ELLIOT Morley has welcomed proposals from the EU Commission to revise the existing EU pig welfare rules. The Commission presented its paper to a meeting of EU experts in Brussels.
Mr Morley said: "I am pleased that our pressure on the Commission to produce proposals for a revision of the EU's rules on pig welfare has finally paid off.
"Pig farmers in the UK operate to some of the highest welfare standards in the world. For example, we banned the cruel practice of keeping sows in close confinement - so-called stall systems - as long ago as 1991, but the current EU rules do not address sow stalls. That is not acceptable. I am therefore delighted that the Commission has followed the UK's lead by proposing such a ban. Naturally we shall support this element.
"We now need to discuss the detail of these rules with our EU partners. We shall be looking for a deal that properly balances the welfare of pigs with what is practical for our farmers."
Updated: 09:36 Thursday, February 01, 2001
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