LANCASHIRE County Council has backed down over its controversial decision to ban the serving of unstunned halal meat in its schools, after the threat of a legal challenge.
In October, the county’s full council voted to end the supply on its schools and premises of ‘halal’ meat from animals which had not been stunned before slaughter — with the exemption of poultry.
The move was prompted by the county council’s Tory leader Cllr Geoff Driver who considers the slaughter of unstunned animals as ‘cruel’.
The Lancashire Council of Mosques (LCM) last month threatened to take the authority to judicial review in the High Court claiming it had failed to consult adequately on the decision.
Now the county council has written to the LCM’s chief executive Abdul Hamid Qureshi saying it will ‘consider afresh’. It will now consult on the proposal voted through in October and continue the current contracts to supply unstunned meat to 27 schools across the county in Blackburn, Nelson, Burnley, Rawtenstall, Hyndburn, Clitheroe and Preston. [Lancashire Telegraph] Read more
