The Mandatory Use of Closed Circuit Television in Slaughterhouses (Wales) Regulations 2024 will require CCTV cameras to be installed in all Welsh slaughterhouses in areas where live animals are unloaded, kept, handled, stunned, and killed.
This is a Programme for Government commitment and is included in the Animal Welfare Plan for Wales, which seeks to maintain and improve standards of welfare for all kept animals. Most slaughterhouses in Wales already have CCTV. This requirement ensures all are covered, supporting consumer confidence that welfare standards are being delivered.
CCTV does not replace direct oversight by slaughterhouse management or Official Veterinarians, it can help improve the efficiency of monitoring and enforcement activity.
The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, said: “Animal welfare is a key priority for this Government, we want our farmed animals to have a good quality of life and we take welfare at slaughterhouses very seriously.
“The network of slaughterhouses in Wales provide essential services to farmers, butchers, and consumers. They also provide skilled jobs and support local supply chains. Mandatory CCTV for all our slaughterhouses further supports consumer confidence that welfare standards are being delivered.
“The British Veterinary Association has praised the new laws making CCTV mandatory in Welsh slaughterhouses as a “big step forward for animal welfare”.
They say “However, it is really important to ensure that, although valuable, CCTV footage checks must not reduce or replace the physical monitoring and verification of animal welfare and hygiene requirements that are currently undertaken.”
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