Labour slam Southport MP – “heartless hypocrisy” after declaring that animals “can’t feel pain or emotion”

Southport MP Damien Moore has been accused of “heartless hypocrisy” after declaring that animals “can’t feel pain or emotion”.

The claim follows his vote against the sentient animals clause in the EU Withdrawal Bill.

EU law clearly states that animals are sentient beings that can feel pain and do have emotions but concern was raised that the Government was specifically choosing not to carry this over into UK law post-Brexit.

Government supporters insisted there is sufficient protection in the UK’s 2006 Animal Welfare Act but this has been strongly challenged by animal rights campaigners including the RSPCA, which pointed out that animal sentience is not mentioned in the Act and that it mainly covers domestic animals with those in the wild and laboratories being expressly exempt.

Southport’s Damien Moore was one of the MPs who voted to reject carrying sentience recognition over into UK law and helped the Government to a slim majority of just 18 in a move which has enraged animal rights campaigners.

Now his actions have also been strongly criticised locally as it’s emerged that the MP did this just days after releasing a photo of himself with representatives from the animal charity Blue Cross stating:

Constituents have since made comments on his social media page asking if so, why did the Damien Moore vote against animal sentience being included in the EU Withdrawal Bill?

Mhairi Doyle, Chair of Southport Labour Party, says the MPs actions are inexcusable:

“Here we have a man proclaiming he’s concerned about animal abuse one minute and then denying they have feelings or emotions the next, simply because he thinks the first will get him votes and the second will get him on in the Tory party. It’s completely heartless hypocrisy.”

Neither is it the first example of such behaviour she claims:

“Just the day before his Blue Cross release he posted about being with the Royal British Legion, what he didn’t say was that previously he’d also failed to turn up for the vote about raising Armed Forces pay. It seems our local MP makes a habit of publicly saying one thing and doing something quite different in the Commons.”