Compulsory closed-circuit TV recording at abattoirs consultation: summary of responses

Summary of Responses

A total of 245 responses were received and are broken down by grouping in Table 1. Of these:

• 17 (6.9%) were from the livestock industry (slaughterhouse operator, livestock and meat industry, retailer)
• 11 (4.5%) were from the veterinary profession (9 individuals, 1 from a veterinary practice and 1 joint response from three veterinary associations)
• 21 (8.6%) were from animal welfare organisations
• 9 (3.7%) were from animal welfare enforcement (4 of whom are Scottish local authorities)
• 165 (67.3) were from members of the general public and
• 22 (9.0%) who did not self-identify under the above headings. Almost all were from individuals and are considered along with responses from members of the general public.

Within the responses from the general public there were 20 responses largely identical to the response of one of the animal welfare organisations.

Table 1: Breakdown of respondent groups

The overwhelming majority of respondents (94.9%) (Table 2) favoured the compulsory installation of CCTV in all areas of approved slaughterhouses where live animals are present; however, 2 small slaughterhouses, a company involved in meat production and a few individuals were opposed. Additionally, 79% of respondents considered the costs of CCTV to be both reasonable and proportionate.

There was also support in excess of 90% for the proposals that slaughterhouses be required to retain CCTV footage for 90 days and that unrestricted access to any footage should be permitted for officers authorised by the Scottish Ministers.

The individual responses to the questions asked by the consultation are considered in greater detail in this Report.

Table 2: Percentage responses to consultation proposals