A UK bill that recognises animal feelings passed its second reading unopposed in Parliament on Tuesday, but not without misgivings from a number of Conservative MPs, who consider the bill unnecessary. One MP called the bill a “Trojan horse” and accused the Conservative government of “driving a coach and horses straight at” the party’s core supporters. The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill (pdf) aims to set up an “animal sentience committee” to ensure ministers take account of the welfare of animals as sentient beings when drawing up and implementing policy. The term “sentient beings” is not defined in the bill. “Animal” was initially defined as “any vertebrate other than homo sapiens,” but later amended in the House of Lords to include cephalopod mollusc and decapod crustacean—such as squids, crabs, and lobsters—following a study that found “strong” or “substantial” evidence of sentience in species belonging to the two groups. The study defined sentience as …