animals in Britain. (3)

For more details see the factory farming manifesto.

Ban primate experimentation

Do you support a ban on experiments on all non-human primates? YES / NO

Primates possess many qualities which were once considered solely human attributes. There are similarities between the social behaviour, emotional needs and intellectual capabilities of humans and other primates. Primates demonstrate the ability to reason, to exhibit friendship and altruism, and to suffer fear and stress.

In 2003, 4799 experiments using 3073 primates were conducted in the UK, making this country the largest user of primates in the European Union. However, a majority of the British public are opposed to primate experimentation. (4) The Government appears to have begun to accept the basic argument against primate experimentation through its announcement of a ban of the use of Great Apes in 1997.

For more details see the primate experiments manifesto.

Independent inquiry into animal research

Will you support an independent, balanced inquiry to investigate the scientific and ethical questions surrounding animal experimentation and review current legislation and its implementation? YES / NO

A recent study published in the British Medical Journal uncovered evidence that 'seriously undermined the principle that animal experiments are necessary to inform human medicine'. (5) 83% of doctors support an independent investigation into the medical relevance of animal experimentation. (6) As noted in relation to question 2, the majority of the public do not trust the government to implement the statutory cost-benefit assessment of proposed animal research in a fair and balanced manner. Two-thirds of the public say they are either 'fairly' or 'very interested' in the issue of animal experiments. (7)

For more details see the animal experiments inquiry manifesto.