The RSPCA has welcomed Lord Gardiner’s announcement about secondary legislation on CCTV in slaughterhouses for early next year.

The government has confirmed that it will put forward secondary legislation on having mandatory CCTV in abattoirs before Parliament early next year.

A spokesperson for the RSPCA said: "This is a very welcome and vital step to introducing higher welfare right across the food chain. We look forward to seeing the details of the proposal as issues such as where the cameras will be located, footage quality and storage, and who can have access to it are essential to making the legislation meaningful.

"The RSPCA also believes there are further ways to improve the slaughter of farm animals once the UK exits the EU such as prohibiting electrical waterbath stunning for poultry and prohibiting slaughter without stunning.

We also strongly feel that next year’s new Agricultural Bill should contain proper incentives for British farmers to move towards meaningful higher welfare production standards and strong safeguards to protect those higher welfare standards from imported food that has come from animals reared outside the UK under poorer conditions."