Chris Packham leaves RSPCA role over cruelty claims

Wildlife TV presenter Chris Packham and former Green Party MP Caroline Lucas have resigned as chair and vice-chair of the RSPCA after a campaign group alleged animal cruelty in the charity’s list of some approved slaughterhouses.

Animal Rising released footage from the facilities as part of an investigation into the RSPCA’s “Assured Scheme”, which certifies farms, food producers and food retailers that meet its specific animal welfare standards.

In response, the RSPCA said it takes allegations of poor animal welfare “incredibly seriously”.

The charity said it was “absolutely not true” that it had not taken immediate action, that unannounced visits had increased significantly, and that the use of bodyworn cameras and CCTV was also being explored.

In its most recent investigation, Animal Rising singled out four slaughterhouses where it said, “experts found systemic animal cruelty”.

It said its investigators had found that “85% of pigs in one slaughterhouse were incorrectly sedated, causing the animals to become unconscious during slaughter, and 96% of cows in another were euthanized with an electric goat was a practice banned by the RSPCA, and 46% of the cows showed obvious signs of panic or escape behaviour.

“There was also frequent verbal and physical abuse from workers, and animals watched in fear and terror as other animals were killed or stunned in front of them.”

In a statement posted on Animal Rising’s website, Packham said he was prioritizing “his love for animals above all else” and was stepping down immediately, after “irrefutable evidence of abuse was exposed”.

He accused the RSPCA of making “no meaningful changes” after “years of raising concerns about salmon farming and pushing tirelessly for reform within the schemes in place”.

He said, “I believe the charity has lost its mandate to protect all animals from cruelty and suffering.”

In a separate statement, Lucas said: “The recent horrific revelations of abuse at RSPCA-approved slaughterhouses, secretly filmed by Animal Rising, were the final blow to me.

“The systemic cruelty that was exposed was unbearable to watch.

“While the RSPCA’s response was to suspend the contained facilities and launch a further investigation, they failed to confront the deep flaws of the scheme.

“This approach not only fails to uphold their own standards but also risks misleading the public and legitimizing cruelty.”

In a statement, the RSPCA said: “We agree with Chris and Caroline on many issues and have achieved much together for animals, but there is a strong consensus on how to address the incredibly complex and difficult issue of farm animal welfare. But we disagree.

“We have openly discussed our work to raise farm animal welfare standards with them on many occasions and it is simply not true that we have not taken immediate action.

“We took the allegations of poor welfare incredibly seriously, launching an independent review of 200 farms, which concluded that it was ‘working effectively’ to improve animal welfare.

“We are taking strong steps to improve welfare monitoring, fully implementing recommendations, including a significant increase in unannounced visits, and exploring technology such as bodyworn cameras and CCTV, which will cost £2m Supported by investment.”