CCTV becomes legal requirement in all English abattoirs

Legislation making CCTV mandatory in all abattoirs in England has come into force from today.

This is a massive victory for the British Veterinary Association and the Veterinary Public Health Association (VPHA) who have been campaigning on this issue for several years and a huge win for animal health and welfare. 

The installation of CCTV will give Official Veterinarians unrestricted access to all footage, enabling them to effectively enforce high welfare standards across the country.

Slaughterhouses are required to comply by 5 November 2018, giving them a six-month adjustment period to install suitable CCTV systems. Cameras will have to be present in every abattoir in England in all areas where live animals are present.

The introduction of the legislation follows a consultation by the Secretary of State on this subject last August.

British Veterinary Association President John Fishwick said:

“We are delighted to hear that CCTV will now become mandatory in all abattoirs across England, providing Official Veterinarians (OVs) with an essential tool to help them monitor animal welfare and enable them to identify any breaches in the regulations. OVs perform a vital role in abattoirs and unrestricted access to CCTV will allow them to perform this role even more effectively.

“Having campaigned for many years for the introduction of CCTV into slaughterhouses we are very happy to see our work come to fruition and we now hope to see similar legal requirements introduced in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.”