Joanna Lumley backs plan to end cruel killing of millions of chicks

Dame Joanna Lumley today makes an urgent plea to ban the killing of millions of chicks, saying: “This unnecessary practice has no place here.” The actress and animal rights activist, 80, hit out as she backed a roadmap for the government to end the horror practice, which sees 45 million male chicks gassed within hours of hatching each year because they can’t lay eggs or be used for meat. She added: “I'm proud to support this path forward to end cruel male chick culling. As a nation of animal lovers, let's move forward and ban hatch and dispatch.” The proposal, developed by the Vegetarian Society and backed by 19 cross-party politicians, calls on the government to set a clear deadline to end the culling. It comes after the Animal Welfare Strategy for England, published in December, said ministers would like to see the practice banned. The proposal, developed by the Vegetarian Society and backed by 19 cross-party politicians, calls on the government to set a clear deadline to end the culling. It comes after the Animal Welfare Strategy for England, published in December, said ministers would like to see the practice banned. Irene Campbell MP, who is leading the fight, said: “Our campaign has almost 90 supporters in Parliament, from across the political spectrum. It is clear that to make real progress, my Defra colleagues must take a central role in moving this process forward.” Alongside the roadmap, the Vegetarian Society’s Ban Hatch & Dispatch petition has amassed over 40,000 signatures and celebrity backers from wildlife presenter Chris Packham and actor Brian Cox to comedian Dave Spikey and TV vet Dr Marc Abraham. Jenny Canham, Public Affairs Lead at the Vegetarian Society, said: “With public concern growing and political support mounting, the question is no longer whether the UK will end chick culling – but how quickly it will act. Every year of delay means almost 45 million male chicks are needlessly killed within hours of hatching, simply because they are deemed useless to the industry. This roadmap is a call for swift action, and we hope the government listens.” More and more countries are phasing out male chick culling, with the UK increasingly seen as falling behind international developments. Norway plans to transition away from the practice by 2027, with its egg industry already adopting in-ovo sexing technology , which enables the sex of an egg to be determined before hatching. Dame Joanna, a former Bond girl, has long campaigned against factory farming, the use of cages for farmed animals and the live transport of animals, often using her public profile to urge the UK government to improve welfare standards.