§ Mr. EtheringtonTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps Her Majesty's Government will now take to ensure that EC colleagues adopt the proposed EC directive on the welfare of animals at the time of slaughter or killing.
§ Mr. SoamesWe initiated discussion on this proposal during the United Kingdom presidency. We have been at736W the forefront of member states seeking agreement on it. We shall continue to press for adoption during the Belgian presidency.
§ Mr. EtheringtonTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what discussions have been held with EC colleagues on imposing an eight-hour limit on slaughter journeys for live farm animals.
§ Mr. SoamesOn 1 January a new directive came into operation setting Community standards for the welfare of all animals during transport. We have been pressing the Commission strongly to submit proposals for the additional rules which are needed on key issues such as maximum journey times for certain types of animal.
I am pleased to say that the Commission announced on 13 July that the proposals were now ready and would be submitted to the Council. We hope that the negotiations in the Council will start shortly. The United Kingdom will be pressing for Community rules which reflect the high standards which we are applying in this country.