Protecting Farm Animals- is the English government doing enough?

Post by Kamila Kurbanova

The UK has one of the most extensive frameworks of animal welfare legislation in the world, with statutory architecture which appears to deliver meaningful protection for more than one billion farmed animals within UK borders each year.1 The Secretary of State for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) presented the animal welfare strategy for England to Parliament on 22 December 2025.2 This introduced new approaches to the protection of pets, wild animals and farmed animals.3 This blog will explore the enforcement of said UK animal welfare legislation.

The policy paper states that the government intends to ‘embed the principle of good farm animal welfare, where animals experience not just a life worth living but a good life throughout all life stages.’4 Defra plan to improve welfare for farmed animals with a few changes such as moving away from caging for laying hens and introducing humane slaughter requirements for farmed fish to spare them avoidable pain.5 However, the latest issue is that the laws exist, yet the enforcement system does not, particularly in delivering the protections Parliament intended.6 Defra’s policy paper itself acknowledges that ‘not all animal welfare improvements are achieved through regulation or other government action.’7 In fact, only 2.2% of farms were inspected in 2024. Over a quarter of those inspections identified breaches of animal protection law.8 Between 2022 and 2023, the Animal Law Foundation found that out of 2.62% of inspected UK farms,19% of them identified non-compliance and only 0.55% of these cases led to prosecutions.9 More than half of local authorities took no formal enforcement action whatsoever, even when they identified clear breaches.10 This is clearly not a case of anomalous human error. It is persistent, almost deliberate non-enforcement which has seeped into the intention of Defra’s current framework. Case studies of non-compliance include the treatment of decapod crustaceans such as lobsters and crabs. The Animal Welfare (Sentence) Act 2022 recognises them as sentient and the Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015 prohibits causing avoidable pain, distress, or suffering to animals.11 Yet, boiling crustaceans alive remains a common industry practice. Moreover, multiple laws, such as the Animal Welfare Act 2006, protected farmed pigs from painful mutilations like tail docking. The Mutilations (Permitted Procedures) (England) Regulations 2007 allows the procedure only as a last resort. However, investigations have shown that tail docking is still routinely practiced, and the lack of inspections makes the situation worse.12 Edie Bowles writing for the Law Society’s ‘Commentary Opinion’ Gazette raises two key paradoxes at the core of this enforcement issue: 1) society cares about animals, yet they are placed at the bottom of the enforcement hierarchy and 2) local authorities, who are trusted with enforcing most welfare legislation, do not have a duty to act.13 Parliament essentially left the enforcement of a regulatory scheme entirely discretionary. In an era of rising costs of prosecution, shrinking budgets and staffing shortages, it is not surprising that local authorities choose not to act. The reality of high costs and already overstretched budgets means that there is a reluctance to take action in cases of animal welfare, which are often seen as insignificant. Councils must routinely weigh animal enforcement against social care, housing and community safety. When the state enacts laws but lacks the capacity to enforce them, it undermines public confidence in the fairness and consistency of legal protections more broadly. The public, or perhaps the majority, does in fact care about the treatment of animals. The ministerial foreword of Defra’s December 2025 policy paper begins by wholeheartedly stating ‘We are a country that cares deeply for animals…we have a proud and long history of supporting animal welfare- from the world’s first known animal welfare law in 1822.’14 For most people, animals are not an abstract policy problem; they are living creatures whose treatment reflects social values. The public, however, assumes that the laws are being properly enforced. The 2024 data shows they are not.

With Defra’s recent animal welfare strategy, has the UK ensured animal protection is not just an empty promise? Is there transparency, sufficient resourcing and an end to the lack of enforcement? Defra ended their strategy announcement by ensuring the convention of ‘regular meetings at official and ministerial level to facilitate sharing of information and exploring where further steps are needed.’15 While this is a step in the right direction, it seems there is no prominent aim to ensure enforcement with certainty, however this is not simple to achieve immediately. There must be a step-by-step process, which Defra seem to be on the pathway towards. It is important to highlight that, while non-compliance with established legislation and regulations is inevitable, the sheer lack of enforcement and prosecution should not be inevitable whatsoever.

References:

1 Bowles, E. (18 December 2025) “The UK’s animal welfare laws look impressive, until you ask who enforces them”, The Law Society Gazette, Found at: https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-and-opinion/the-uks-animal-welfare-laws-look-impressive-until-you-ask-who-enforces-them/5125439.article

2 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (22 December 2025) “Animal welfare strategy for England”, Gov.UK, Found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england#next-steps

3 Ibid.

4 Ibid.

5 Ibid.

6 Bowles, E. (18 December 2025) “The UK’s animal welfare laws look impressive, until you ask who enforces them”, The Law Society Gazette, Found at: https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-and-opinion/the-uks-animal-welfare-laws-look-impressive-until-you-ask-who-enforces-them/5125439.article

7 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (22 December 2025) “Animal welfare strategy for England”, Gov.UK, Found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england#next-steps

8 Bowles, E. (18 December 2025) “The UK’s animal welfare laws look impressive, until you ask who enforces them”, The Law Society Gazette, Found at: https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-and-opinion/the-uks-animal-welfare-laws-look-impressive-until-you-ask-who-enforces-them/5125439.article

9 Church, D. (October 6 2025) “Enforcing UK Laws to Protect Farmed Animals: Still a Problem”, Faunalytics, Found at: https://faunalytics.org/enforcing-u-k-laws-to-protect-farmed-animals-still-a-problem/

10 Bowles, E. (18 December 2025) “The UK’s animal welfare laws look impressive, until you ask who enforces them”, The Law Society Gazette, Found at: https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-and-opinion/the-uks-animal-welfare-laws-look-impressive-until-you-ask-who-enforces-them/5125439.article

11 Church, D. (October 6 2025) “Enforcing UK Laws to Protect Farmed Animals: Still a Problem”, Faunalytics, Found at: https://faunalytics.org/enforcing-u-k-laws-to-protect-farmed-animals-still-a-problem/

12 Ibid.

13 Bowles, E. (18 December 2025) “The UK’s animal welfare laws look impressive, until you ask who enforces them”, The Law Society Gazette, Found at: https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-and-opinion/the-uks-animal-welfare-laws-look-impressive-until-you-ask-who-enforces-them/5125439.article

14 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (22 December 2025) “Animal welfare strategy for England”, Gov.UK, Found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england#next-steps

15 Ibid.

Bibliography:

1. Bowles, E. (18 December 2025) “The UK’s animal welfare laws look impressive, until you ask

who enforces them”, The Law Society Gazette, Found at:

https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/commentary-and-opinion/the-uks-animal-welfare-laws-look-

impressive-until-you-ask-who-enforces-them/5125439.article

2. Church, D. (October 6 2025) “Enforcing UK Laws to Protect Farmed Animals: Still a Problem”,

Faunalytics, Found at: https://faunalytics.org/enforcing-u-k-laws-to-protect-farmed-animals-still-a-

problem/

3. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (22 December 2025) “Animal welfare

strategy for England”, Gov.UK, Found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animal-

welfare-strategy-for-england/animal-welfare-strategy-for-england#next-steps