Chris Packham and Caroline Lucas resign from RSPCA

TV presenter Chris Packham and former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas have stepped down from their roles as president and vice-president of the RSPCA following allegations of animal cruelty at the charity's approved abattoirs.

Mr Packham said on social media it was with "enormous sadness" he resigned from his position at the animal rights charity.

Ms Lucas echoed his comments, saying she left a role of more than 15 years with "huge sadness" but the charity's Assured Schemes risked "legitimising cruelty".

RSPCA Assured is a scheme whereby approved farms must comply with the organisation's "stringent higher welfare standards", according to its website.

But an investigation by campaign group Animal Rising published last week alleged cruelty at "RSPCA Assured" slaughterhouses in England and Scotland, with the campaign group sharing footage of alleged mistreatment.

The RSPCA said it was "taking strong steps to improve oversight of welfare", including exploring the introduction of new technology.

Mr Packham shared the news of his resignation on social media, saying: "It is with enormous sadness that I have resigned from my role as president of the RSPCA.

"I would like to register my respect and admiration for all the staff and volunteers who work tirelessly to protect animals from cruelty."

Ms Lucas said on X she and Mr Packham failed to get the charity's leadership to act.

She posted: "With huge sadness I'm resigning as VP of the RSPCA, a role I've held with pride for over 15 years.

"But their Assured Schemes risk misleading the public and legitimising cruelty.

"I tried with Chris Packham to persuade the leadership to act but sadly failed."

Animal Rising's latest investigation follows on previous claims of animal cruelty made in May, when they published a report containing findings from investigations on 45 farms across the UK featuring chickens, pigs, salmon and trout.

At the time, RSPCA responded by saying the charity had launched "an immediate, urgent investigation" after receiving the footage.

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In the wake of Mr Packham and Ms Lucas' resignations, an RSPCA spokesperson said it is "simply not true" that the organisation has failed to take urgent action.

They said: "We agree with Chris and Caroline on so many issues and have achieved so much together for animals, but we differ on how best to address the incredibly complex and difficult issue of farmed animal welfare.

"We have discussed our work to drive up farmed animal welfare standards openly at length with them on many occasions and it is simply not true that we have not taken urgent action.

"We took allegations of poor welfare incredibly seriously, launching an independent review of 200 farms which concluded that it was 'operating effectively' to improve animal welfare.

"We are taking strong steps to improve oversight of welfare, implementing the recommendations in full including significantly increasing unannounced visits, and exploring technology such as body-worn cameras and CCTV, supported by £2 million of investment."