European elections 2024: advocating for improved protection for animals

Together with 11 other leading animal welfare organizations, we are calling on the candidates for the 2024 European elections to include and prioritize animal protection as part of their agendas.

In view of the 2024 European elections which will take place from 6-9 June, Italy’s leading animal advocacy organizations have united using the slogan “Anche gli animali votano” (‘animals vote too’) as part of the European Vote For Animals campaign, calling for greater protection and better safeguards for animals within the European Union.

The 12 participating organizations* are currently introducing a 10-point program aimed at urging political parties and candidates in the European elections to commit to a number of measures. These include gradually eliminating cages in farming, supporting a comprehensive reform of European animal welfare laws with stringent standards, and advancements tailored to all farmed species, incorporating aquatic animals into protective regulations, and making pre-slaughter stunning mandatory for all animals.

Better European policies are needed to address and prevent the issue of stray animals more effectively

There are also specific points regarding animal-free scientific research, support for an EU ban on breeding for fur, and a call for a European policy to combat and prevent the phenomenon of stray animals, prevent pet abandonment, and combat the trafficking of puppies.

The organizations also advocate for a commitment that the long-distance transport for breeding and slaughter, transport of pregnant and unweaned animals, and exports of live animals to countries outside the EU, with a transition to transport of meat and carcasses, will be banned in the new proposed EU Transport Regulation.

We have asked the candidates of the 2024 European elections to call for a European policy to combat and prevent the phenomenon of stray animals, prevent pet abandonment, and combat the trafficking of puppies

Additionally, the organizations urge for a commitment to prohibit long-distance transportation for breeding and slaughter, the transportation of pregnant and unweaned animals, and the export of live animals to non-EU countries in the new proposal of the European Transport Regulation. They recommend transitioning to the transport of meat and carcasses instead.

Our demands also encompass advocating for a European policy that promotes plant production, high standards of animal welfare, and products derived from cellular agriculture. We additionally propose that the Commissioner of Health and Food Safety be granted a new mandate specifically focused on animal protection.

The organizations declare: « With this manifesto, we call on the parties to include the issue of animal welfare within their programs, and to demonstrate to citizens their desire to put an end to the worst kinds of suffering to which millions of animals are still subjected every year, and also their willingness to protect the health of both the public and the environment. Scientific evidence indicates that adopting the One Health approach, which recognizes the interrelation between animal, human, and environmental health, is the most efficient strategy to tackle health crises like antibiotic resistance, zoonotic diseases, and ecosystem degradation. EU citizens have long shown a strong interest in animal welfare, both domesticated and wild, and are calling for increased advocacy from their representatives. We commit to keeping them informed about the supporters of our campaign who endorse the program we have developed».

* The organizations that have signed the document are: Animal Equality Italia, Animalisti Italiani, Animal Law Italia, CIWF Italia, ENPA, Essere Animali, LAC, LAV, LEIDAA, LNDC Animal Protection, OIPA, and Save the Dogs and Other Animals.