PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES - United Kingdom Parliament

1599 Easter Adjournment
26 MARCH 2013 Easter Adjournment
1600
[Penny Mordaunt]
and because our constituents increasingly expect to eat
food that either was or is from an animal that was
treated well.
At one time, consumers would not deign to notice
what, if anything, was said about welfare on food
packaging. Now, thanks in no small part to the efforts
of well-known TV chefs, we want to know from where
our food has come. Indeed, the term “higher welfare”
has even found its way into the ingredients list of the
king of school dinners, Jamie Oliver, and there is
undoubtedly a culture in which it is considered poor
form to offer for sale food that is lower welfare. In a
January 2010 survey, twice as many people as in 2006
said that animal welfare informed their shopping choices—
that made 19%, and I am sure that the figure would be
higher today.
The previous Prime Minister’s GOAT—his Government
of all the talents—might have been a tur laid to rest by
the British people, but that was either the exception that
proves the rule on our love of animals or an act of
mercy that confirms it. It should be the proud boast of
British farmers that no land does more to ensure the
welfare of its animals, and the success of the ban on
inhumane cages in this country is a case in point. There
was concern that increased prices would lead to a drop
in demand for eggs, but the reverse was true and the
British consumer bought 5% more eggs in 2012 than
in 2011.
Concern for welfare does not stop at the good treatment
of hens during their working lives, and the British Hen
Welfare Trust should be cock-a-hoop about its successful
record since 2005 of re-homing 360,000 laying hens of
pensionable age that were otherwise destined for slaughter.
The British public should be applauded for their adoption
of so many of those creatures, and those acts of mercy
will, I am sure, continue.
Keeping hens is somewhat in vogue at the moment,
despite the prospect of heartache. Many a hen keeper
will be prepared for the early morning discovery of
scattered feathers and an empty coup, but how many
are ready for the emotional business of dispatching
unwanted chicks? In “The Good Life” idyll one imagines
several hens and a single proud cockerel, but one strutting
coxcomb will lead to many chicks and what is to become
of the male contingent with not a layer among them? I
encourage people to consider homes for hens, but to
think carefully about a coop for a cockerel.
Despite the positive step of banning battery cages,
many British consumers might be surprised that 17 million
hens are still housed in cages, albeit of an enriched
variety. These birds provide the eggs that are sold as a
constituent part of another product and then, despite
the efforts of the British Hen Welfare Trust, sold for the
table. The Government should consider the value of
labels that would show the origins of eggs when used as
an ingredient and when a chicken is an end-of-lay bird
as a means of promoting high welfare standards. I also
entreat the Government to stick to their plan to hold a
thorough investigation into beak trimming in 2015.
When we eventually head into spring, let us have no
cock-ups on hen welfare.
7.45 pm
The Deputy Leader of the House of Commons (Tom
Brake): Given the time I have left, I shall have to set out
some rules at the beginning of my speech. One will be
that I will not take any interventions and the other will
be that I will have to do my delivery in the style of the
hon. Member for Southend West (Mr Amess) if I am to
refer to all the contributions made this evening.
I congratulate those Members who are still in the
Chamber on their dedication and commitment to today’s
penultimate debate and I hope that they will not be
punished by not being able to get home again if the
weather is inclement. I also understand that some Members,
for obvious reasons, have had to depart early and I shall
still try to refer to their speeches. I am particularly
grateful for the attendance of the hon. Members for
Worsley and Eccles South (Barbara Keeley) and for
Congleton (Fiona Bruce) on their birthdays.
The hon. Member for Colne Valley (Jason McCartney)
rightly laid into the doom-mongers with some relish.
Times are tough, but he set out some of the success
stories in his constituency, particularly on apprenticeships,
where there has been dramatic growth. I am pleased to
say that in the past couple of weeks I have hired my own
first apprentice in my office and he is already making a
very positive contribution.
The hon. Member for Walsall South (Valerie Vaz)
referred to the case of a constituent, Mrs Brenda Pressdee,
and I commend the hon. Lady for her assiduous research
on that case. I am sure that the relevant Ministers will
have heard her request for a meeting on the matter and
that they will want to respond positively. She also
referred to a national issue, marine conservation zones.
She expressed concerns about the cost of a further
consultation and I am sure that the Government will
want to manage those costs effectively.
The hon. Member for Salisbury (John Glen) underlined
one of the strengths of such debates and this Parliament,
which is our ability to raise issues of an international
nature. He wanted to generate publicity about the trial
of former President Nasheed and I can confirm for his
benefit—although I am sure that he is aware of it—that
our Government have been consistent in saying that the
international community will not find it tenable if the
former president is excluded from the elections in the
Maldives.
The hon. Member for Bolton South East (Yasmin
Qureshi) mentioned the Srebrenica genocide, which all
Members will remember. It was the biggest war crime in
Europe since the second world war. The Government
recognise that genocide through events such as Holocaust
memorial day and we are working with the Srebrenica
genocide memorial and educational project to see other
ways in which we can mark that anniversary.
My hon. Friend the Member for St Austell and
Newquay (Stephen Gilbert) referred to the controversy
surrounding an incinerator or energy recovery facility. I
can confirm that I am aware of the controversies
surrounding such plants, because there is a proposal for
one in Beddington in my constituency. He stressed the
importance of ensuring that it provides decent value for
money, which is the last issue he wants to pursue,
because all the planning processes have been completed.