BIRDS REARED IN CAGES TO BE SHOT FOR SPORT

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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.