STOP 
long animal transports!

Today, too many animals are transported under unacceptable conditions on European highways.  Every year millions of farmed animals are transported alive, under unacceptable conditions, only to be slaughtered on arrival. The most important issue is the duration of the transports: animals spend entire days on the road, with terrible consequences: wounds, fractures, asphyxia, sufferings, death.

Current EU legislation allows for animals to be transported for several days. This has to be changed. Live animals for slaughter should never be transported for more than eight hours. 

The campaign '8 hours' is one of the largest animal welfare campaigns ever conducted in Europe. It was launched by Animals’ Angels - an international organization which has documented hundreds of cases of severe suffering endured by transported animals - together with Danish MEP Dan Jørgensen. Please see the most recent video of animals being transported from the EU to Turkey below.

Written declaration 49/2011 adopted on 15/03/2011

On date of 15/03/2012, the European Parliament adopted the Written Declaration 49/2011 on the establishment of a maximum 8-hour journey limit for animals transported in the European Union for the purpose of being slaughtered - being signed by 395 MEPs!

A concentrate lobby campaign was made by animal welfare supporters from Member States on their MEPs.

After contacting the MEPs/their assistants during the plenary sessions after January, informing them with regards of the reality of animal transport, the argumentation of the necessity of change legislation in accordance with the requirements of the Lisbon Treaty (Art. 13 TFEU), of morality and the necessity of minimal compassion, considering extreme suffering of the animals but also arguments from economical point of view, 76% Romanian MEPs have signed The Written Declaration no. 49! 

1,103,248 people had signed the 8hours petition

In the following video, Commissioner John Dalli (Malta) announces that ‘by 2014 the Commission will publish a legislative proposal’ that will include animal transport. 

In the photo, around the Commissioner are some of the MEPs who had just heard the same promise in a meeting held before the petition hand-in: 

• Joanna Senyszyn (S&D, Poland), 
  
• Pavel Poc (S&D, Czech Republic), 
  
• Oreste Rossi (EFD, Italy), 
  
• Carl Schlyter (Greens, Sweden), 
  
• Andrea Zanoni (ALDE, Italy), 
  
• Karl-Heinz Florenz (EPP, Germany), 
  
• Jörg Leichtfried (S&D, Austria), 
  
• Keith Taylor (Greens, UK) 
  
• and Dan Jørgensen (S&D, Denmark). 
  
  

Commission Dalli denies his own words less than one week later!

After less than a week, official sources denied that Commissioner Dalli had ever made that commitment, and stated that he has no intention to propose changes to the legislation on animal transport. This new statement will be difficult to defend, because we have the full recording of what the Commissioner said.  

We cannot accept that the demands of the majority of members of the European Parliament, and of over 1,100,000 citizens who signed the 8hours petition should be so blatantly disregarded. Please write a message to Commissioner Dalli to remind him that he is supposed to work on behalf of, not against European citizens... and to protect European animals. The financial interests of a few cannot prevail over the principles and demands of European citizens and of their elected representatives.  

By signing the petition on the 8hours-website,
the following letter will instantly be sent to Commissioner Dalli:

Dear Commissioner John Dalli, 

On the 8hours website I listened to your statement in which, on Thursday 7 June 2012, you announced that 'by 2014 the Commission will publish a legislative proposal'. This proposal, according to what you said, would include animal transport. As you told the delegation of MEPs and animal welfare organisations in the meeting that preceded the hand-in of the 1,103,248 signatures of the 8hours petition, this proposal should lead to reductions in transport times too. You know that such steps are necessary, and you publicly affirmed in the press conference conference on that same day that 'some species of animals require a much lower figure than 8 hours'. 

You then denied your own words less than a week later! 

How can European citizens trust their institutions if their opinion - and that of their elected representatives - can be so blatantly disregarded, and if there are even attempts to claim that those words were never pronounced? 

Commissioner Dalli, it is my understanding that the European Commission has a duty to represent the interests of all European citizens, not just those of a few people who profit from animal suffering. 

In your specific role as Commissioner responsible for animal welfare, you should feel compelled to do your best to put into practice the mandate of Article 13 of the EU Treaty that says that 'In formulating and implementing the Union's agriculture (...) policies, the Union and the Member States shall, since animals are sentient beings, pay full regard to the welfare requirements of animals (...)'. 

You are aware of the fact that some rules have been in place for over 20 years and never been enforced. One more promise that they will be enforced in the future - rather than a commitment to change them, and especially to limit transport times - is simply not credible, and fails to tackle the huge problems suffered by transported animals on European roads. It is also offensive to all Europeans who care about animal welfare. 

I am therefore writing to you to ask that you not only maintain the laudable commitment you made publicly on 7 June on the occasion of the hand-in of the 8hours petition, but commit yourself to bringing forward effective legislative proposals before 2014, taking into account the mandate of Art. 13 of the Treaty, and respecting the right of European citizens to be fully represented by their institutions. 

Yours faithfully  

Please click HERE to sign and to send your letter to John Dalli NOW.

If you want to send a personal message, you can write to cab-dalli-webpage@ec.europa.eu

If you want to make your message even more effective sending it by post, this is the Commissioner's address:

Mr John Dalli
European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy
European Commission
B - 1049 Brussels
Belgium