AIA has called for the Liberal Democrats to undertake a review of animal rights in legislation.

On 17th – 20th September 2016, the Liberal Democrat Lawyers Association held their Rights-Liberties-Justice (RLJ) meetings at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Brighton.  One of the meetings was entitled ‘Animal Welfare – Animal Rights. Time for A Review?’ and examined how the Animal Welfare Act 2006 had performed and whether animals should have rights.  Guest speakers included Liberal Democrats Dr Richard Ryder, leader of the animal rights movement in Oxford in the 1960s, and Gavin Grant, former Chief Executive of the RSPCA.  The event was organised by Graham Colley, Chair of RLJ.

Barbara Gardner of the Animal Interfaith Alliance attended the debate and asked whether there could be a review of how to include the rights of animals in legislation.  She said that it was time to stop tinkering around with animals’ welfare when their rights were being abused.  For example, we should not be considering laws concerning the welfare of animals during long distance transport when they should not be  being treated as freight at all. 

It was agreed that the RLJ group would take forward a review of how animal rights could be incorporated into future legislation.

After unsuccessful pilot badger culls in Somerset and Gloucestershire in August 2013 and then in Dorset in 2015, the Government have now licensed culls in seven new areas (10 areas in total).

AIA does not support these badger culls because:

1. Half the culls failed to meet their targets of numbers of badgers culled, making the results meaningless.  Therefore we cannot rely on the new areas meeting their targets and being ‘effective’.

2. There has been no information provided on the incidence of TB in cattle in the pilot cull areas.  Therefore there are no grounds for extending the culls.

3. More than 30 eminent scientists have described the cull as a ‘costly distraction’ that actually risks making the problem of tuberculosis in cattle worse, and that will cost far more than it saves.

4. Culling is not selective and, therefore, many healthy badgers have been slaughtered as ‘collateral damage’. As many as six out of seven badgers killed by the cull could have been bTB free, but we will never know as none of the badgers killed have been examined to see if they have TB.

5.  Culling is inhumane – some badgers killed in the pilots took longer than five minutes to die after they’d been shot.  

6.  The British Veterinary Association (BVA) have withdrawn their support of the cull due to its inhumaneness and ineffectiveness.

7. The badger culls have cost too much.  In 2013 in England, culling 1,879 badgers cost £9.8 million (£5,215 per badger), whilst in Wales, vaccinating 1,424 badgers cost £943,000 (£662 per badger). [Figures from TB Free England].

AIA’s Recommended Solution:

1. Vaccinate badgers.
2. Vaccinate cattle.
3. Improve the husbandry and biosecurity of cattle.

Areas, such as Wales, which have undertaken these procedures, have demonstrated success in controlling TB in both cattle and badger populations at a far lower cost to the taxpayer than culling. 

For further details see the RSPCA Report on Badger Culls  badger_culls-1

Organised by AIA member organisation – The Young Jains

Date & Time: Sunday 18th September – 2pm to 5pm
Venue: The Niland Conference Centre: 93 Elstree Road, WD23 4EE Bushey
Event cost: Free
Registration required: www.youngjains.org.uk/research-without-animals

The use of animals in medical research causes an ethical dilemma for many Jains – especially those working as professionals in the healthcare sector.   We all support medical advances that can help save and improve lives.  But as believers in non-violence, we also often feel uncomfortable about the millions of animals that are harmed in medical research and drug development.

Dr. Hadwen Trust is the UK’s leading non-animal medical research charity.  They help fund innovative, high-quality, human-relevant medical research that doesn’t use animals – research that has the potential to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of animals in medicine.

Come along to this Young Jains organised event to find out more about the use of animals in medical research, the limitations of animal models, and the alternative research that the Dr. Hadwen Trust are helping to fund.

A collection of prayers for Creation can be found here

On 29th August AIA joined CIWF in their campaign ‘Animals are not Freight’.  Hundreds gathered in Parliament Square in London to protest and listen to speakers including CIWF Chief Executive, Philip Lymbery; campaigner against live exports and former Thanet district councillor, Ian Driver and Green Party spokesman and animal welfare advocate, Keith Taylor MP.  This was just one of many global events held to tell politicians around the world that ‘Animals are not Freight!’.

Go to http://notfreight.org/ to participate in the ongoing campaign.

Top left, from left to right: CCA CE, Chris Fegan; ASWA trustee, Sarah Dunning; CIWF CE, Philip Lymbery; AIA CE, Barbara Gardner; campaigner against live exports and former Thanet district councillor, Ian Driver; QCA trustee, Thom Bonneville.

Top right: CIWF CE, Philip Lymbery speaking.

Other AIA Activities for the Animals Are Not Freight Day of Action

We signed up to the CIWF campaign and have contributed the AIA logo to CIWF’s website as a supporter organisation;

We registered on the CIWF map of events to do an online event on the day of action;

We posted information about Animals Are Not Freight on the AIA website and social media over the preceding 10 days;

We advertised Animals Are Not Freight information posts on Facebook on the day of action and obtained a total of 38,000 hits and 7,500 likes.

Archbishop Justin Welby,

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis,

Tariq Ramadan,

Friends’ House,

Mgr. Vincent Nichols, Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster,

Dharmavidya of the Amida Trust

and others.

–

We wrote to the following political leaders:

Lord Gardiner

Theresa May

Andrea Leadsom

George Eustice

Boris Johnson

Make your voice heard on 29th August to tell the world that ‘ANIMALS ARE NOT FREIGHT!’

Visit http://notfreight.org/

 

Join Compassion in World Farming’s campaign on 29th August to end long distant transport.

Gather in Parliament Square, London at 12.30 to tell the UK government that long distant transport must end, or organise your own local or online event.

For full details go to:

http://notfreight.org/?utm_campaign=transport&utm_source=actionemail&utm_medium=email