The European Commission has unveiled plans to ban all cages for farmed animals within six years, in decision hailed as historic.

       The UK government, which claims Britain’s animal welfare standards are the highest in the world, is now being urged to follow suit.

       The EU ban, which follows many years of campaigning by activists, will benefit more than 300 million hens, mother pigs, calves, rabbits, ducks, geese and other farmed animals every year.