This issue of the journal contains, for the first time, a Guest Editorial. This type of contribution, which is to be an occasional feature of the journal, is written at the invitation of the Editor-in-Chief and allows eminent outsiders to pass informed comment on current and controversial animal welfare problems. The first of these Guest Editorials is by David Bowles, the European Officer of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), and describes the background to and the present situation re the attempt by the European Community to ban the importation of furs obtained by the use of the leghold (gin) trap. He paints a somewhat gloomy picture of what happens when European animal welfare interests fall foul of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) obligations.