While there’s still a way to go, it’s a welcome first step and places an important spotlight on a crucial issue. At the moment, it is up to operators like us to decide which activities and experiences involving animals we sell and advertise in the UK.

It’s a complex issue to understand and get right. Legislation will make it easier to navigate, but in the meantime the onus is on us to do the right thing, and I would encourage anyone who is part of the decision-making process to step up to avoid causing needless suffering and distress to the animals our clients will encounter on their travels with us.

I’m a life-long animal lover, and promoting animal welfare has been central to the fabric of our business from the get-go. The pandemic saw so many beautiful creatures reclaim habitats and public spaces across the world – I’ll never forget how special it was to see footage of elusive big cats relaxing in South Africa, families of wild boar playing in Israel, and even the bold Kashmiri goats wandering the streets of Llandudno.

How we think about, and respect, every member of the animal kingdom is critical to their survival; we have a huge responsibility towards those who don’t have a voice.

Now our head count has significantly increased, and we are operating in 70 countries across all seven continents, it is vital everyone on the team – particularly in product and contracting – understands our position and upholds it.

It has since been formalised into a written policy and is a key component of the onboarding process for every team member. This seemingly small but critical step has been integral to distilling our position as we have grown. We’re pleased to see more team members choosing to join us and customers choosing to work with us because of these values.

At Luxtripper, we assess every experience we sell that involves animals, and every hotel that houses animals in their property or on its grounds, through a strict set of principles. The number one principle is that animals should never be there to entertain tourists – we are visiting their world, not the other way around. They should always be free to roam and never be touched, fed or washed by tourists.

‘Learning together’

Animal sanctuaries are vetted to ensure they are home to genuine rescue animals that are not sourced from the wild, commercial trading, or through captive breeding. We only work with responsible partners that are skilled in helping customers observe wildlife in their natural habitat at a respectful distance. This is the baseline, but so much more goes on behind the scenes.

The same applies to observing marine life, which must be done from a safe and respectable distance, and without impact on the habitat. Swimming with dolphins, whales or whale sharks is permitted, but only if conducted at a respectable distance and led by marine biologists who know these animals well. Many of our hotel partners have research and conservation centres on-site, and we will always encourage our customers to visit and learn as much as they can.

When you’re an operator that sells the world, animal protection and conservation across thousands of activities is a constantly evolving process. Each destination has different species and different ways of protecting and conserving them. Every new region and partnership involves research, and our careful vetting process is applied before making a decision as to whether it fits.

If it doesn’t, we feed back as to why, so our partners understand what we and our customers are looking for. We do the same with our customers who request experiences we don’t sell to help them see why they aren’t ethical – it’s not always clear, and we’re all here to learn together.

The new bill would have a significant impact on the safety and conservation of animals across the world. With around eight million UK residents travelling abroad every month, the UK tourism market is too big to ignore, and this bill would precipitate a shift to more sustainable, ethical and kind practices that allow us to interact with the animals of this planet in a way that benefits us all.

Nena Chaletzos is chief executive of Luxtripper.