Animal welfare organisations staged on Tuesday a visual stunt outside the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels to mark the fifth anniversary of the unfulfilled commitment to propose legislation banning cages for farmed animals.
Inside a cage, actors styled as Commission staff sat around a table surrounded by piles of paperwork – a visual representation of five years of what the NGOs describe as stalled legislation. Under a banner reading “Uncage the legislation”, a number of MEPs took bolt cutters to the cage in a symbolic demand that the Commission finally submit the legislative proposal.
On 30 June 2021, the Commission decided to positively respond to the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) ‘End the Cage Age’. The initiative was formally submitted in October 2020 to the European Commission after it had collected ca 1.4 million signatories across all EU member states, well above the minimum number of at least 1 million signatories in at least seven member states.
In a communication, the Commission wrote that the response would be "included in the revision of animal welfare legislation that it has committed to propose by the last quarter of 2023." The Commission also referred to the ECI organisers who had expressed their ambition for a ban on cages to come into effect in 2027.
“Millions of hens, pigs and other animals in the EU suffer in extreme confinement every single day,” said Kirsty Henderson, President of Anima International, the event organizer on behalf of the ECI. “EU citizens have made it clear, repeatedly, that they want this to stop. This cruel treatment has no place in a modern society that values animal welfare. A five-year delay is not acceptable.”
The End the Cage Age Citizens’ Committee have filed a legal challenge against the Commission at the Court of Justice of the EU for failing to comply with its ECI obligations. The Court held an oral hearing in this case last March and the legal process remains ongoing.
MEP with bolt cutter to ‘uncage legislation’. Credit: Andrew Skowron / Anima International
Since 2021 announcement, the Commission has only tabled legislation on one issue concerning farmed animals: live animal transport. As recently reported, the revision of this legislation has also stalled and was not finalized during the Cyprus EU Presidency despite some progress.
“The Commission is taking steps, but it has missed its own deadlines before, so we are watching closely,” Henderson added. “If the Commission takes the citizens' mandate seriously, and if it genuinely cares about animal welfare, it will propose this legislation in 2026. Anything less is a democratic failure.”
MEP Tilly Metz, Honorary President of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals, commented on the European Parliament’s duty to represent the people who elected it and care about animal welfare.
“The European Citizens' Initiative exists for exactly this purpose: citizens led the way, and Parliament stood with them when we voted overwhelmingly in favour of ending cages. Yet here we are, five years later. Legislation that should already exist still does not, and millions of animals are paying the price. We call on the Commission to bring forward legislation to end cages without further delay.”
Commenting on the Commission’s work programme last October, a spokesperson told The Brussels Times that the Commission intends to present a proposal during 2026 on banning cages for farmed animals. According to the NGOs, it might be limited to phasing out cages for laying hens where the situation varies widely by EU Member State.
