Vile TikTok trend that leaves animals with horrendous injuries 'must be stopped'
Ministers have been urged to tackle a vile TikTok trend that sees animals killed and seriously injured by catapults.
Labour MP Jim Dickson said he had been made aware of "deeply unpleasant" footage being shared on social media. The MP for Dartford questioned whether catapults should be banned to prevent it happening.
He said sick clips have been posted by younger people who are often encouraged by "older men". Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said she was aware of similar cases and said the Government is looking at ways to combat it. Mr Dickson told the Commons: "Near my constituency there's been a troubling spate of recent incidents where younger people, sometimes encouraged by older men, are filming themselves catapulting wildlife.
"They're doing damage to that wildlife and then placing the footage on TikTok. The footage is deeply unpleasant, I don't recommend anyone looks at it."
Grooming gangs report's disturbing reality highlighted by two word demand
He went on to ask the Labour frontbencher: "Would my honourable friend the minister agree that behaviour goes well beyond anti-social behaviour and may perhaps at some point require a ban on catapults?"
Dame Diana said the Home Office and colleagues from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are looking at ways of tackling it.
She said: "Sadly that's not the first time I've heard about this appalling behaviour, attacking and injuring animals using catapults. I'm certainly raising that with my counterparts in Defra to see what we can do.
"This is certainly something we need to look at."
Animal charity the RSPCA has warned the trend is "unspeakably cruel". National wildlife coordinator Geoff Edmond said previously: 'Day after day, our frontline officers and animal centres see the sickening consequences of weapons being used on animals - severe injuries often leading to death. And what we deal with is probably only the tip of the iceberg as not all cases will be reported to the RSPCA directly and there may be situations where animals injured and killed by these weapons are sadly never found - especially in the case of wildlife."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Labour voters think biggest burden on NHS is migration... as 1,000 more migrants arrive in small boats in just two days
Labour 's own voters now see high immigration as the biggest single pressure on the National Health Service, a survey has found. The poll of 2,000 people who last year voted Sir Keir Starmer into Downing Street came as another 437 migrants in small boats crossed the Channel to Britain on Friday, followed by 583 on Saturday. It illustrates the threat to the party posed by Reform UK's immigration policies, which includes freezing all non-essential immigration and stopping the illegal small-boat Channel crossings. The survey asked the Labour voters which out of five issues creates 'the biggest burden' for the NHS, and some 24 per cent said high immigration. And when asked about their voting intentions, 22 per cent said they would consider voting Reform at the next General Election, while 40 per cent declared approval for the party's leader, Nigel Farage. The latest Home Office figures on dinghy crossings of the English Channel for the year to date is 18,400 – a rise of almost 50 per cent on this time last year. By this date in 2024, 12,644 had arrived in small boats, in 2023 there had been 10,691 arrivals and in 2022 it was 11,739. Downing Street admitted last week that the dinghy situation was 'deteriorating'. A spokesman for the Adam Smith Institute, which commissioned the survey, said: 'It is clear that the British people have felt the impact of mass immigration on healthcare.' The poll found that the other burdens for the NHS included 22 per cent who chose the 'mental health crisis' while 13 per cent blamed the lack of social care provision, such as care home space for the elderly.
Leader Live
2 hours ago
- Leader Live
Farage plans to charge non-doms £250,000 fee which will be given to poor
On Monday, the party leader and MP for Clacton will reveal the policy which he said would 'encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom', according to the Telegraph. The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside the UK. Last year, former Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt revealed plans to scrap the tax status before successor Rachel Reeves sped up the process. Reform UK's policy would mean 'every high-net-worth newcoming (or returning leaver)' would pay a £250,000 one-off fee 'in return for a stable, indefinite remittance-style regime on offshore income and a 20-year inheritance-tax shield', Mr Farage wrote in an article for the Telegraph. All of this fee would be given to Britain's lowest-paid full-time workers through an automatic tax-free dividend via HMRC, the party leader added. In response, Labour said the policy was a 'golden ticket for foreign billionaires to avoid the tax they owe in this country'. Mr Farage wrote: 'Our policy is simple – Britain must be a place where success is celebrated, not punished with excessive taxes, crippling energy costs, or punitive inheritance levies. 'We will actively encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom, on the clear condition that those who come here deliver immediate, visible benefits to our workers.' The plan would mean around 2.5 million 'hard-working Britons' would receive an 'annual cash bonus', the Reform UK leader claimed. He added: 'Our policy is not a 'golden visa' or a backdoor to citizenship. 'It is a one-time flat tax paid by newcomers in exchange for the certainty of a favourable tax status. 'Individuals will still be liable for all standard UK taxes on UK-sourced income, property and spending. 'But they won't be taxed on offshore income and gains for the duration of their agreed status.' A Labour spokesperson said: 'Nigel Farage can brand this whatever he wants – the reality is his first proper policy is a golden ticket for foreign billionaires to avoid the tax they owe in this country. 'As ever with Reform, the devil is in the detail. 'This giveaway would reduce revenues raised from the rich that would have to be made up elsewhere – through tax hikes on working families or through Farage's promise to charge them to use the NHS.'
Rhyl Journal
2 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
Farage plans to charge non-doms £250,000 fee which will be given to poor
On Monday, the party leader and MP for Clacton will reveal the policy which he said would 'encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom', according to the Telegraph. The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside the UK. Last year, former Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt revealed plans to scrap the tax status before successor Rachel Reeves sped up the process. Reform UK's policy would mean 'every high-net-worth newcoming (or returning leaver)' would pay a £250,000 one-off fee 'in return for a stable, indefinite remittance-style regime on offshore income and a 20-year inheritance-tax shield', Mr Farage wrote in an article for the Telegraph. All of this fee would be given to Britain's lowest-paid full-time workers through an automatic tax-free dividend via HMRC, the party leader added. In response, Labour said the policy was a 'golden ticket for foreign billionaires to avoid the tax they owe in this country'. Mr Farage wrote: 'Our policy is simple – Britain must be a place where success is celebrated, not punished with excessive taxes, crippling energy costs, or punitive inheritance levies. 'We will actively encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom, on the clear condition that those who come here deliver immediate, visible benefits to our workers.' The plan would mean around 2.5 million 'hard-working Britons' would receive an 'annual cash bonus', the Reform UK leader claimed. He added: 'Our policy is not a 'golden visa' or a backdoor to citizenship. 'It is a one-time flat tax paid by newcomers in exchange for the certainty of a favourable tax status. 'Individuals will still be liable for all standard UK taxes on UK-sourced income, property and spending. 'But they won't be taxed on offshore income and gains for the duration of their agreed status.' A Labour spokesperson said: 'Nigel Farage can brand this whatever he wants – the reality is his first proper policy is a golden ticket for foreign billionaires to avoid the tax they owe in this country. 'As ever with Reform, the devil is in the detail. 'This giveaway would reduce revenues raised from the rich that would have to be made up elsewhere – through tax hikes on working families or through Farage's promise to charge them to use the NHS.'
