Kirklees Council Leader Shabir Pandor, above, accused animal rights campaigners of stirring up racial hatred.
Rejecting calls to end the policy of providing halal meat he said:
"This debate has been generated deliberately on the back of creating divisions, hatred and putting communities against one another. I cannot commit myself or my cabinet to review this policy. The answer has to be no."
The announcement has disappointed the National Secular Society, which raised the issue of non-stunned meat in school last year. It said the council was:
"Normalising cruelty to animals."
Clr Pandor’s comments followed deputations both in support of serving non-stunned halal meat, and against.
The debate was prompted after more than 7,000 people signed an online petition calling for all meat served in the borough’s schools to be stunned before slaughter. [The Freethinker] Read more
