Newton Abbot MP fights for cats in major Westminster road law debate
Martin Wrigley has called for motorists to report collisions involving cats, joining a growing campaign to change the rules for pets killed on roads
A white cat called Ignatius D Flufflesworth has taken centre stage in a Westminster debate about the number of household pets killed on British roads.
“When I was elected, I promised to stand up for cats, and I am pleased to be able to do so,” said Newton Abbot’s Liberal Democrat MP Martin Wrigley, who led the debate.
He said the fluffy white cat belonged to his daughter, adding: “I know how much he means to her, and the idea of losing him to a car accident without knowing what happened does not bear thinking about.”
The cat, he said, rules the Wrigley household, allowing him to act as ‘feeder and door-opener’.
The debate centred on the responsibility of motorists to report the deaths of animals they hit with their cars.
The law requires drivers to stop and report collisions involving dogs, horses, cattle, pigs, donkeys, mules, goats and sheep, but it does not apply to cats.
A petition started by campaign group CatsMatter, which has attracted nearly 200,000 signatures, has been submitted to Parliament, calling for the law to be changed so that collisions involving cats must also be reported.
Mr Wrigley told fellow MPs: “I have always lived with cats and have lost several to being run over. Just a few weeks ago, a family member lost their cat, Comet, who was hit by a car in a residential cul-de-sac and just left there.
“As with every loss of a cat, they were devastated. Cats are not just companions, they are members of the family, so collisions should be reported.”
The animals on the list of those whose deaths must be reported are often classified as ‘working’, he said, while cats are not.
However, there are around 60,000 working farm cats nationwide, he added.
Other countries, including Italy and Hong Kong, have already changed their laws to include cats.
Several other MPs took part in the debate, including Adam Dance, the Liberal Democrat MP for Yeovil, who quoted one constituent as saying: “It just cannot be right that in 2026 the law allows cats to be hit by cars and left alone, scared and in pain on the roadside.”
Mr Wrigley summed up: “Cats should not be left to suffer at the roadside, and their owners should not spend years wondering what happened to them.”