Jane Dalton writes for The Independent, where she's built up a reputation for exposing animal abuse in its various guises, and she's now a novelist, too.
She introduces herself:
'When I was in my early twenties and I started to become aware of various animal rights issues, my sister and I went vegetarian at the same time. To our delight, our parents were supportive and also gave up meat. My Dad, 92, is now semi-pescatarian, semi-vegan!
In my first job as a reporter, on the Dover Express, it was my Dad who encouraged me to write about the live exports he saw at the town's docks. I turned a feature into a fully fledged campaign against the trade, thanks to a supportive editor. Our team took a petition to Brussels and staged meetings and demonstrations at the port.
Later, my career included spells at the BBC, The Sunday Times, where I was Regional Editor, and The Daily and Sunday Telegraph. At The Telegraph, I wrote a review of a book about the unforgettable story of Judy, the dog who became a Second World War lifesaving hero - a book that moved me to tears.
After the Telegraph made its sub-editors, me included, redundant, I went back to reporting, and at The Independent have made animal welfare something of a specialism, albeit balanced with a wide variety of other news stories.
At some point along the way - I forget when - I became vegan. I haven't taken a flight for many years because of the climate.
I studied French and Russian at university but my languages are now rusty.'
Here Jane answers my questions.
Linda: Was there any particular animal issue, or any particular influence, that prompted you and your sister to become vegetarian in your twenties?
Jane: I know that when I was very young – maybe about seven – learning where leather came from was the most horrific thing I’d learnt in my life. My Mum was a passionate fundraiser for Save the Children, and we had cats (Siamese) when I was growing up, both of which were illustrations of our parents’ compassion. I think I sensed, too, that my Dad wasn’t keen on meat. As a student I told someone I was thinking of going veggie and he said, “But meat’s too nice to give up,” and I thought “Actually, no it’s not.”
Linda: Had it always been your intention to become a journalist?
Jane: No. As a girl, I wanted to become either a novelist or an architect, but was put off the latter by the seven years of training. I thought I could never be a journalist because I didn’t have the confidence and wouldn’t know the right questions to ask. Even after leaving university, I didn’t know what I was going to do. I then went on work experience to my local paper and they asked me back.
Linda: Working on the Dover Express, did you see first-hand the cruelties of live animal exports from the town docks? How did you go about launching your campaign? It's since been taken up by the RSPCA and by Compassion in World Farming - and has been a key campaign by CIWF, with backing from their high-profile supporters such as Joanna Lumley, Deborah Meaden and Peter Egan, and at last a ban on live exports from the UK has passed into law. That does show the power of campaigning, but also how much time and determination it takes for the law to change. There must have been times when you despaired that a ban would ever become reality?
Jane: I did, and the sight of the lorries crammed with living animals made me both incredibly angry and sad. I was extremely lucky to have an editor who was very supportive of our campaign – he seemed to know that it both would have the backing of readers and was also the right thing to do. We staged several demonstrations at the docks and held public meetings in the town to organise the next steps. Joanna Lumley was a supporter from the start – I remember meeting her at a protest outside Parliament once. You’re right – the ban on live exports does highlight the power of persistent campaigning. For a long time, successive governments blamed EU membership for their supposed inability to introduce a ban, so I did despair. So often, it seems those with the most power are the least willing to instigate change to prevent suffering. In the end, a ban on live exports was one of the few – if not the only - positive change(s) to emerge from Brexit.
Linda: With your varied and impressive experience in journalism, you now have an influential role at The Independent and have become an important voice in raising awareness of animal matters. Have you shaped that role for yourself, or was it something The Independent was particularly looking for?
Jane: The Independent definitely wasn’t looking for someone likeme. I shaped the role for myself, though I’m not sure how influential I am! I’m not able to devote all my working time to animal-welfare issues – I’m still needed for everyday general news coverage – but I like that. It helps keep me sane.
Linda: Do you have a fairly free rein at The Independent - can you cover any animal issue that comes to your attention?
Jane: No, I first have to pitch every story idea to the news editors for them to approve before I spend any time working on it. And ideas that aren’t strong enough don’t make it. But I don’t take the permission for granted – most newspapers and media outlets don’t do anything like the breadth of coverage that we do, so I’m appreciative of being able to expose animal-welfare horrors in between writing other general news stories.
