Peter Mills, “Animals as Sentient Beings” (7 March 2022) Nuffield Council on Bioethics.
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is an independent body that examines and reports on ethical issues in biology and medicine. As the United Kingdom’s (UK) Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill is soon expected to pass and become law, the field of bioethics and medicine in the UK will have to adapt to the widespread understanding of animal sentience and adapt to the new laws. This blog post comments on the Sentience Bill as it relates to the Lisbon Treaty 2017 and offers a caution with regards to the reliance on committees for uniform animal welfare standards. Mills goes on to comment on the potential makeup of the Animals Sentience Committee, as well as the relationship between the Committee and the government.