PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
BIRDS REARED IN CAGES TO BE SHOT FOR SPORT (22 February 2018)

That this House notes with concern that every year some 50 million pheasants and partridges are mass-produced to be shot for so-called sport, and that a large number of the breeding birds are confined for the whole of their productive lives in unnatural, unpleasant, crowded metal battery units, known in industry circles as raised laying cages; further notes that these units cause the birds to suffer high levels of injury and premature death; notes that some operators are still using barren cages, contrary to the Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds; observes that many of the birds are fitted with restrictive face masks in an attempt to limit the damage resulting from stressed birds attacking one another; further observes that the law and tax regime classify the game bird industry primarily as sport rather than a means of food production; notes that leading welfare groups, including Animal Aid, Compassion in World Farming, the League Against Cruel Sports and the RSPCA, call for an end to the use of those cages; notes that a 2014 YouGov poll found that 77 per cent of respondents opposed the use of cages; believes that this type of cruelty to animals has no place in a civilized society; and calls on the Government to introduce a ban on raised laying cages for breeding pheasants and partridges.

Sponsored by:
Mr Roger Godsiff (Labour)