Actor and Compassion in World Farming Patron, Dame Joanna Lumley, has launched a petition today (24 January), calling on the UK Government to ban the use of cages for all farmed animals, including hens, mother pigs and calves, as part of the charity’s campaign to End the Cage Age.

In the UK, around 8 million laying hens spend most of their lives imprisoned in so-called ‘enriched’ cages where they have around the space of a sheet of A4 paper each. In addition, 200,000 mother pigs are confined in narrow crates when nursing their piglets. Calves, quail and game birds also suffer in severe confinement.

Significant progress has and continues to be made to End the Cage Age in many other countries across Europe. Luxembourg and Austria are 100% cage-free for laying hens, France banned the installation of new cage systems for laying hens in 2018. Germany will ban cages for hens from 2026 and Czech Republic from 2027. The European Commission will propose legislation by 2026 that will lead to a ban on cages for all farmed animals and will also look to prohibit the import of food from caged systems. This would leave the UK lagging even further behind. Stalling on the part of the UK Government may also add bureaucracy to trade with the UK’s largest export market if the UK does not keep up with new EU standards and could damage the whole British farming sector if it does not meet these higher animal welfare standards. This could be detrimental to the UK’s claim to being a world leader in animal welfare.

In June 2022, the then-Government, stated that a consultation to phase out cages for laying hens was “almost ready to go” and that a consultation on farrowing crates was “being worked on”. However, more than two years on, neither consultation have seen the light of day. The Scottish Government meanwhile pressed ahead with a consultation in June 2024 for a ban on cages for laying hens, the results of which will be published in due course.[1]

The UK Government’s inaction in publishing these consultations has created fresh impetus for Dame Joanna, who has decided to launch the Parliamentary petition to encourage the Government to make progress in this area. If the petition gains 100,000 signatures it will be considered for a debate where the Government must set out how it will address this issue. The Government's proposal should set out a consultation process with clear timelines towards ending the cage age.

TV actor, long-time animal advocate and Compassion Patron, Dame Joanna Lumley, said: “Around 8 million UK laying hens spend most of their lives suffering behind bars. Imprisoned in ‘enriched’ cages, these hens have little more space than a sheet of A4 paper each. They can't forage in the dirt, dustbathe, see the light of day, or even fully stretch their wings.

"The UK claims to have some of the highest farmed animal welfare standards. But when it comes to securing a ban on cages for farmed animals we are falling behind much of Europe.

"It is outrageous that in the 21 century we are still keeping sentient animals in squalid, cramped, cruel cages – the UK should be ashamed. Cages are not the future. It’s time for the new Government to take action and do the right thing. It’s time to End the Cage Age!”

A recent poll, commissioned by Compassion, found that 75% of the British public believe the use of cages in farming is cruel. The poll, carried out by More in Common, also revealed that despite the current cost of living crisis, more than two-thirds of the British public are willing to pay more for eggs produced from hens that are not kept in cages and 67% of consumers would be happy to pay the estimated 6 pence more on their weekly shop for all UK hens to be cage free and live a better life.

Anthony Field, Head of Compassion in World Farming’s UK Office, commented: “We are extremely grateful to Dame Joanna for spearheading this important petition, which we hope will deliver the much-needed push for legislative change to finally End the Cage Age in the UK. Three quarters of the British public think cages are cruel, outdated, and unnecessary, yet the UK Government is still not taking action to prevent millions of animals from suffering behind bars each year.

"The Government cannot keep kicking this can down the road whilst watching our European neighbours surge ahead. They must move swiftly to finally stamp out this cruelty. Unless the UK Government acts now, animal welfare standards here will fall significantly behind those of the EU.”

The petition calls on the UK Government to secure a ban on all cages as soon as possible across the UK and introduce a ban on the use of:

cages for laying hens
farrowing crates for sows
individual calf pens
cages for other birds, including partridges, pheasants and quail

View the full petition text calling on Government to End the Cage Age for all farmed animals.

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For more information please email media.team@ciwf.org or call 01483 521 615.

See images representative of caged hen and pig systems.

Notes to Editors

The Scottish Government also published a Call for Evidence on phasing out cages for quail and game birds in April 2024.
Scientific research, including recent reports by the European Food Safety Authority (the European Commission’s panel of experts in animal behaviour and welfare) highlight that hens’ basic welfare needs cannot be met in a cage and sows’ and piglets’ welfare needs cannot be met in farrowing crates. EFSA recommended to the European Commission that all hens should be housed in non-cage systems and sows should not be housed in farrowing crates but in farrowing pens.
The millions of farmed animals confined in cages every year experiencing huge suffering includes: around 8 million hens, 200,000 mother pigs, and 15,000 quail.

Dame Joanna Lumley launches petition to End the Cage Age