Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) regulating the number of animals that can be slaughtered without being stunned and (b) banning the export of meat from animals that have not been stunned before slaughter.
We would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs.
We have recently concluded a review of the welfare of animals at time of killing legislation and this identifies potential improvements that might be made. We are carefully considering the issues raised in the review.