8 hours is plenty: ask your MEPs to act NOW on live animal transport

Every year over 6 million animals are transported long distances across the European Union. Cruelty and mistreatment are rife, with animals forced to endure stressful and frightening journeys to fattening farms and slaughterhouses. Some do not even survive the journey. A maximum journey time of 8 hours would be a huge step forward for animal welfare – and Members of the European Parliament now have an opportunity to back an 8-hour limit.

There is currently a Written Declaration in front of the European Parliament. This Declaration supports the call for a maximum journey time of 8 hours for the transport of animals.

If over half of all MEPs support the Written Declaration by the 15th March 2012, it becomes an official position of the European Parliament. This would not mean the 8-hour limit would immediately become law. However, it would send an important signal to the European Commission that there is a demand from the elected representative of EU citizens for new legislation to protect millions of animals from needless suffering.

You can help secure the 378 signatures that are needed by writing to your MEPs and asking them to sign Written Declaration 49/2011.

Personalised letters to your MEPs, written from your own perspective and in your own style, can make a significant impact:

• To find the names and addresses of your MEPs, click here and select the appropriate country (and region if applicable) from the drop down box entitled ‘country.
• And click here to download guidelines on writing letters to your MEPs ( 30.00KB).
• NB – Some of your MEPs may have already signed the Declaration. Unfortunately we are not allowed to publish a complete list of signatories, but we suggest you need not write to MEPs who have publicly expressed their support for the 8-hour limit here.

Please write to your MEPs today and ask them to sign Written Declaration 49/2011 in support of a maximum journey time of 8-hours for all animals.