80. Rear-Admiral Gilesasked the President of the Board of Trade what consideration he has given to a ban on the import of the skins of baby seals.
§ Mr. DellWe have now given careful consideration to this matter. As I said on 6th February in reply to the Question from the hon. Member for Rye (Mr. Godman Irvine), the most effective method of preventing cruelty is by means of direct controls designed to ensure that methods of slaughtering are humane.
The Canadian Government operate a strict and elaborate control and the balance of the evidence we have examined, which includes reports by humane and animal welfare socities, strongly suggests that it is effective. We do not have as much information about the position in other exporting countries, but, equally, we have had no allegations of cruelty in their case.