Charlie Alford

Burnham backs ‘conditional’ welfare support in first PM interview

Post author:Grace
Post published:27 July 2026
Post last modified:28 July 2026

In Andy Burnham’s first interview as PM, the newly-minted Labour leader spoke about the need to “get really serious as a country” about “getting the welfare bill down”. And how exactly does he plan to accomplish this feat? Well, Burnham claimed that he didn’t want to “blame” people on benefits, before adding: It’s about changing the nature of the support, and making some of the support conditional upon people taking opportunities that are presented. Implying that people on benefits having been taking the “opportunities that are presented” sounds an awful lot like blame, to us. Blame by another name The BBC recorded its…

Government urged to end animal welfare labelling confusion on meat products

Post author:The Canary
Post published:13 July 2026
Post last modified:14 July 2026

Animal welfare charity FOUR PAWS UK is calling on the government to back mandatory animal welfare labelling legislation. It has published a report that reveals widespread confusion on supermarket shelves and growing public demand for a simpler, more transparent system. A special event in parliament on 9 July launched the report. It included a pop-up supermarket aisle where parliamentarians saw how regulated welfare labels could transform the way we shop. The report highlights a fragmented labelling landscape. Shoppers currently have to navigate a patchwork of assurance logos and welfare claims. And there’s often no clear information on how animals were bred,…

Chris Packham ‘won’t set foot in Pret’ as chicken welfare row erupts

Post author:The Canary
Post published:2 July 2026
Post last modified:3 July 2026

Naturalist Chris Packham has led a crowd of protesters in slamming Pret A Manger. He vowed never to set foot in one of the chain’s cafes until it fulfils a chicken welfare promise it made eight years ago and has since broken. Packham said: I am absolutely furious at Pret for breaking their promise to chickens. Factory farming has broken the chicken. Bred to grow so fast that they can barely walk, scrabbling around in their own waste, broken bones and deformities… The life of a fast-growing chicken is hell. It’s a horror story dressed up as a lunch menu. It’s absolutely…

More animal welfare charities call for an end to the guga hunt

Post author:The Canary
Post published:11 June 2026
Post last modified:11 June 2026

Two leading animal welfare organisations are calling on the new Scottish parliament to end the annual guga hunt on Sula Sgeir. They’ve published a new report stating that the hunt cannot be considered humane, despite a NatureScot licence condition that requires killing must be carried out humanely. This adds to the campaigning work of Protect the Wild, whose founder Rob Pownall ran for the Scottish parliament dressed as a gannet. Animal Welfare and the Guga Hunt comes out as NatureScot considers a fresh licence application for the 2026 hunt. The topic is also due to for consideration by the Scottish parliament…