A cross-party group of 18 MPs and one peer has written to defence minister Luke Pollard calling for the real bear fur used in the King's Guard's ceremonial caps to be replaced with a faux alternative, arguing the practice no longer meets "today's ethical standards". The letter says continued use of Canadian bearskin is "impossible to justify" and urges the Ministry of Defence to work with suppliers to develop a suitable synthetic replacement, reviving a campaign that has run for more than two decades and drawn support from figures such as Stephen Fry.

The MPs, from Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party, want orders for real bearskin suspended while a faux-fur substitute is developed, citing bears being shot with crossbows and cubs being orphaned as a result of the trade. Each cap costs more than £2,000, and animal rights group Peta says orders have risen more than fourfold since Labour took office. Pollard has said he personally wants to move to artificial materials but that no alternative yet meets required standards for water resistance, drying rate, appearance and compression; the MoD maintains the pelts come from legal, licensed hunts in Canada.