All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cats meet for the first time at Westminster

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cats (APGOCATS) is the first group of MPs and peers who are committed to the welfare of felines, and it has met for the first time at Westminster. At the meeting APGOCATS, which counts Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and Cats Protection amongst its supporters, shared its intentions for the coming year. They want to create cat-specific animal welfare policies and want to highlight the need to educate the public on feline matters like neutering and microchipping. Undersecretary of state for rural affairs and biosecurity, Lord Gardiner spoke at the meeting about the need to deal with cat welfare matters and to highlight the positive impact cats can have on society, and to find out how owning a cat can be a benefit to our well-being, particularly in respect of social isolation. He said the government is committed to better welfare for all animals, not just cats, and praised APGOCATS for creating the platform at Westminster to address cat welfare.
Co-chairman of APGOCATS, Steve Reed MP said: “Cats are beloved pets in millions of homes across the UK, yet they are often forgotten in making public policy. Tackling issues like cruelty to cats, genetic problems in breeding and highlighting the benefits cats can bring to their owners now has cross-party support, and it’s to be welcomed that cats have a unique voice in Parliament through APGOCATS.”