BVA is calling on the Government to have a consistent approach to animal welfare legislation.

BVA's e-petition now has over 115,000 signatures

A parliamentary debate on an e-petition aiming to end non-stun slaughter will take place in Westminster today (Monday 23 February).

Last month the British Veterinary Association's e-petition to end non-stun slaughter reached 100,000 signatures, revealing the enormous strength of feeling amongst the public. The total number of signatures now stands at over 115,000.

The e-petition calls for an end to non-stun slaughter and calls for clearer labelling of food products.

The BVA has campaigned for a long time for a ban on the practice and believes that slaughter without pre-stunning "allows animals to feel pain and compromises animal welfare." Their position is backed by the Humane Slaughter Association, the Farm Animal Welfare Council, and the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe.

According to the BVA, over 80 per cent of Halal meat is stunned. The organisation stresses that their concern does not relate to religious belief but to the animal welfare compromise of non-stun slaughter.

Commenting, BVA President John Blackwell said: “BVA’s e-petition to end non-stun slaughter now has over 115,000 signatures and clearly shows the strength of feeling about animal welfare at slaughter. BVA has long argued that all animals should be stunned before slaughter to render them insensible to pain and we are pleased that the British public has got so firmly behind our campaign, which is based on scientific evidence.
 
“For BVA and our members, this is a matter of animal welfare at slaughter, plain and simple. We have never – nor would we – argue against religious slaughter. We categorically refute any suggestion that this is an anti-Muslim or anti-Jewish campaign. We acknowledge that over 80 per cent of animals slaughtered for halal meat are pre-stunned before slaughter. We have met with, and are keen to continue our positive discussions with, representatives of the halal and kosher meat industry to explore where we can work together to improve animal welfare at slaughter.
 
“BVA finds abuse of animals in any slaughterhouses unacceptable. We would expect for these abuses to be thoroughly investigated and appropriate action taken by the competent authority. We also point out that recent undercover films of animal abuse in slaughterhouses would warrant sanctions under current welfare legislation irrespective of whether they occurred in an abattoir implementing stunning or non-stun prior to slaughter.
 
“From pre-birth to slaughter, vets play an active role in not only preventing suffering but actively providing for the welfare needs of all animals. The veterinary profession is not complacent. We consistently lobby Government to ensure existing legislation is enforced effectively. We have and will always work to improve the welfare of animals at all stages of their lifecycle.
 
“BVA is calling on the Government to have a consistent approach to animal welfare legislation. How can the Government on the one hand pride itself and champion the UK on having some of the world’s highest animal welfare standards, but on the other undermine this by allowing slaughter without stunning to continue? It is clear from the scientific evidence that the welfare of animals is improved by effective stunning at slaughter but we can’t enforce a piece of legislation that does not exist. This is why we call on the Government to make legislative change now and end non stun-slaughter immediately.”