Improve animal welfare laws (in England & beyond)

Melanie Mikecz

Advocates for Animals is the first UK law firm that works with individuals, animal groups and activists on a wide range of legal areas, to enforce and protect animals.

A-Law has lots of free info onsite, collectively run by volunteer lawyers.

These organisations are similar to the USA’s Animal Legal Defense Fund whose attorneys specialise in helping animal legal cases, and also work to improve animal welfare laws.

Support England’s Animal Welfare Party

All the major political parties have MPs who are focused on animal welfare (and The Green Party has some good policies). Whereas in England, ‘fringe candidates’ are often not taken seriously, in The Netherlands, Party for the Animals has six MPs and many local councillors. This has led to national law changes, showing what a difference can be made.

The party even has its own PINK! youth movement. Can you imagine that here? A party for animal welfare in parliament, with youth leaders making changes to policy? Recent policy success include:

• A ban on the import of calves
• Restrictions on hunting wild animals
• Reduction to help stop duck farming
• No more agricultural toxins
• Requesting an animal welfare minister

Co-founder Marianne Thieme writes that when the party was first created, they were laughed at, with critics asking ‘what next – a party for bicycles?’ But the party has done great work, proving the old adage ‘first you laugh at them, then you ignore then, then you get angry – and then you join them!’

Animal Welfare Party is the UK political party, which also focuses on policies to help the environment.

The manifesto includes redirecting subsidies from livestock and fisheries to plant-based agriculture (the transfarmation project is a good example, funding financially-struggling livestock farmers with the resources and training to join the profitable local oat-milk market, leaving animals to live out their lives in peace).

Other policies include:

• Promoting plant-based agriculture
• Ending live slaughter
• Ending slaughter without stunning
• CCTV for all abattoirs
• Phasing out factory farming
• Replacing animal experiments with humane research
• Strengthening laws for the pet trade
• Increasing penalties for animal abuse

Even if you’re not into ‘joining things’ you can help by voting for local candidates in council elections, and buy an organic cotton t-shirt (made with green energy) to spread the word!

TheyWorkForYou is a fantastic open-source website (so anyone worldwide can use the software to create a similar site).

Enter your postcode to find how your MP is and how he/she has voted on animal welfare policies. Other countries with thriving animal welfare political parties include:

1. Ireland
2. Germany
3. Spain
4. Canada
5. Australia
6. New Zealand

One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics, is that you end up being governed by your inferiors. Plato

World Federation for Animals

World Federation for Animals has an extensive library of policy suggestions, brought together by over 60 organisations embarking on a journey to ensure animal welfare is part of political, financial and business policy worldwide.

From helping animals involved in the food and fashion industries to looking at biodiversity and environmental issues, it covers everything from endangered species to marine creatures.

Chief Executive Officer Dr James Yeates was previously CEO of Cats Protection and the RSPCA’s Chief Veterinary Officer, and has advised UK MPs on animal welfare.

The Olsen Animal Trust is a wonderful organisation that supports many animal welfare projects both in England and abroad. Inspired by helping to rescue a French circus lion (who with another lioness rescued from a Romanian zoo spent their final years shown compassion at a wildlife sanctuary, this family charity is a great place to find authentic projects to support.

The Animal Manifesto is a wonderful book by one of the world’s experts on animal emotions. This is a call to include all creatures in our circle of empathy and compassion, driven by moral reasons and environmental realities.

Marc Bekoff offers six compelling reasons for changing the way we treat animals – whether they are in factory farms, labs, circuses or our vanishing wilderness. This is a well-researched and informative guide to change their lives for the better.

DawnWatch is a wonderful idea from an animal welfare writer in the USA, which someone could do here. She basically has a site that lists all the current animal welfare concerns, so that people can collectively get involved by writing to MPs, boycotting brands or pressing for change. What a great idea!

