Tory MP Mark Pritchard may not have many friends left at Number 10, but he has drawn praise from public and politicians alike after standing firm on his motion for a ban on wild animals in circuses. Now it’s time for Scotland to press ahead with a ban of its own.
It was a debate in which passions ran high, after Mr Pritchard opened his speech with the astonishing news that there had been attempts, from the very top of government, to coerce him into dropping the motion.
If anything the pressure he was put under seemed to strengthen Mr Pritchard’s resolve and his motion went on to be approved without a formal vote.
The government's preferred option had been to introduce a licensing scheme and a tougher inspection regime for circus animals under the existing Animal Welfare Act.
Downing Street later said that they would ‘recognise the will of the House’, but neither Number 10 nor Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) has so far publicly agreed to a ban.
Whilst the government is not bound to accept the motion, a decision by Ministers to resist a ban with such overwhelming public and political support could be viewed as very risky political gamble indeed.
In his opening remarks, Mr Pritchard praised Scottish politicians for taking a more open view on a similar ban north of the border. The stakes for such legislation are now much higher, as an end to wild animal circuses in England could conceivably mean these circus operators relocating in Scotland. While there are currently no wild animal circuses based in Scotland some continue to tour from England and Europe.
The issue was recently debated in the Scottish Parliament, and gained support from members of the SNP, Labour and the Green party. It is hoped that Environment Minister Stewart Steven MSP will be further persuaded by the Commons vote that Scotland should move forward with its own ban as soon as possible.
It was nice to hear OneKind being name-checked in Parliament by Cathy Jamieson MP during the debate, and it is clear that the actions of OneKind supporters who have lobbied politicians both at Holyrood and at Westminister played a part in achieving this positive result. We owe our supporters a huge debt of thanks and we will continue to work together to end the suffering of circus animals across the UK.