The European Parliament believes that only pets listed on an EU-wide ‘positive list’ should be allowed to be kept. The number of exotic species permitted to be kept is expected to decrease significantly with such a positive list. Moreover, it would no longer be necessary to impose a prohibition on keeping each animal species separately – usually after the fact.
This week in Strasbourg, the European Commission pledged to investigate the introduction of a European positive list. The Netherlands already has a positive list, which will apply from 2024.
A majority of the European Parliament also wants stricter measures against trade in endangered species. These species should receive the highest possible international protection status, which would ban all commercial trade in these animals. This was stated in a motion from the Party for the Animals, which was adopted by 549 votes to 28 in the European Parliament.
The European Commission acknowledges that EU legislation on animal welfare is outdated and proposes an update. The goal is to harmonize national rules. The legislation is now over 10 years old and no longer meets current standards or public expectations. For some animal species, no rules exist at all.
For example, Brussels says many details still need to be defined for the protection of dairy cows. There are also gaps in legislation regarding land transport or the ban on keeping animals in cages. The agriculture and environment ministers (LNV-ministers) have previously agreed to update the EU animal welfare rules.
In a working document, the European Commission acknowledges shortcomings. These have led some EU member states to tighten their national requirements. To restore uniform rules for all farmers in the EU, the animal welfare legislation must be urgently updated, the European Commission warns.
Globally, about one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction due to human activity. It is important that the European Union makes maximum efforts at the upcoming international CITES conference (mid-November in Panama) to save species on the brink of extinction,” said MEP Anja Hazekamp (Party for the Animals).
She criticized the European Commission’s lax approach during the previous CITES summit in 2019. Then, Europe refused to support a proposal from African countries to protect the African elephant. “Their numbers have only declined further since then,” Hazekamp reminded the Commission.