How serious is the new Federal Minister Alois Rainer about animal welfare?
In its first cabinet meeting, the new federal government, made up of the CDU/CSU and SPD, has cancelled various posts of commissioners. As the Federal Animal Welfare Commissioner Ariane Kari has a fixed-term contract that expires at the end of May, this office is also in danger of being sacrificed, even though the position was not on the list for cancellation yesterday. Thomas Schröder, President of the German Animal Welfare Association, comments:
"The new Federal Minister of Agriculture has it in his hands to save the important animal welfare office. Dear Federal Minister Alois Rainer, please campaign for an extension of the office's contract and send a signal of confidence to the millions of animal rights activists in Germany. Friedrich Merz has said that this government does not have 100 days. Don't risk losing trust in the first 24 hours in office.
The responsible department in the Federal Ministry is already understaffed. The most pressing challenges in agricultural animal husbandry, in the protection of pets and wild animals and also the challenges facing animals in research are in danger of being ignored and, in the worst case scenario, left unaddressed. In particular, the important round table on the situation of animal shelters initiated by the Federal Animal Welfare Commissioner Ariane Kari would remain without result. This is particularly bitter against the backdrop of the coalition agreement
