I have long supported banning live animal exports for slaughter and fattening.  I was therefore happy to see such a ban included in the Kept Animals Bill. 

This Bill first passed its Second Reading on 25 October 2021.  However, much to our frustration, the Government did not provide the necessary Parliamentary time for it to be passed into law before the session ended.   

Thankfully, in 2022, the House of Commons passed a ‘carry-over motion’ to bring the Bill into the next Parliamentary session (2022-2023) and, on 11 May 2022, the Bill passed its Second Reading for the second time.  However, afterwards, the Government would not set a date for it to return to Parliament for further scrutiny and the completion of its passage into law. 

The Government later confirmed that the Bill would not return to the House of Commons at all, despite having cross-party support, containing several Conservative manifesto pledges, and having already spent over two years being worked on by MPs from across the House. 

Instead, Ministers said that the Bill would be broken up into individual Bills and introduced separately.  The new Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill is one of these Bills. 

I note all of this because it was entirely possible for the Kept Animals Bill, and therefore a ban on live animal exports, to have been passed over a year ago, perhaps even in late 2021, if the Government had allowed it.  Despite a ban being in its 2019 manifesto and its Action Plan for Animal Welfare, the Government has spent years dragging its feet on this issue and at times actively stalling the introduction of a ban.  

We now have limited time to introduce a ban before the next General Election.  However, it is still possible through the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill.  I therefore hope that, with cross-party support, we can get this Bill passed, and finally introduce a ban on exporting live animals for slaughter and fattening.