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 halting future farm payments to farms which operate caged systems.

The Government will build upon our world-leading animal welfare standards now that we have left the EU. We will do this in part by developing publicly funded schemes for English farmers to provide animal welfare enhancements beyond the regulatory baseline – ones that are valued by the public and not sufficiently provided by the market.

We are currently considering different forms of scheme design. This could include a capital grants scheme for investments that are known to raise welfare and would help farmers move beyond our already world-class baseline standards. It could also include a payment-by-results scheme that makes ongoing payments for demonstrable and evidence-based welfare increases. These could relate to improving animal welfare in relation to confinement (e.g. the use of cages and crates), to the provision of enrichments, to mutilations (e.g. beak trimming and tail docking), and to animals’ ability to exhibit natural behaviours (including behaviours in their right settings).

Animal welfare enhancements will be evidence based, clearly defined, measurable, have positive impacts on animal health and welfare. We will work with industry, retailers and welfare groups and the Animal Welfare Committee as we continue to develop these proposals.