Animal Welfare Party is contesting the Lothian Region in the Scottish Parliament Elections which take place on 6th May.
Our key policies for the Scottish Parliament Election include:
- Improving human health, save vital NHS funds & act on climate breakdown through promoting a transition to healthy & sustainable plant-based diet
- Re-directing subsidies from intensive farming to plant-based agriculture and introduce clear ‘method-of-production’ labelling for all animal products
- Increasing animal abuse penalties to a maximum of 10 years’ custodial sentencing
- Strengthening companion animal welfare by stopping the sale of animals online & in shops, ending breed-specific legislation and phasing out the exotic pet trade
- Closing loopholes in the fox hunting ban, ending the sale & use of snares and introducing compulsory assessments of animal welfare in wildlife ‘management’ practices
- Ending all live animal exports for slaughter and fattening
- Phasing out subsidy of intensive fisheries, introduce stringent welfare regulations around farmed salmon, end fish farming practices that impact negatively on seals & cetaceans, and recognise crustaceans as sentient
- Ending all non-stun slaughter and introduce independently-monitored CCTV in all abattoirs
- Phasing out greyhound & horse racing and strengthen legislation around the welfare of all animals used in sports and entertainment
- Showing leadership on ending animal experiments by applying pressure on the UK government, with incremental increases of ScotGov funding into humane research
Find out more about our party list candidates below
Vivienne Moir, Lead Candidate, AWP, Lothian Region
Vivienne has been campaigning for animal welfare and environmental issues for over thirty years; including writing to her local MPs; companies and foreign Ambassadors; taking part in demonstrations/ protests and being a voice for animals. She has volunteered and fundraised for the SSPCA, OneKind (previously Advocates for Animals); Cruelty Free International (previously BUAV) Bid to Save a Stray where she adopted her Romanian rescue dog in 2015.
Vivienne has a BSc (Honours) degree in Biology (Environmental Science) from the University of Aberdeen and an MSc in Marketing from Strathclyde University. She has worked previously for the Scottish Wildlife Trust, WWF within the fundraising and marketing departments.
She believes that the time is right now to tackle our mistreatment of non-human species and of our detachment to the environment. “We are all a part of nature and we need to understand that the way we are exploiting the earth and our non -human species will have a severe impact on all our welfare”. “We need a fairer society for all and that includes human and non-human species”.
Gavin Ridley, Candidate AWP, Lothian Region
Gavin is passionate about the living world and the environment. His background is in law and he has a strong sense of justice, including how that affects animals and their rights, believing that we, as guardians, have a moral duty to ensure that the living world and the environment are protected.
Gavin involves himself with animal welfare issues, and has campaigned for changes in the law. He has founded a charity, the Abused Pet Refuge Project, concerned with helping pet owners who find themselves victims of domestic abuse, assisting their escape and helping the household animals to find safety too.
Gavin has a BA in law from the University of Oxford, and Master’s Degrees in Social Policy, Law and Criminal Psychology. He is now a mature student at Edinburgh University’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, working on an MSc in International Animal Welfare, Ethics and Law.
He believes that there is no moral justification for the continued differential treatment of animals, and that we must ensure speciesism is addressed and tackled. He thinks that not only is it right that animals be afforded more protection, but feels we can influence animal welfare internationally by leading by example.
The AWP Campaign in the Lothian Region
Due to the pandemic AWP’s campaign for the Lothian Region will be mostly conducted online.
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