The UK bill, which recognizes animal sentiment, passed its second reading on Tuesday without opposition in Congress, but it is not without fear from many Conservative lawmakers who think the bill is unnecessary.
A parliamentarian called the bill a “Trojan horse,” and the Conservative government accused the party’s core supporters of “driving a coach and a horse straight.”
Animal welfare (sense) bill (pdf) Aims to establish an “Animal Sensitivity Committee” to ensure that the Minister takes into account the welfare of animals as a sentient being in formulating and implementing policies.
The term “sentient” is not defined in the bill. “Animal” was initially defined as “a vertebrate other than Homo sapiens”, but later in the aristocratic aristocrats to include cephalopod mollusks and decapod crustaceans (squid, crab, lobster, etc.). It has been fixed. study It found “strong” or “substantial” evidence of the sensibilities of the species belonging to the two groups. In this study, sensitivity is defined as “the ability to have emotions such as pain, distress, and comfort.”
Environment Secretary George Eustice said this “provides clarity and avoids creating a wide range of means for judicial review of government decisions, but animal welfare is properly considered as an official government policy. It’s a concise bill that guarantees that, “he told MP.
But Tory Rep. Richard Drax said the ambiguity of the bill made it a “magnet for judicial review,” and the proposed committee was to advance the “often partisan and politically motivated” agenda. He claimed that he could be hijacked.
“I and many others wonder if people with different agendas, often partisan and politically motivated, will take over this committee and its role in attacking activities such as shooting and fishing. I’m afraid, “said a South Dorset lawmaker.
“The Country Alliance correctly believes that the bill lacks the details and protective measures needed to prevent the Commission from extending its reach to local activities.”
Drax labeled the bill as “bad,” “unnecessary,” and “a Trojan horse for those who don’t understand and sadly despise the countryside and everything that’s happening in it.”
“Why is the conservative government driving coaches and horses straight to our core supporters, and beyond that, far beyond me,” Tory lawmakers said. .. “
Conservative Sir Geoffrey Clifton Brown expressed concern over a bill that would give animal rights groups “another weapon” to “live with the government and animals and harm both working people.” Former Tory Minister Jonathan Janogley said the bill was “problematic” and not only “opened the line of indirect attacks” on Jewish and Muslim religious animal slaughter practices. It has the potential to enable more judicial review challenges to game shooting.
Conservative lawmaker and farmer Sir Bill Wiggin said the bill was “one of the best examples” of “unnecessary tokenism and gestures” that were “absolutely and completely unnecessary.” Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a “breeding ground for independent agencies”, or a semi-autonomous non-governmental organization funded by taxpayers but not under government control.
Jim McMahon, the shadow secretary of the Labor Party’s environmental, food and rural issues, said the opposition would support the bill, but said the government could use it to address animal welfare concerns associated with international trade. Stated. “Not only does it undermine British farmers and producers, it also allows the UK and its government to outsource animal atrocities in the supply chain to other countries.”
In response to the MP, Eustice said that vertebrates “have been perceived by our law since at least 1911.”
He also stated that the proposed Commission report “does not bind the minister to any particular course of action,” and “the minister strikes a proper balance between animal welfare and other important considerations.” You are free to decide. “
Earlier this month, Spain moved to require judges to consider pets as divorced and divorced sentient beings, following similar moves in France and Portugal.
PA contributed to this report.
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Lily Zhou is a freelance writer who mainly covers the British news of The Epoch Times.