Animal Welfare Party’s Key Policies for Northern Ireland
- Improve human health, save NHS funds, protect the environment and global food security by promoting healthy plant-based diets
- Ensure sustainable, plant-based options are available on every menu and at every meal in schools, nurseries, care homes and hospitals
- Phase out animal experimentation with binding targets for reduction combined with proper funding & real support for alternatives
- An Immediate ban on snares
- Independently monitored CCTV for all slaughterhouses
- Clear labelling of all products allowing consumers to make informed choices in line with their own principles on the environment, health and animal welfare
- A ban on ‘puppy farms’ and the sale of animals in retail stores.
- Replacement of breed specific legislation with preventative legislation and measures based on the principle of ‘deed not breed’
- Introduce a country-wide pet abandonment prevention plan – taking in public education and expectation management on pet ownership, improving access to animal health care, spaying and neutering, encouraging the re-homing of existing animals
- Respect for and understanding of the human / animal bond and ‘cradle to grave’ ethos of good pet stewardship pushing for vastly increased provision for pets in social housing developments and the private rented sector
- Phase out farming practices and systems with poor welfare consequences for animals
- Rethink procurement policy so that, across the Northern Ireland Assembly, public funds are not spent on foods, drinks, cleaning and household products that have a negative effect on human health, the environment or animal welfare – here or anywhere else in the world
- Tackle the illegal import of puppies and rescue dogs into and through Northern Ireland
- Support the UK Government in the establishment of a central equine database and single passport issuing authority to promote responsible horse ownership
- Introduction of a list of species suitable to be kept in captivity with a ban on the keeping of non listed species
About Our Candidate for West Tyrone, Northern Ireland Assembly Election, Thursday 5th May
Laura McAnea, Candidate, AWP, West Tyrone, Northern Ireland Assembly Election
Omagh-born, Laura McAnea, is the first candidate to stand for Animal Welfare Party in Northern Ireland. Laura left Omagh in 2005 and graduated from the University of Portsmouth with a degree in Applied Animal Behaviour. She has worked at vet clinics and animal sanctuaries across the world. In 2015, she gained a masters in Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law, and recently joined World Animal Protection as an Animal Welfare Scientist.
Laura has been a vegetarian since she was a child and vegan for the last four years. “I’m delighted to have the opportunity to stand for election in my home county,” she says of her candidacy, “and very much appreciate all the support I’ve received so far, not only from friends and family, but the West Tyrone community in general. Animal welfare has always been a passion for me; I believe all animals are entitled to statutory protection, being sentient beings with the capacity to feel emotions. By standing for election, I hope to raise the voice for people, animals and the environment within Northern Ireland politics.”