Thérèse Coffey wrote a letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak yesterday announcing her resignation. She said: “It has been a privilege to serve him and indeed five Conservative Prime Ministers as a minister. I look forward to continuing to serve my constituents of Suffolk Coastal.”
Barclay’s appointment has received a mixed response from the industry. Love British Food tweeted they were “looking forward to working closely with him and the whole team,” whereas the Humane Society International criticised the Government for not doing enough to protect animal rights.
Claire Bass, senior public affairs director at Humane Society International/UK, said: “Steve Barclay is the third Defra Secretary of State in just over a year and while Whitehall has seen plenty of changes in that time, the same can’t be said for animals in this country who continue to be let down by policymakers.
“In two and half years the Government has delivered less than a third of its own Action Plan for Animal Welfare and has broken several commitments to protect animals, including a hugely popular manifesto pledge to ban imports of hunting trophies.
“Defra Secretary is an enormously important role, responsible for the health and welfare of billions of animals in this country. Animals deserve more than just warm words from Ministers about the UK being a ‘nation of animal lovers’, they need a Secretary of State who will deliver action, starting with the swift introduction of the promised Bill to ban live exports, and firm resolve to pass a hunting trophies ban into law.”