Switzerland’s strict animal welfare laws

We can instead learn from Switzerland. It’s not perfect, but his beautiful country has very strict animal welfare laws. There are such good spaying/neuter programs that many people have to go over the border to adopt pets, as there are not as many homeless pets.

And it’s the law that if you have pets, you must take a course to look after them, including giving regular walks, twice daily. Read our posts on pet welfare.

The greatness of a nation and its moral progress, can be judged by the way its animals are treated. Mahatma Gandhi

Swiss politics works very differently, with a panel (rather than one Prime Minister) and regular referendums, that go the public. Switzerland’s animal welfare laws rank among the toughest in the world, shaping how pets live, how farms operate, and how food reaches the table.

These rules matter for more than compassion alone. Strong welfare standards reduce suffering, support public health, and build trust in food systems. They also reflect a national belief that animals deserve protection as sentient beings, not just as property or products.

At the heart of the system sits the Federal Act on Animal Protection, updated in 2008, with detailed ordinances that cover daily care, housing, transport, breeding, and slaughter. The law is clear, practical, and backed by real consequences for those who break it.

Elements of Swiss animal welfare laws

• Cosmetics and testing: Cosmetic testing on animals is not permitted. Switzerland aligns with European practice, which rejects cruel testing for beauty products. It’s also illegal to sell animal-tested cosmetics in England, but some companies still abroad (and Botox is tested on mice).
• Strict controls on intensive farming: The law sets minimum space, light, ventilation, and flooring standards. Farm animals must be able to stand up, lie down, turn around, and express normal behaviour. Pigs need dry, comfortable lying areas and materials for rooting. Cattle require enough room to rest and socialise.
• Pain relief and procedures: Painful procedures, such as castration or dehorning, are tightly regulated. Pain relief is mandatory, and only trained persons may carry out such procedures. Routine mutilations that serve convenience, not welfare, are banned. In England, this only happens on certified organic farm.
• Housing and enrichment: Animals need appropriate bedding, social contact, and environmental enrichment. Hens must have perches and nesting areas. Rabbits require platforms and places to hide. The goal is not just survival, but welfare.
• Transport and slaughter: Transport times are limited, stress must be reduced, and handlers must be trained. Stunning before slaughter is compulsory, including for religious slaughter. Domestic slaughter without stunning is illegal. Not so in England, despite it being okay for Muslims and Jews to be vegan or vegetarian within their religions.
• Applies to all animals: The law protects companion animals, farm animals, wild animals in captivity, and animals used in research. Guardians and keepers carry a clear duty of care.
• Penalties with bite: Violations can lead to fines of up to 20,000 Swiss francs, higher in serious or repeated cases. Authorities can impose bans on keeping animals and pursue criminal charges where cruelty is proven.

Protections for companion animals

Swiss rules for pets focus on daily wellbeing, not just avoiding cruelty.

• Identification and registration: Dogs must be microchipped and registered in the national database. This supports traceability, responsible ownership, and faster reunions if a dog goes missing.
• Bans on cosmetic mutilation: Tail docking and ear cropping are banned for dogs and many other species. These procedures cause pain and serve no welfare purpose.
• Breeding limits: Breeding is restricted where it risks inherited suffering. Extreme features that impair breathing, walking, or vision are not allowed. The authorities can ban or restrict breeding lines when health is at stake.
• Exercise and social contact: Dogs need daily outdoor exercise and social interaction. Guardians must give time, stimulation, and a safe environment. Keeping a dog alone in poor conditions breaches the law.
• Veterinary care: Guardians must provide timely vet care. Neglect, such as untreated injuries or chronic hunger, can lead to prosecution.
• Housing basics: Pet housing must protect from heat, cold, and hazards. Rabbits need space and hiding places. Cats need access to scratching and climbing. Small pets cannot be kept in cramped, barren cages.

Regulations for farm animals and agriculture

Switzerland sets detailed standards for livestock that shape how farms design housing and manage daily routines.

