Wellington, Sept 14 NZPA - Animal welfare advocates will be appealing to MPs today to support a bill aimed at stopping cruel farming practices.

Representatives from the Royal New Zealand SPCA, SAFE, and World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), with actress Loren Horsley and comedian Mike King will be rallying support for Green Party MP Sue Kedgley's Animal Welfare Amendment (Treatment of Animals) Bill at Parliament this afternoon.

The bill focuses on tightening the Animal Welfare Act and eliminating loopholes that allow practices under the "exceptional circumstances" category such as sow crates and battery hen cages, Ms Kedgley said.

"The Act says it's unfair to ill-treat an animal in New Zealand. I mean for years people have been completely perplexed, how could it be that millions of animals are kept in cages and factory farms?"

"The answer is that there is a series of clever exemptions, and the bill will seek to remove those."

The bill aims to phase-out "cruel" practices within five years, give the Minister of Agriculture power to amend any Code of Animal Welfare to prevent the suffering of animals, and include an animal's freedom of movement as a physical need.

Ms Kedgley said she already has the support of the Labour Party and United Future, while the Maori Party was considering it this morning.

Welfare advocates are seeking the support of the National Party and Act MPs today. They hope the bill will pass its first reading on September 22, and head to a select committee.

SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek said opinion polls show New Zealanders are opposed to sow crates and battery hen cages and it would be a disgrace if the bill were not allowed to be debated at the select committee.

The bill has the power to help more than 20,000 crated sows and three million caged hens, which are denied the opportunity to express their normal patterns of behaviour such as walking, foraging, nest building and mothering their young, he said.

"The National-led Government has so far shown good leadership on a number of animal welfare issues. They must now show that they care equally about farm animal welfare by supporting this important bill."

Comedian Mike King, who turned against the Pork Industry Board earlier this year after having fronted campaigns promoting pork, is also backing Ms Kedgley's bill.

"I appeal to all members of Parliament to vote for the pigs, not for the Pork Industry Board, and support the Animal Welfare Amendment (Treatment of Animals) Bill," he said in an e-message to the appeal.

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