The RSPCA has warned against any draft deal to scrap Brexit red tape reversing "hard gotten gains" for animal welfare - amid fears further alignment with the European Union sees the UK Government row back on key welfare improvements.

The UK and EU have agreed a draft deal on removing most post-Brexit checks for food and agriculture exports and imports ahead of the UK-EU summit on 20 November. 

And the charity has warned that while information released so far is positive news for food imports and pet owners travelling with their furry friends, including the reintroduction of pet passports, further alignment with the EU "without rigorous safeguards" could spell bad news for some other key animal welfare issues.

David Bowles, Head of Public Affairs at the RSPCA, said: "The UK is a leader on many aspects of animal welfare. Following EU rules without rigorous safeguards could put us at a sharp disadvantage. 

"Since leaving the EU, we've been able to fully ban live exports after decades of campaigning. The UK Government has also committed to consultations on the banning of farrowing crates, laying hens in cages and just last week the phase out of carbon dioxide as a method of stunning/killing pigs. 

"We are now concerned that further alignment with the EU could mean rowing back on these vital improvements. Presently, the EU has yet to implement any of these improvements for farmed animal welfare - so the UK Government must not sacrifice these hard gotten gains as part of any realignment. These issues must be red lines for the Prime Minister."

RSPCA's red lines

• In the UK, the use of sow stalls to confine pregnant pigs were banned in 1999 but are still permitted for a set period under EU rules and  alignment with EU standards would mean we would not be able to ban imports of pork from pigs kept in sow stalls
• Half of UK pigs are farrow freely and the UK Government has committed to consulting on phasing out farrowing crates altogether whereas in the EU, 99% of sows are kept in farrowing crates which means they can hardly move or exhibit their natural behaviours for a significant proportion of their adult lives
• The UK imports around six million pigs from EU countries, as well as over 100,000 tonnes of eggs from caged hens, foie gras and even real fur. Without animal welfare carve-outs in the UK-EU agreement, Great Britain would be unable to restrict imports of pork that have come from pigs farmed to standards that would be illegal here, commercial fur and foie gras imports could continue, and caged eggs from abroad would be allowed to be sold on supermarket shelves even if the UK implemented a ban
• Battery cages for laying hens were banned in the UK in 2012 and the UK Government is considering a ban on enriched cages too which still only allocates each hen about the size of an A4 sheet of paper to move around in. Whilst battery cages are banned in the EU, there are no plans to ban enriched cages
• The UK must be able to keep its ban on live exports which was only made possible once the UK left the EU
• The UK has committed to a consultation on a phase out of the use of carbon dioxide gas which is used to stun pigs before slaughter despite causing severe distress and suffering. The EU does not currently intend to ban or phase out its use despite strong scientific evidence of the harms

David added: "We believe the UK should negotiate for an explicit carve-out clause in the UK-EU SPS agreement which allows the UK to maintain our higher animal welfare standards. Without such protections, we risk undermining British farmers, undermining the strength of feeling amongst the British public who want to see the UK remain as leaders in animal welfare, and potentially putting the welfare of millions of animals at risk."

The RSPCA's Kindness Index 2026 found that 86% of people think animal welfare should be protected through legislation showing that the majority of the public think the Government should be acting to protect all animals.

More information on the RSPCA's campaigning work for farmed animal welfare can be found on the charity's website.