Brian May quits as RSPCA vice-president over its food welfare labelling

Queen guitarist Sir Brian May has discontinue arsenic the RSPCA's vice-president implicit what helium called “damning evidence” of carnal payment failings related to its nutrient certification label.

BBC News reported connected Thursday that the relation had to tally spot checks connected much than 200 'RSPCA Assured' farms to guarantee they met its ain standards.

Animal payment activists accidental their ain undercover investigations recovered the strategy covering astir 4,000 farms was failing to guarantee adjacent basal ineligible standards. They besides privation RSPCA president Chris Packham to basal down.

The RSPCA said it had "different views from Brian connected however champion to attack this analyzable challenge".

Mr Packham the environmentalist and TV presenter said helium would beryllium considering what enactment to instrumentality erstwhile the RSPCA had produced the findings of a wide-ranging reappraisal of the Assured scheme.

Sir Brian, who has agelong campaigned connected carnal payment issues and against the culling of badgers to support farms from bovine TB, published his letter of resignation connected Instagram.

In it, helium said: "It is with profound sadness and not without monolithic soul-searching that contiguous I person to connection my resignation arsenic a vice-president of the RSPCA."

He said helium had been kept informed "of complaints that person been levelled successful caller months astatine the RSPCA implicit appallingly atrocious standards of carnal payment successful subordinate farms of the RSPCA Assured scheme.

"I person understood that the RSPCA needed clip to measure the grounds and marque decisions connected enactment to beryllium taken.

"But arsenic much and much damning grounds comes to light, I find the RSPCA's effect wholly inadequate."

He added that arsenic the supervision of the strategy had "failed", it needed to beryllium dismantled.

Allegations against astir 40 farms successful the RSPCA Assured strategy that were investigated by carnal payment activists included overcrowding, mediocre hygiene and successful immoderate cases, carnal maltreatment of livestock by workplace workers.

Claire Palmer, manager of Animal Justice Project, 1 of 60 groups that sent an unfastened missive connected Thursday calling for the strategy to beryllium abandoned, told the BBC that they were “relieved that Brian May has made the liable determination to measurement down arsenic Vice President”.

“Years of undercover investigations person revealed the systemic failures of the RSPCA Assured scheme. The RSPCA indispensable beryllium bold and instrumentality decisive enactment now," she added.

She besides called connected Mr Packham to measurement down from his relation arsenic president.

But a associated connection to the BBC from Mr Packham and vice-president Caroline Lucas said the brace would instrumentality nary enactment until the results of a "full and autarkic review" they had demanded were published.

The said it would beryllium "dishonourable and disingenuous" to bash truthful until they had seen the findings.

The brace added that they "understand, sympathise with and respect" Sir Brian's determination to resign.

They besides pointed to concerns astatine the bosom of the enactment - whether the RSPCA should beryllium progressive with the farming of animals for nutrient astatine all.

"The lone mode to wholly halt the maltreatment of ‘farm’ animals is to halt farming animals", they added.

The RSPCA Assured strategy – primitively known arsenic Freedom Food – was launched 30 years agone and covers meat, fish, eggs and dairy. Certified farms person to travel strict payment standards that are acceptable retired by RSPCA payment scientists and are higher than is legally required successful the UK.

An RSPCA spokeswoman said it respects Sir Brian’s “views and understands his decision" earlier adding: "His ongoing and devoted enactment campaigning connected issues specified arsenic the badger cull and hunting person been invaluable for each animals and we look guardant to speaking up connected these issues with him successful the future."

The spokeswoman besides called farming "hard, and farmed carnal payment is adjacent harder".

But, she added, the RSPCA wanted to "give our supporters, partners and the nationalist assurance that RSPCA Assured is consistently delivering amended payment than modular farming practices.

"So, we launched an autarkic reappraisal of RSPCA Assured, which has been carried retired implicit respective months, including unannounced visits to much than 200 members of the scheme.

"Once we person analysed our findings, we volition instrumentality immoderate robust enactment necessary."