§ Mr. ThomasonTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he will be taking to ensure that the welfare of animals is given proper consideration at the forthcoming intergovernmental conference. [14221]
§ Mr. Douglas HoggIn 1992 we secured a declaration, attached to the Maastricht treaty, on the need to pay full regard to the welfare requirements of animals when drafting and implementing Community legislation on the common agricultural policy, transport, the internal market and research. That was a significant advance; the time has now come to build on it. We will be asking our European partners to use the opportunity of the intergovernmental conference to add a protocol to the treaty of Rome placing a formal legal obligation on the Council of Ministers to give full regard to considerations of animal welfare in the exercise of its powers on agriculture, transport, research and the single market.