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Transporting animals on long journeys for slaughter could be banned, under animal welfare plans unveiled by the Conservative party.
Under the move, livestock would have to be sent to the closest abattoir – effectively banning most live exports.
It is one of a number of animal welfare and environmental policies set to be discussed at the Tory party conference.
Others include creating a £1bn fund to boost the electric motor industry and a pledge to plant one million new trees.
The party said the earlier attempts to restrict the journey time for live animals had been “prevented by EU single market rules”.
Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers said the proposals would “choke off” the live exports trade and help protect animals.
Other animal welfare measures to be discussed at the conference, which begins in Manchester on Sunday, include:
- a move to ban all trophy hunting imports
- making micro-chipping for domestic cats compulsory
- a ban on keeping primates as pets
Meanwhile, ministers have committed £1bn to help boost the production of key “green” technologies in the motor industry, such as batteries, electric motors, power electronics and hydrogen fuel cells.
The government has also pledged to invest £220m to help develop a fusion power station by 2040, which ministers said could offer “limitless electrical power with minimal waste”.
They said the investment would help to create thousands of skilled, well-paid jobs.
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The Tories also plan to plant up to one million trees in three new forests in Northumberland by 2024, in addition to creating more so-called “pocket parks” on small pieces of derelict or undeveloped land in towns and cities.
Ministers said the measures were part of a package to help make the UK carbon neutral by 2050.
But Friends of the Earth said the moves were “nowhere near” enough to to tackle the scale of climate change.
“If the government is serious about slashing climate pollution, it needs to stop fracking, stop filling the skies with more planes, and stop funding oil and gas projects abroad and instead invest in public transport, renewable energy and doubling UK tree cover,” said chief executive Craig Bennett.
