Months of campaigning by European Jewish groups paid off in a series of votes at the European Parliament on Wednesday that have put shechitah (religious slaughter) on to its statute books.

Henry Grunwald, chairman of Shechitah UK, said: “This vote represents the first time that shechitah has been recognised as a legitimate form of animal slaughter by any European institution. We are working hard to achieve a satisfactory outcome when the final text comes before the Council of Ministers in June.”