Petition · past parliament

Reverse the No majority decision regarding animal sentience (EU Withdrawal Bill)

Rejected 21 signatures

What the petition asks

To prevent untold cruelty to animals we must continue to recognise them as sentient beings under domestic law. Many scientific studies have shown animals are sentient, meaning they feel pain, emotion and are aware of their surroundings. We cannot ignore scientific data, nor our duty of care.
On 15th November there was a "no" majority vote to an amendment clause (NC30), which sought to transfer the EU Protocol on animal sentience (Article 13 of Title II of the Lisbon Treaty) into UK law under the EU Withdrawal Bill. This was put forward by Caroline Lucas of the Green party.

Without this law there will be a serious effect on animal welfare within farms, labs, transportation methods as well as an effect on wildlife.

Why it was rejected

There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.

Timeline

20 Nov 2017 Petition opened for signatures
23 Nov 2017 Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 21
Status Rejected
Rejected 23 Nov 2017

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.