§ Viscount Hinchingbrookeasked the Minister of Food whether he is aware of the suffering undergone by young calves in markets; and whether he will instruct grading centres to appoint responsible men to take charge of calves which are tethered by the neck.
§ Mr. WebbOnly a proportion of the calves taken to markets are intended for sale to my Department. In general the police would take action under the provisions of the Protection of Animals Act, 1911, in any cases of unnecessary suffering brought to their notice. Nevertheless, officers of my Department who visit markets have been instructed to call the attention of the market authority to any cases where they think calves are not being properly treated and particularly in those cases where calves have to be tied to rails because of insufficient penning. In addition I have assured the R.S.P.C.A. that we will look into any cases where the Society's inspectors consider that the manner in which calves are handled at a particular market appears to be unsatisfactory.