Richmond Park and North Kingston MP, and the Government Minister for Animal Welfare, Zac Goldsmith has called for a consultation to ban keeping primates as pets.
Announcing that he has commissioned officials to prepare a consultation, Zac said: “Monkeys and other primates are wild animals with highly complex needs. Through the extraordinary work of Monkey World’s Dr Alison Cronin, I have seen first-hand how keeping them as pets causes immense suffering. But it is perfectly legal to buy and sell them in the UK. The waiting list of unwanted primates at her rescue centre is longer than she can accommodate and so I have asked the department to look at the options for banning the trade altogether.”
