Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to end the use of cages in farming.

We have delivered an ambitious legislative programme since the publication of the Action Plan for Animal Welfare, which will deliver significant improvements for animals in the UK and abroad. We are firmly committed to maintaining our strong track record on animal welfare and to delivering continued improvements, both in the course of this Parliament and beyond.

Mindful of the challenges facing the sector, we are not consulting on cage reforms. The market is already driving the move away from using cages for laying hen production. Egg producers and consumers should rightly have pride in the quality of British eggs, with about 75% coming from free range, barn and organic production systems. The UK also has a significant outdoor pig sector with 40% of the national sow breeding herd farrowing freely on outdoor units with no option for confinement.

We continue to work with the farming industry to maintain and enhance our high standards of animal welfare. The Animal Health and Welfare Pathway, part of our domestic agricultural policy, supports farmers to produce healthier, higher welfare animals. The Government’s welfare priorities for the Pathway include supporting producers to transition away from confinement systems.