USE OF CAGES TO REAR BIRDS FOR SHOOTING

Motion Text

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; also 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; agrees with shooting industry spokespeople who have said in the past that cages not only represent a major welfare problem but are harmful to the reputation of shooting; notes that leading welfare groups include Animal Aid, Compassion in World Farming, the League Against Cruel Sports and the RSPCA call for an end to the use of these cages; notes that a recent YouGov poll found that 77 per cent of respondents opposed the use of cages; and calls on the Government to introduce a ban on raised laying cages for breeding pheasants and partridges.