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Animal Welfare Bill

My Lords, I will not take up the attention of the House for more than a couple of minutes. At various stages in our deliberations on the Bill, we have had cause to complain that too much is being done by regulation and, still worse, by codes of practice on which Parliament cannot get a lever. Noble Lords will remember the case of the greyhound industry, which was mentioned earlier and which I highlighted as an example. I do not think that that industry should have been left to the mercy of the code of practice without parliamentary scrutiny, but, on advice, I was pressed not to table my amendment again for today—and I respect that. Codes of practice and regulations can change lives, cost millions and destroy livelihoods. I thank all noble Lords for allowing me to say that we are still very concerned that important legislation, which we support, has come to this House in such a skeletal fashion and leaves it still very open-ended. None the less, I thank the Minister and his team for the co-operation that we have received throughout the passage of the Bill. On Question, Bill passed, and returned to the Commons with amendments.