• Space and comfort: Minimum space is defined by species and weight class. Cattle need clean lying areas and room to turn and rest. Pigs must have dry bedding and room to move. Flooring must avoid injury and allow natural postures.
• Hens and housing: Conventional battery cages are banned. Hens need perches, litter for dust bathing, and nesting boxes. Many farms use aviary or free-range systems that support more natural behaviour.
• Outdoor access and daylight: Stock benefit from natural light and fresh air. National programmes encourage regular outdoor access and animal-friendly housing, and many farms join these schemes to raise standards above the legal floor.
• Handling and procedures: Routine tail docking of pigs and similar practices are restricted. When a procedure is necessary, trained personnel must use pain relief.
• Transport and slaughter: Farms and abattoirs must reduce fear and pain. Stunning is compulsory. Staff must be trained and certified. Equipment is checked and maintained to prevent suffering.

These rules support higher welfare while guiding farmers with clear, practical benchmarks. Consumers gain confidence that food is produced with respect for animals.

The Animal Welfare legacy of Sir David Amess

Melanie Mikecz

Many people (wrongly) assume that all Conservative MPs don’t care about animals. In fact, there is even a fringe party within the party to help pets to wildlife:  Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation

One Conservative MP who was passionate about animal welfare was Sir David Amess, a devout Roman Catholic whose faith inspired him to vote with his conscience, rather than always to tow party lines.

Famously, Sir David also campaigned against trophy hunting, and wanted a ban on bodies and parts imported to the UK.

Since his death, Conservative MP Henry Smith and Labour MP John Spellar have both tried to pass the Bill, but both times the Bill has been ‘wrecked’ by members of the House of Lords debating it for too long, so it never passes. Then when the last General Election was called, the pending Bill dissolved, and it has not passed.

Since the murder of Cecil the lion by an American trophy hunter in 2015 (which caused worldwide uproar), British hunters have imported the bodies or parts of at least 99 lions to the UK. Nearly 80% of these ‘trophies’ are from captive-bred lions in South Africa.

Canned or ‘trophy hunting’ means the lions are released into small fenced-off enclosures so can’t escape. Then wealthy tourists pay from $15K to $50K to kill them and bring back their body parts. Something Sir David called a ‘wicked evil practice’.

If hunting is a sport, let the animal have a rifle as well. Hamza Yassin

What’s so tragic is that all three MPs murdered in the last years (of different political parties at their deaths) were all involved in campaigning for animal welfare: Sir David, Jo Cox and Ann Widdicombe.

Catholic Concern for Animals is our national charity, for people of the faith who wish to campaign for a better world for fellow creatures.

Following his tragic murder a few years ago (which also led to a change in the law, as the local priest was not allowed to get past the barriers to give him the last rites), Children’s Parliament was set up in his memory. Youngsters are being given a voice on issues that will affect them. And as the next generation, many of them are passionate about animal welfare, something that Sir David would no doubt be pleased about.

One of its present campaigns was to rescue 14 Gentoo penguins, stuck in a dingy basement at London zoo. They are now at least moving to better living conditions with fellow penguins, in part thanks to the Children’s Parliament.

Things Sir David Amess did to help animals:

If you thought that it was just the Greens or Animal Welfare Party that tried to change laws for animals, here is just a few things that Sir David Amess did while an MP:

• Introduced an Act to protect tethered horses.
• Defied his party to vote for a fox hunting ban. And encouraged fellow MPs to join Conservatives Against Fox Hunting.
• Campaigned for a ban on live exports from UK (now done!)
• Campaigned against badger culls, finding better ways to prevent bovine TB.
• Worked to end farrowing crates, hen cages, animal testing and puppy farms.

Sir David was the greatest friends of animals in the House of Commons. He could always be relied upon to support any cause. Compassion in World Farming

So as you can see, despite coming from a political party many of us would have thought was not the most animal-friendly, Sir David was a rule to himself!

So let’s encourage the Children’s Parliament to ensure his incredible legacy lives on, to help our fellow creatures – with support from all political parties working together.