Wild Animals In The Circus

By Jerry Smith June 23 2011
hotoffthewire.blogspot.com

MPs in the UK have voted in favor of a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses. Tory MP Mark Pritchard, who was campaigning for the ban, claimed Government whips offered him “a job" to withdraw the motion.

"I want to focus on the interesting past few days. On Monday, in return for amending my motion, dropping it or not calling a vote on it... I was offered a reward, an incentive. If I had amended my motion and not called for a ban, I would have been offered a job," Prichard said during the debate.

Prichard also said to the MPs during the debate:

"I was offered incentive and reward on Monday, and then it was ratcheted, until last night, when I was threatened. I had a call from the Prime Minister's office directly and I was told that unless I withdraw this motion, that the Prime Minister himself said he would look upon it very dimly indeed,"

"Well, I have a message for the Whips and for the prime minister of our country. I may just be a little council house lad from a very poor background, but that background gives me a backbone, it gives me a thick skin, and I am not going to be kow-towed by the whips or even the Prime Minister of our country on an issue I feel passionately about and that I have conviction about."

"We need a generation of politicians with a bit of spine, not jelly. I will not be bullied by any of the Whips. This is an issue on which I have campaigned for many years."

Sheryll Murray (Con, South East Cornwall) displayed a picture to her fellow MPs of Donkey, a monkey who had suffered years of abuse in the circus. Donkey the monkey had been beaten and forced to perform in front of large crowds.

"Please remember Donkey, and the message that he cannot bring to the debate himself. It is time to ban wild animals in all circuses, so that the terrible life that Donkey has suffered need not be repeated," Murray told MPs.

Conservative Angie Bray, who said that she will abstain if the motion is pushed to a vote, said she did not want to ban all animals from circuses and said:

"I think that some of the more domesticated animals, dogs and ponies spring to mind, thoroughly enjoy themselves."

"I recall going to a charming little circus in France where a farmer, his wife, their two children, a goat and a dog held us all spellbound for about an hour. I can say that that dog and goat had a good time, getting a treat every time they did something brilliant."

Tory Andrew Rosindell, the MP for Romford, was the only MP to speak out against the ban, saying that the push for the ban is based on "opinion polls and emotions", not facts.

"We have to base our decisions on cool hard facts and knowledge of the situation. The speeches I have heard today do not show that; they have avoided the real animal welfare issues and are pandering to the emotions of animal rights activists who care more about their political agenda than about the real welfare of animals," Rosindell said.

Romford also said that while he condemns "utterly and totally" the "cruelty to animals", in reality many of those animals have been "so domesticated over so many years that to wrench them from the life they are used to would be crueller than allowing them to continue it".

"To say that it is not about the welfare of animals is either a display of stupidity that is quite mind-numbing, or a deliberate attempt not to face up to the heart of the issue," Labour’s Jim Dowd said, attacking Romford's speech.

Agriculture Minister Jim Paice, who opposes the call for a ban, said he shares the concerns of the MPs worried about the use of performing animals, thinks that there could be legal challenges to the ban as proposed by Pritchard, and said:

"The reality is that the Animal Welfare Act of 2006, Section 12, does not allow ethical considerations to be a justification for a ban."

"The Government is determined to stamp out cruelty and bad welfare for animals in circuses."

The Ministers had said that they would rather strengthen existing Animal Welfare Act than introduce a complete ban.

The MPs, in the end, backed Prichard's call for the Government to ban the use of all wild animals in circuses by next July.

Even though the MPs approved the motion, without a vote, the decision still does not ban the use of wild animals in circuses. It does however put more pressure on the UK government to do something. Ministers are argueing that any ban might contravene the Human Rights Act.

To read more, check out these articles:

MPs defy government and agree to ban on use of circus animals from guardian.com

Circus wild animal ban approved by MPs from epolitix.com

Wrekin MP says he was offered 'bribe' to stop his circus animal ban campaign from sundaymercury.net

MPs Back Ban On Wild Animals In Circuses from news.sky.com