Supporters of Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) have staged a demonstration in London as part of a campaign to ensure that the European Union ban on conventional laying cages goes ahead as planned at the beginning of next year.
Comedian and television presenter Bill Oddie joined the demonstration in Trafalgar Square. The former ’Goodie’ has changed his name to William Free Range Oddie to help promote the CIWF campaign. He was joined at the event by Victoria Connelly, author of The Perfect Hero and A Weekend with Mr Darcy, and by other supporters who fear that the cage ban, which is due to come into force on January 1 2012, may be weakened because many European producers have failed to convert to systems that comply with the new regulations.
The United Kingdom egg industry has been expressing concern for some time about what may happen on deadline day. The British Egg Industry Council estimates that nearly 30 per cent of the EU’s laying flock will be ’illegal’ when the ban is introduced. British producers have made the investment necessary to comply with the directive. They fear that if eggs continue to be produced in conventional cages in some EU member states those eggs could find their way into the United Kingdom and unfairly undercut British producers. Poland has made two attempts to have the ban delayed. Both have been rejected, but fears of a last-minute compromise remain.
CIWF is lobbying for the ban to go ahead as planned. Michele Danan, head of public affairs, said, "This landmark piece of legislation will save millions of hens every year from a barren and brutal existence. Requests for delays, like the one from Poland, can weaken the political resolve at EU level and are dangerous if not counteracted by strong public pressure. I personally don’t want to look back this time next year and feel that we didn’t do everything possible to defend the ban."
The demonstrators in Trafalgar Square erected four human-sized cages. Each cage was occupied by five red-headed women to symbolise the hens housed in the cages. Members of the public were also invited to spend 10 minutes confined in one of the cages to experience the life of a hen in such a unit.
After the demonstration supporters marched to the Defra offices in Westminster to hand in a petition and a letter requesting support. UK Government Ministers have already made clear their view that the conventional cage ban should go ahead as planned. Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman was instrumental in blocking Poland’s most recent attempt to have the ban delayed, and the UK Government, as well as the devolved governments in Scotland and Wales, have all made clear their support for the ban to go ahead as it stands.
The Trafalgar Square demonstration was part of a campaign called The Big Move, which is CIWF’s attempt to ensure that the conventional cage ban goes ahead without any delays or exceptions. Compassion says it is unacceptable for countries to try to attempt to weaken the resolve of the EU Commission. Compassion believes that member states need to focus on getting ready, not on trying to delay the ban.
Poland is one country that has been mentioned specifically by CIWF. Because of its repeated attempts to have the ban delayed, CIWF has drawn up a standard format letter for supporters to sign and send to both the Polish Prime Minister and the country’s Agriculture Minister. It reads, "I am writing to add my voice to calls from across the European Union for the EU ban on battery cages and on the sale of EU battery eggs to come into force on the agreed date of 1 January 2012.
"I am concerned that Poland is not committed to implementing the ban in full and on time on 1 January 2012 – making your country the only EU Member State requesting a postponement. When Poland joined the EU in 2004 it became legally bound to implement the Directive on time. There can be no justification for any further delay.
"As a European Union citizen I will be extremely disappointed if the ban does not come into force on 1 January 2012 in all EU Member States. My opinion of Poland would be damaged if Poland were responsible for any delay in this important legislation."
CIWF is also asking supporters to write to Caroline Spelman to urge her to continue pressing for the ban to go ahead as planned.
Compassion in World Farming says that the demonstration in London coincided with other demonstrations across Europe. It says that 17 member organisations of the European Network for Farm Animal Protection took action.
Demonstrations took place in 14 EU countries, including Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and Latvia.
