Animal rights organisations register European complaint (euroweeklynews.com) 

NO less than 57 animal rights organisations have for the first time made an official complaint to the European Ombudsman.

Basis of complaint

This complaint concerns the European Commission’s failure to fulfil its commitment to a European Citizens’ Initiative in which 1.4 million people demanded a ban on the cages used to house a number of different domestic animals.

In its response to the European Citizens’ Initiative published in June 2021, the European Commission confirmed that, by the end of 2023, it would present a legislative proposal to phase out and eventually ban the use of cages for chickens, calves, rabbits, ducks, breeding sows and other species.

The reason for this complaint is that the most recent agenda for the rest of the political legislature was missing the Regulation on Captive Animals, which the plan should have included.

According to one of the complainants, Spain’s AnimaNaturalis, before backtracking on its promise, the EC repeatedly confirmed that it was working towards the 2023 timeline, and Health and Food Safety Commissioner Stella Kyriakides made multiple public mentions of this date in EC responses to questions.

“ The EC has not acted in accordance with the rules governing European Citizens’ Initiatives after raising legitimate expectations among European citizens. These deficiencies present a case of maladministration, both in light of the EU Regulation and the very reason for being of the European Citizens’ Initiatives as an instrument of transnational democracy,” observed Cristina Ibáñez, lawyer and spokesperson for AnimaNaturalis .

Should fur be banned?

In addition to the cages, 1.5 million people also requested a ban on the fur industry and the marketing of fur products on the European market which legislation was expected to have been included in the Regulation on captive animals.

While regulation to phase out cages remains pending, an estimated 700 million farm animals continue to suffer in cages in Europe according to the complainants.

Regards Mark