New Wild Animal Circus Ban EDM Tabled Highlighting Defra Lethargy

Momentum maintained as government continues to fail to act A group of cross-party MPs has launched an Early Day Motion (EDM 2586) in Parliament to pressurise the Government to release Defra inspection reports on animal circuses. Defra has refused a series of freedom of information requests by Animal Defenders International (ADI) for access to government inspection reports on circuses conducted in 2008 and 2009 by Defra appointed vets. ADI argues that if Defra persists with plans to regulate the use of wild animals in circuses, despite public and parliamentary opposition, then Government welfare reports must not remain secret. The Government continues to drag its feet over enacting an outright ban, which has received support from over 94% of the public, and an overwhelming vote in Parliament’s Backbencher’s Committee. This motion follows the news in December that the legal challenge to Austria’s ban on the use of wild animals in circuses, cited by ministers as the reason that the UK could not bring in a ban, had been dismissed by the Austrian courts. It supports another EDM tabled last week (EDM 2563), which urges the Government to implement the ban. This new motion, primarily sponsored by MP Caroline Lucas (Green, Brighton Pavilion and Vice Chair of the Animal Welfare APPG) and supported by MPs Adrian Sanders (LibDem, Torbay), Peter Bottomley (Conservative, Worthing West) and Mark Durkan (SDLP, Foyle) calls on the government to give access to these reports, and listen to the will of the nation and enact an outright ban. Caroline Lucas said: “We are deeply concerned at the government’s decision to withhold access to the inspection reports on circuses. These reports are likely to be used to inform the new proposals on a licensing system on the use of wild animals in circuses, so efforts to prevent fair and transparent access to this information are a serious impediment to proper parliamentary scrutiny and public debate. We are therefore calling on the government to release this information immediately. “Furthermore, by refusing to enact an outright ban on the use of wild animals in UK circuses, Ministers are effectively condoning the unacceptable abuse of animals - and totally ignoring public opinion.” Jan Creamer, Chief Executive of ADI said: “This country has voted overwhelmingly for a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses, but Defra continues to progress with a system of licensing instead, while repeatedly denying access to these crucial reports. “These reports are vital to inform any decisions made about licensing proposals and the refusal to allow access prevents concerned stakeholders and independent experts from reviewing the scope, criteria used and overall quality of the inspections. So, public confidence in the system will be undermined.” Government’s arguments for keeping the reports secret are weak – they have cited confidentiality, health and safety, and even the extraordinary conclusion that the reports could potentially invite attacks against circus operators – yet the evidence they cite is from newspaper articles published many weeks after their decision was made. Adrian Sanders, Liberal Democrat MP for Torbay said: “The country has made it abundantly clear that it would like to see a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses, but the government continues to put blockers in the way. “This latest attempt by Defra to prevent us getting to the bottom of what is contained in these reports is farcical. This information is clearly in the public interest and needs to be released as soon as possible. What have they got to hide?” Mark Durkan, Social Democratic and Labour MP for Foyle, Northern Ireland said: “In the interests of transparency, Defra needs to allow access to these inspection reports so we can see specifically what protocols and procedures were followed by the Defra appointed vets. The contents of these reports are very important and are in the public interest, especially as the public has voted so overwhelmingly for an outright ban. “The sooner that the government listens to the considered popular will the better - not least for the wild animals currently languishing in their winter quarters.” In recent weeks, MPs Fiona O’Donnell, Caroline Lucas, Gavin Shuker, Adrian Sanders and Bob Russell have all asked parliamentary questions in an attempt to obtain access to these reports but the Minister Jim Paice MP continues to resist. Other parliamentary questions are now being tabled by other supportive MPs regarding the Austrian challenge having now been removed so the road to a ban has been cleared, to maintain the pressure on Defra. ADI is grateful to all of those politicians who are standing firmly behind their ‘Stop Circus Suffering’ campaign. This activity follows the House of Commons backbench debate in June 2011, where MPs unanimously approved a motion directing the government to ban the use of wild animals in circuses by July 2012. Shortly after the Prime Minister was quoted as saying that he was ‘minded’ to ban.

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