Animal welfare groups are set to launch a major campaign in Britain in 2007 to outlaw the slaughter of horses for human consumption.

Backed by celebrities including Paul McCartney, Bo Derek, Clint Eastwood, Whoopi Goldberg, Keith Richards and Daryl Hannah the campaign is aiming to stop the deaths of up to 7,000 horses shot in two UK abattoirs.

The details of a report published following an Observer investigation are considered too gruesome for publication on the Equitour News website.

Any call for a ban on the slaughter of horses for meat in Britain is likely to face opposition from organisations that feel the ban would result in rescue centres being inundated with unwanted horses and horses being sent to unregulated slaughter houses overseas.

Tory MP James Gray who is president of the Association of British Riding Schools is reported as saying "The dangers is that people will find a way round. Whether we like it of not, there is a huge demand for the meat across the Channel".

The British Horseracing Board, which governs the horse racing industry, commented, 'We work closely with animal welfare groups like the RSPCA and the International League for the Protection of Horses. Unfortunately some horses need to be put down, for example if they are injured.

With some 4,000 horses retiring from racing each year the racing industry spends around £250,000 a year on retraining 90 horses. These horses are trained for polo, hunting and other activities but many are just not suitable for general riding.

Again the British Horseracing Board commented "'Our concern is simply they are put down in the most humane way possible. We do not have a view what happens after that."