75 MPs Demand Probe into Welfare of 15 Gentoo Penguins Kept in Windowless Sea Life London Exhibit

MPs call for urgent investigation into penguin welfare at Sea Life London Aquarium

Seventy-five British MPs have written an open letter to the environment minister asking for an investigation into the living conditions of 15 Gentoo penguins housed at the Sea Life London Aquarium. Animal welfare groups say some of the birds have spent years in a windowless space and that a number may never have seen the sky.

What activists say
Charities Born Free and Freedom for Animals have raised concerns about an enclosure that reportedly contains a pool roughly two metres (six feet) deep and provides no access to outdoor space or natural daylight. Freedom for Animals highlighted two birds, Polly and Ratchet, as having spent "14 years underground," and said others, including Gilbert and Ziggy, "have never seen the sky." A petition organized by the charities drew more than 37,000 signatures before MPs sent their letter.

"It is un-British to keep penguins trapped in a basement with no daylight or fresh air," said David Taylor, the Labour MP who coordinated the letter.

What MPs are asking for

MPs urged the environment department to look into the situation "in light of the growing public concern" and to intervene if the investigation finds welfare standards are not being met. The letter expresses "deep concern" for the birds' welfare and calls for transparency about their care and living conditions.

Sea Life and government response

A spokesperson for Merlin Entertainments, which owns Sea Life, said the penguin exhibit is on the ground floor and that the space is designed to reproduce the birds' natural habitat as far as possible. The statement said the enclosure meets zoo welfare standards and that a team of conservationists, animal welfare specialists and aquarists care for the penguins daily to ensure they are healthy and thriving.

A Downing Street spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the government takes "animal welfare extremely seriously." Sea Life also notes the London Aquarium receives more than one million visitors each year.

Context

Gentoo penguins are native to subantarctic islands and parts of Antarctica; they are strong swimmers and often kept in aquaria around the world. The Sea Life facility first introduced the orange-beaked penguins to the London public in 2011.

Next steps: The environment department has been asked to investigate; the outcome and any required action will depend on that review.