Caption: pigs lying on concrete on an 'RSPCA Assured' farm. Photo credit: Animal Rising
Linda: You've covered important stories such as the recent exposures of cruelty on farms accredited by the RSPCA Assured scheme, and the links between rainforest destruction and crops such as soya imported to feed animals in this country, including those whose meat is stocked by major supermarkets and food outlets. In this role you really are in a position to raise awareness (and thank you!) Is there any story you feel has been particularly influential in this way - bringing something to readers' attention and beginning to change attitudes?
Jane: The stories exposing cruelty or neglect behind closed doors in slaughterhouses or on farms have the most impact on readers, it seems. The investigators who use hidden cameras or go undercover must take all the credit. I have enormous admiration and respect for people who have compassion for living beings yet choose to witness cruelty and torture like that. In some cases, supermarkets and the RSPCA have suspended suppliers based on those findings. It should mean the farms or abattoirs improve their practices – at least until the next time.
The story like that that got most attention was about goats being punched, hit, kicked and roughly treated at a big brand selling goat milk and cheese. It was the only time an animal-welfare story made our front-page splash, and I was interviewed on Radio 4’s PM programme about it. I’ve covered similar cruelty to pigs, chickens and cows, and the stories haven’t had the same coverage. I guess goats have more of a “cute” factor.
Linda: Most of us who campaign for animals are used to receiving hostility from people with vested interests, e.g. hunting and shooting supporters or meat-producing farmers - but in your role you're more prominent than most. Is this something you experience, and how does it affect you?
Jane: I’ve had a few comments on social media but luckily not too many. I am extremely careful about what I write on social media – I generally avoid using emotive language and I let the facts speak for themselves. I’m easily upset by criticism, unfortunately, and I don’t like confrontation so I don’t get involved in arguing online.
Caption: What's happening here? These are male chicks about to be ground up alive. This is the unseen price of eggs. Male chicks are surplus to requirements so are discarded. Does this sound 'humane'?
Linda: It's absolutely clear to anyone following the climate science that we have to reduce our dependence on animal agriculture - but still, to far too many people, any suggestion of cutting down on meat and dairy is seen as outrageous interference. Do you think there's any hope of shifting attitudes to food on the scale required, and quickly enough to avoid catastrophic climate change and nature loss?
Jane: This is an honest answer but not the done thing: At the moment, no – attitudes aren’t shifting anywhere near quickly enough. I think we’ll have to have more catastrophes such as late October’s dreadful flooding in Spain and/or some other seismic shift in policy by one of the world’s most influential powers before governments worldwide start adopting any changes serious enough to bring about change. I suspect it will have to involve carbon capture and storage alongside rapidly ending industrial factory farming and reducing flights.
Linda: Anyone who campaigns for animals can't avoid seeing gut-wrenching reports and images of cruelty. Is there something that particularly upsets you? How do you cope with that, and keep yourself motivated?
Jane: It’s a good question. We do it because it needs to be done, and thinking that I’m doing even a tiny little bit towards ending wrongdoing and suffering is rewarding. I can’t in all honesty say I enjoy discovering such horrific things but when I report on them, I try not to think about how it felt for that particular pig, fox, monkey, elephant or other creature. I think I close off that part of my brain to be able to cope.
Linda: Finally: your first novel, With Love from the Afterlife, will be published next year by Unbound - congratulations, and I'll look forward to reading it! What led to this venture into fiction - is it something you've always wanted to do? (And how did you find time for it alongside your day job ... ?) Are your animal and environmental concerns reflected in the attitudes of your fictional characters? Will this be a one-off, or are you already working on a second novel?
Jane: Thank you very much! I’d always wanted to write novels and started on my first one when I was eight. I wrote the bulk of With Love from the Afterlife while I was working and commuting full-time (I now work part-time from home) so goodness knows how I found time. I hardly ever cleaned the house and in the evenings I wrote instead of watching television. I also did a lot of editing during my commutes.
With Love from the Afterlife is about people, and is entirely separate from the issues I report on. However, there is one animal with a walk-on part – but you’ll have to read it to find out about that!
I’m working on a second novel, which is very different in style and subject matter from the first but I’m very excited about it. It’s very contemporary and linked to international current affairs but from an unusual point of view.
Linda: Thanks so much, Jane, for answering my questions. Keep on exposing these cruel realities, and good luck with the novel - we'll see you soon to talk about that over at Writers Review!
With Love from the Afterlife can be pre-ordered using this link.
