Ban non-stun slaughter in the UK
109,018 people signed this petition to the UK Parliament after it opened on 21 November 2024; it closed on 21 May 2025. The Government responded on 10 January 2025. MPs debated it in Westminster Hall on 9 June 2025.
The petition
The petition's creator is not named in the Petitions site's published record. Quoted in full from the UK Parliament petitions site.
Ban non-stun slaughter in the UK
In modern society, we believe more consideration needs to be given to animal welfare and how livestock is treated and culled.
We believe non-stun slaughter is barbaric and doesn't fit in with our culture and modern-day values and should be banned, as some EU nations have done.
In a landmark case, the European Court of Human Rights has ruled that a ban on the ritual slaughter of animals without prior stunning does not violate the ECHR.
The Court considered that the protection of public morals, to which Article 9 of the Convention referred was not indifferent to the living environment of individuals covered by its protection and including animals.
The Government's response
The Government published its response on 10 January 2025; the petitions site lists the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as responsible. Its summary:
The Government would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter. However, we respect the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs.
The response in full:
The Government encourages the highest standards of animal welfare at slaughter and would prefer all animals to be stunned before slaughter, but it respects the rights of Jews and Muslims to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs.
The ‘Demonstration of Life Protocol’, an industry-led initiative supported by the Government, provides assurance for Muslim consumers that stunning is compatible with halal slaughter requirements, while protecting the welfare of the animals involved. Therefore, a significant proportion of halal meat comes from animals that are stunned before slaughter.
Legislation sets out the main requirements to protect the welfare of animals at slaughter. There are additional rules that apply when animals are slaughtered without stunning to ensure that animals are spared avoidable pain, suffering, or distress during the slaughter process. Official Veterinarians of the Food Standards Agency are present in all approved slaughterhouses to monitor and enforce these animal welfare requirements.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Where the signatures came from
Signatures came from 650 constituencies. Measured against each constituency's electorate at the 2024 general election, the most came from Llanelli, with 5.4 signatures per 1,000 electors (388 in all).
107,696 of the signatures were from the UK and 1,322 from elsewhere, by the location signers gave.
| Constituency | Signatures | Electorate, July 2024 | Per 1,000 electors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Llanelli | 388 | 71,538 | 5.4 |
| Cannock Chase | 301 | 76,974 | 3.9 |
| Ribble Valley | 295 | 80,484 | 3.7 |
| Boston and Skegness | 274 | 75,811 | 3.6 |
| Rossendale and Darwen | 268 | 74,440 | 3.6 |
| Bridlington and The Wolds | 258 | 74,438 | 3.5 |
| Caerfyrddin | 260 | 74,005 | 3.5 |
| Chichester | 271 | 78,374 | 3.5 |
| Nuneaton | 254 | 71,843 | 3.5 |
| North Warwickshire and Bedworth | 235 | 69,752 | 3.4 |
| Region | Signatures |
|---|---|
| South East | 15,414 |
| North West | 14,127 |
| East of England | 10,645 |
| South West | 10,019 |
| West Midlands | 10,011 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 9,916 |
| East Midlands | 8,657 |
| London | 7,903 |
| Scotland | 7,292 |
| Wales | 5,783 |
| North East | 5,157 |
| Northern Ireland | 1,519 |
Debate in Parliament
MPs debated the petition in Westminster Hall on 9 June 2025. Read the debate in Hansard. House of Commons Library debate pack.
Source and receipt
- https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700557.jsonUK Parliament Petitions API · read 2026-10-15 · SHA-256
5716034cc3f414e7… - The petition on petition.parliament.uk
The petition's words are its creator's and the response is the Government's; this site quotes both and gives no view on either. Signature counts can still change while a petition is open. To report an error, send a correction request.