Livestock upset
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IGNORANCE and illegal operation is widespread in British livestock haulage, according to a report published by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, reports JACK SEMPLE.
Lorry drivers are often totally unaware of the laws on carrying livestock to and from markets. They receive no instruction from their employer, and only learn of the existence of regulations when given guidance by RSPCA inspectors, the report claims.
The present laws cover: construction and maintenance of vehicles; protection of the animals when loading, unloading and during a journey; transporting live and dead animals together; overcrowding; disinfectant procedures; and keeping transport records. But many drivers are ignorant of all these regulations, the RSPCA claims.
"We are concerned at the number of reports we receive about the state of vehicles such as broken tail boards, tail gates and side walls." Foot battens are often absent and many lorries are in a generally poor condition, the report says.
The RSPCA recommends that a recognised training scheme be set up, with the Road Haulage Association as the prime mover.
Standard instructions should be kept in cabs at all times, the report says. It calls for greater supervision of vehicles, particularly during loading.
And the RSPCA strongly urges changes in the law to ensure that livestock is adequately fed and watered. This latest point appears to have been ruled out by the Ministry of Agriculture. A spokesman told CM that the present legislation is adequate to protect livestock, but that the Ministry is noting the report's findings. She would not be drawn on whether or not the present law was obeyed to the Ministry's satisfaction.
RHA officer Ben McGuire told CM: "We are very happy with the report. Our members are as upset as are the RSPCA about some of the vehicles coming into the livestock markets." Only a minority of livestock hauliers are in the RHA, he said.
"RSPCA and local authority inspectors do their best. If they catch someone, the chances are he has no idea he has been breaking the law," Mr McGuire said.
The National Farmers Union, which the RSPCA report says should provide guidelines to members in livestock haulage said: "Very few farmers transport their own animals."
Welfare of Livestock at Markets covers many aspects as well as transport. It is available from the RSPCA at Horsham, Sussex.