Kerry McCarthy

Kerry Gillian McCarthy (born 26 March 1965) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bristol East since 2005. She was the Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from September 2015 to June 2016. From June 2022, she served as Shadow Minister for Climate Change.

Kerry McCarthy in 2009

Quotes

• Among the many prejudices against vegans is the belief that they are always preaching to others and trying to convert them. I do not think that is true; we are incredibly tolerant. We are always polite when others ask, “Don’t you ever get tempted by a bacon sandwich?”… In fact, most vegans I know are rather coy about explaining why they are vegan, mostly because the question tends to be asked when we are sitting a dinner table full of meat eaters, and it seems rather impolite to answer. However, seeing as we are not at a dinner party now, here is the ethical case… If people are vegetarians for ethical reasons—because they believe that killing and eating animals is wrong—they really ought to be vegan, too. The average human eats more than 11,000 animals in his or her lifetime, but millions of calves and chicks are also killed every year as “waste products” of milk and egg production.
  • Debate on World Vegan Day, House of Commons, as reproduced by www.parliament.uk (1 November 2011)