This is a crucial Action Alert.
I am urging you to do something today on an issue of critical importance for the millions of animals confined on Canadian farms to be used for food. There is very little oversight for farmed animals in Canada and this bill is designed to limit oversight even further. Please, contact your own Member of Parliament (MP) and urge them to vote against Bill C-275, “An Act to amend the Health of Animals Act (biosecurity on farms)”.
Ag-Gag bill, Bill C-275 has passed through the agriculture committee in the House of Commons. This means that the bill has been studied and discussed by a panel of MPs and has now been sent to the House of Commons for final approval.
Just one more vote in the House and this dangerous bill will become law in every province and territory of Canada.
But, if we act now and contact enough MPs, we may still have a chance to stop it. Find your MP here: https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en
Here are some talking points you might find helpful:
– Urge the MPs to vote against Bill C-275.
– Let them know that you want animals on farms to have better protection, not less.
– State that there have been no known cases of disease being introduced on Canadian farms by undercover investigators.
– This bill is not really about protecting biosecurity, which could be better achieved through improved regulations of how animals on farms are treated and housed.
But if you only want to say one thing, the message is this:
“Vote to defeat Bill C-275 at final reading.”
It’s important to be polite and not vent our anger as we know that staff will most often dismiss emails, letters, or phone messages that contain insults. We have a better chance of having our message heard if we are polite in our tone.
The name of this bill is “An Act to amend the Health of Animals Act (biosecurity on farms)”.
That’s how this bill is being pitched, as meant to “protect the health of animals”. Nothing could be further from the truth.
This bill is about making it harder for animal advocates and others to expose the, at times, extreme cruelty and harsh conditions that farmed animals endure. It’s important to know that Canada does not have a system of proactive farm inspections; all inspections are complaint-based and it is difficult for low-paid workers with few options to report their employers. There are no known cases of diseases being introduced onto farms by undercover investigators, and if improved biosecurity truly was the aim of this legislation, they could have legally mandated specific biosecurity protocols and rigorous on-farm inspections.
Our allies at the CETFA Foundation (Canadians for Ethical Treatment of Farmed Animals) have posted an article that fully explains the real purpose of Bill C-275. This well written blog, titled: ‘THE TRUE MOTIVATION BEHIND BILL C-275′, exposes the poor state of biosecurity on Canadian farms due to standard farming practices.
In their article they state:
“The focus of this bill, as its name indicates, is the claim that advocates pose a risk to biosecurity, but the true intention of this legislation is obvious – to block access to farm facilities in an attempt to conceal the animal suffering which is increasingly being exposed by animal advocates.”
Please read the CETFA Foundation article to have a better understanding of the issue and make sure – for the sake of millions of animals suffering on farms, on transport trucks and in slaughterhouses – to make that phone call (leave a message at their office) or send an email or letter to your own Member of Parliament.
We have to stop this bill!
Sincerely,
Liz White
