HL Deb 06 February 1980 vol 404 cc1337-8

2.56 p.m.

Viscount MASSEREENE and FERRARD

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the first Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they propose to take on the cruelty involved if deer farms take advantage of the high price now prevailing in the Far East for deer antlers in velvet.

The MINISTER of STATE, MINISTRY of AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES and FOOD (Earl Ferrers)

My Lords, the Farm Animal Welfare Council has already been asked to advise the Agriculture Ministers on this matter.

Viscount MASSEREENE and FERRARD

My Lords, while thanking my noble friend for that rather short Answer, may I ask whether he would not agree that stags' antlers while in the velvet stage when the antlers are growing are a highly sensitive part of the animal, and that it is very cruel to de-horn them at this stage? This is a fact with which my noble friend Lord Dulverton, the president of the Deer Society, wholeheartedly agrees. Would not my noble friend further agree that to make money out of cruelty to and malformation of an animal is extremely inhuman?

Earl FERRERS

My Lords, my noble friend says that it is a cruel and inhuman process, and he is entitled to his view. When he asks whether the Government will agree to that, I am bound to tell him that we will only consider all the advice which is given to us by the Farm Animal Welfare Council which is going to take advice from a number of different organisations and people.

Lord GISBOROUGH

My Lords, is the noble Lord aware that the standard way of killing deer, particularly in the wild and probably also on farms, is by the knife, which is totally contrary to the method of killing ordinary animals? Will he try to instigate the use of the humane killer rather than the knife both for farm-bred deer and sporting deer?

Earl FERRERS

My Lords, farm deer are already protected under various Acts of Parliament and I have no particular evidence to show that the method of killing them is at present unsatisfactory; but if my noble friend cares to let me know of any case which he thinks is unsatisfactory, then I shall certainly look into it.

Lord CAMPBELL of CROY

My Lords, although I accept that the practice in this Question would be very inhuman and cruel, can my noble friend the Minister inform the House whether there is any special market in the Far East for the old antlers of long-dead stags? Some of us whose homes are in the Highlands have a considerable surplus of that commodity, which might make a small contribution to Britain's exports without involving any cruelty whatever.

Earl FERRERS

My Lords, I thought that at one moment my noble friend was going to declare an interest, but he did so in an aside manner! All I would say to him is that, so far as I know, there is not a market for old antlers, but I understand that there is a market for antlers in velvet to which this country does not at the moment subscribe.