Lord in a flap over feline bird killers

Call for compulsory bells and collars

- Richard Wheeler

CAT flaps should be banned to help preserve garden bird numbers, a Conservative former minister has urged.

Lord Blencathra said there is "no justification whatsoever" for owners to take a "laissez-faire attitude" by letting their pet "go in and out when it pleases".

He also backed outdoor felines being required to wear collars and bells, pointing to research suggesting this cuts birds killed.

Lord Blencathra's cat flap ban suggestion came as peers supported a law change that would mean cat and dog thieves could be jailed for up to five years.