Animal Welfare Bill

As ever, the right hon. Lady makes her point superbly and succinctly. I wish that I were as superb and succinct as she is on these issues. My new clause proposes to try to get some read-across between the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 and circuses to ensure that the owners and proprietors of circuses cannot simply destroy the animals. If a zoo closes, the owner cannot inflict euthanasia on the animals. That is the law as it stands. If we applied the same standards to circuses, the circus owner who said that he would put down his animals would be breaking the law. Besides, these are valuable assets. Owners are far more likely to want to sell them, to be honest.