This Morning Guest Wants Ban On Cats, Holly Willoughby Was Having None Of It

ITV

A guest on This Morning spoke about her support to have a ban on cats in the UK, and presenter Holly Willoughby was not on board. 

Sally Jones appeared on the show today (September 27) alongside some adorably fluffy kittens to try and convince viewers it’s a good idea for cats to be banned from going outside.

Sally said that she isn’t so much supportive of an entire cat ban, but would like to see cats being prevented from killing birds and small mammals.

When asked how people could go about preventing their cats from killing other animals, Sally suggested cats should be kept inside.

Check out her interview here:

The guest described cats as ‘natural born killers’, and went on to give statistics on how other animals are affected by the felines.

She said:

They are absolutely beautiful but they’re also natural born killers; 55 million birds, something like 275 million small mammals [are killed by cats].

Sally added that humans are also partly to blame for a drop in the population of birds, saying we are ‘one of the worst culprits of depriving birds of their habitats’.

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Holly was quick to jump to the defence of cats while stroking one of the tiny grey kittens that had been brought on to the sofa.

She argued:

But we do have a relationship with these animals. They are our pets, they come into our homes.

A lot of people will say that their pets keep them calm, they help them deal with anxiety, they help the family understand what it’s like with the first thing of bereavement, with a pet that dies.

It’s brilliant for so many other things.

Sally seemed to agree that having pets has benefits, but asked why cats have to be let outside where they can hunt.

Holly responded, ‘it’s nature, are we not interfering with nature?’

Phil didn’t weigh in, and instead just seemed content with playing with another of the tiny cats throughout Sally and Holly’s discussion.

Sally suggested controlling cats’ adventures by only letting them outside in netted runs, and said monitoring them would be an easy solution to prevent the killing of birds and small mammals.

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Sally’s interview followed the news that a town in New Zealand is banning residents from getting cats in the hopes of restoring the native birds.

The British public wasted no time in having their say, with many taking to social media to share their opinions on the cat ban.

One person brought science into play, writing:

Banning cats? Hmmm, as someone with 4, they catch rats, mice and yes birds, but then if we are to believe “the survival of the fittest” line, aren’t cats doing nature a favour by ensuring only the strong survive?

Another defended the furry felines, exclaiming:

Ban cats!? NEVER! If you’ve never owned one you have no idea how much love and happiness they bring to your home.

A third wrote:

this is ridiculous, cats are doing what they are born to do. Cats are not the only culprits. We cannot keep cats indoors we do not own the planet they are animals and have as much right as us.

I think I’m with Holly on this one – my cat might drool on me when I pet her, but I wouldn’t want to put a ban on her!

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Emily Brown

Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.