Animal Welfare Bill

The point that the hon. Gentleman is making is valid if there were a prosecution for cruelty. If neglect has taken place for such a long time that there is no possibility of improving the animal’s welfare, the animal has been treated cruelly. The purpose of my new clause is to tackle the welfare offence, which is partly dealt with by default in the code of conduct. Evidence suggests that when people are issued with an RSPCA improvement notice the vast majority want to comply with it. The problem is dealing with people’s ignorance, and the new clause would help to address that.