On 23 January, the European Court of Justice has allowed Eurogroup for Animals, Animal Equality, and LAV to participate in the legal proceedings launched by Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) against the European Commission. The lawsuit seeks to compel the Commission to fulfill its commitment to proposing legislation to phase out cage farming in Europe.
According to the CIWF, the EU court's decision could “demonstrate that their activities would be affected by the Commission's failure to publish a legislative proposal to ban cage farming”.
the European Commission had pledged in 2021 to present legislation by the end of 2023 to gradually phase out the use of cages. The proposal was initially expected as part of the legislative package on animal welfare planned for September 2023. However, only the text on animal transport was presented.
Olivér VÁRHELYI, EU Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare, has since committed to introducing the three remaining legislative texts, including one on the welfare of farmed animals, by 2026.