CP
Animal lovers fear Labour will trade away key post-Brexit protections.
HOW DARE HE! Fears are growing that Keir Starmer is ready to sacrifice hard-won animal protections in a desperate bid to cosy up to Brussels, with even live animal exports now feared to be back on the table.
Campaigners warned key post-Brexit bans, including the outlawing of cruel live shipments of cattle, sheep, pigs and horses for slaughter and fattening abroad, could be ditched in Starmer’s EU “reset” deal.
The plan could also weaken Britain’s crackdown on puppy smugglers, just to make life easier for EU border bureaucrats.
Outrage erupted after Starmer last week said the UK could realign with the EU on food and animal health standards, a move that could blow the doors wide open to barbaric practices banned after Brexit.
Starmer is preparing to host EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council boss Antonio Costa at a UK-EU summit, where chunks of the so-called “reset” are expected to be unveiled.
David Bowles, of the RSPCA, issued a stark warning:
“WE HAVE TOLD THE GOVERNMENT IT NEEDS TO EXPLAIN TO THE EU THAT OUR BAN ON LIVE ANIMAL EXPORTS IS NOT ON THE NEGOTIATING TABLE.”
“THE GOVERNMENT HAS NOT CONFIRMED TO US THAT IT ISN’T ON THE TABLE. WE HAVE CONCERNS THAT THE BAN, WHICH ONLY CAME INTO EFFECT ON JANUARY 1, COULD BE NEGOTIATED AWAY THE SAME YEAR.”
He slammed any reversal of the ban as a “major setback for animal welfare standards”, adding:
“AFTER NEARLY A CENTURY OF CAMPAIGNING FOR THE BAN, THAT WOULD BE A MAJOR SETBACK FOR ANIMAL WELFARE STANDARDS IN THIS COUNTRY.”
The live export ban, one of the first major wins of post-Brexit Britain, was only possible after we broke free of the EU’s Single Market.
Now, even though it doesn’t apply in Northern Ireland, Britain had finally taken a stand against this sickening trade.
But insiders fear that could all be thrown away in return for a veterinary agreement to reduce red tape.
The crackdown on puppy smuggling gangs, largely run by Eastern European crime rings, could also be at risk. Campaigners want guarantees it won’t be watered down or quietly shelved in the name of smoother trade.
The law to ban imports of puppies and kittens under six months old was made possible after we tore up the EU pet passport scheme in 2020.
But EU negotiators could now demand Britain follows all their rules, including those that once allowed the live export trade to flourish.
Joël Reland, of UK in a Changing Europe, warned:
“IT DEPENDS ON HOW DIFFICULT THE EU WANTS TO BE… YOU’RE ASKING FOR SELECTIVE ACCESS TO THE SINGLE MARKET HERE, SO YOU’RE GONNA HAVE TO PLAY BY ALL THE RULES, AND THAT MEANS ANIMAL EXPORTS AS WELL.”
He admitted the EU might choose to be “charitable”, but noted Brussels has already rejected mutual recognition in the past, insisting on full “dynamic alignment” — code for Britain giving up control again.
“DYNAMIC ALIGNMENT IS THE PRICE YOU PAY IF YOU WANT TO REMOVE THE VAST MAJORITY OF TRADE BUREAUCRACY,” MR RELAND SAID.
With fishing rights, border checks and food standards all on the table, expectations for the summit have already been downgraded.
But the idea of live animal exports returning to our shores is already enough to send shockwaves through Britain’s farming communities and animal welfare groups.
Animal lovers and Brexiteers alike are asking:
What exactly is Keir Starmer willing to give up — and at what cost?
See Related Article Below
Are we being prepared for sell out?
JOHN REDWOOD’S DIARY
The government wrongly thinks removing some non tariff barriers to EU trade would boost UK growth. It is more likely to boost EU exports to us more than our exports to them, subtracting from our GDP. The UK already runs a huge trade deficit with the EU
The government sounds keen to align us with EU food regulations. They have failed to notice we only export 15 bn euro of food and drink, with whisky an important part, whereas the EU sells us Euro 51 bn or more than three times as much. The UK keeps high tariffs on food items we import from the EU which limits our consumer choice and keeps the import prices high. Reinforcing this by forcing us to accept all their new rules on food would reinforce the trend we suffered in the EU of losing food market share as regulations including insufficient milk quota and beef bans left our unprotected market on to a surge of imports.
The idea that the UK should once again give its fish away is a disgraceful proposal. Our fishing grounds gave been overfished for 50 years thanks to EU membership and the decision to put off taking back control of our fish to 2026.We should cut the total quotas allowed next year, ban the foreign ultra large trawlers and allocate more quota to the UK industry. Government should make capital available to build a bigger fishing fleet in UK yards.
We do not want a re set which makes us subservientb to the EU again. We should not accept their laws or out ourselves under European Court jurisdiction. We should not allow freedom of movement for the under 30 s. We should rebuild our food and fish industry as we need to produce more of our own food.
The government should not make May 19 Surrender day.
SOURCE: John Redwood’s Diary
••••
The Liberty Beacon Project is now expanding at a near exponential rate, and for this we are grateful and excited! But we must also be practical. For 7 years we have not asked for any donations, and have built this project with our own funds as we grew. We are now experiencing ever increasing growing pains due to the large number of websites and projects we represent. So we have just installed donation buttons on our websites and ask that you consider this when you visit them. Nothing is too small. We thank you for all your support and your considerations … (TLB)
••••
Comment Policy: As a privately owned web site, we reserve the right to remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats of violence, racism, or personal/abusive attacks on other users. This also applies to trolling, the use of more than one alias, or just intentional mischief. Enforcement of this policy is at the discretion of this websites administrators. Repeat offenders may be blocked or permanently banned without prior warning.
••••
Disclaimer: TLB websites contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available to our readers under the provisions of “fair use” in an effort to advance a better understanding of political, health, economic and social issues. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes other than “fair use” you must request permission from the copyright owner.
••••
Disclaimer: The information and opinions shared are for informational purposes only including, but not limited to, text, graphics, images and other material are not intended as medical advice or instruction. Nothing mentioned is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Liberty Beacon Project.
Leave a Reply