Animal Welfare Bill

My Lords, I had hoped that the noble Baroness, Lady Miller, would have been persuaded by the very powerful arguments that we advanced in Committee with regard to goldfish. Again, I acknowledge, as I am sure all noble Lords do, that the welfare issue goes wider than simply in relation to goldfish. I felt that we made a good case about both the welfare and employment elements relating to goldfish. We pointed out then, as I point out again to noble Lords today, that more than 20,000 people are employed at funfairs and through the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain. I am not saying that all their jobs would be in jeopardy but, if it were decided to ban goldfish as prizes at fairgrounds, there is no doubt that some would be. If the case were made that the welfare considerations were enormous, then we would have to accept the loss of those jobs, but, as we sought to point out to the noble Baroness, Lady Miller, and as I hope to point out to the House today, there are no serious welfare issues with regard to goldfish. As I pointed out in Committee, it is 50 years since the Showmen’s Guild of Great Britain passed a resolution to its constitution ensuring that all its members took account of the welfare of goldfish. It includes keeping them in a suitable container and passing them on to a winning competitor also in an appropriate container. That duty of care is enshrined in the guild’s constitution. In addition, every time a goldfish is awarded, the winner is given a copy of a leaflet headed ““Care of Goldfish””, drawn up especially by the RSPCA. The leaflet details how to care properly for the goldfish and how to provide it with a proper home. The appropriate container also carries that advice. It is part of the tradition and culture of showgrounds for goldfish to be offered as prizes. Today, I hope that we can still satisfy noble Lords, as the Minister satisfied Members in Committee, that there are no real safety issues. I can understand the noble Baroness being concerned that children may not take care of the goldfish, but I am sure that there are not many noble Lords here today who did not, in their childhood, win a goldfish and care for it. I did. Many of my school friends had a goldfish and we always took great care to make sure that its health and welfare was paramount. I hope to hear from my noble friend that we should not be over-concerned and over-anxious about goldfish being offered as prizes, and allow that to continue in the interests of our traditional culture and the important jobs lying behind that effort.