Dr Danny Chambers

It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Mundell. I thank the hon. Member for North Ayrshire and Arran (Irene Campbell) for introducing the petition, and I thank all the petitioners who have turned up to watch the debate. The people of Winchester are certainly passionate about the subject; I have received a lot of heartfelt emails about it. As a veterinary surgeon, I have always believed that how we treat animals reflects our values as a society, and as someone who grew up on a farm and who now represents very rural areas in Winchester such as those around the Meon valley, I understand the deep connection between animal welfare, food production, conservation and the livelihood of farming families. We should first acknowledge the reality that UK farmers operate to some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world. That is not to say that they cannot and should not be improved where possible; we want to make progress. When we talk about ending the use of farrowing crates, we must also talk, as many Members have done, about supporting farmers to transition away from them. Any change must be practical as well as ethical. The hon. Member for Bridlington and The Wolds (Charlie Dewhirst) gave us a valuable insight, pointing out that many pig farmers struggled after a sudden change was brought in back in—was it 2000?