The move comes as a group of prominent Britons - including Jane Goodall, Joanna Lumley, Judi Dench and Ricky Gervais - sent a letter to Prime Minister Theresa May urging her to ban the import and sale of animal fur in Britain. The letter, endorsed by animal groups such as Humane Society International, Four Paws and PETA, says: "Mrs May, the animal fur arriving in British ports is from animals who have suffered a lifetime in tiny barren cages, often driven insane by neglect. "It is from animals who have been brutally electrocuted or gassed, and sometimes even skinned alive. It is from animals caught and left for days in barbaric leg-hold traps. "They endure all of this to then have their fur processed into a frivolous trim on a hat, coat, shoe or handbag. We should not trade on their suffering." It concludes: "Like you, we want Britain to be a ‘world leader on animal welfare’, so we urge you make the compassionate decision for a #FurFreeBritain."

A raccoon dog in a cage at a fur farm in China. Credit:Humane Society International Versace has traditionally included fur from a variety of species, including mink and fox, across its ranges. In response to Donatella Versace's announcement, Nicola Beynon, Humane Society International's Head of Campaigns in Australia, said: "Versace is a massively influential luxury brand that symbolises excess and glamour, and so its decision to stop using fur shows that compassionate fashion has never been more on trend. "Versace is following in the footsteps of fellow fashion giants Gucci and Michael Kors who have dropped fur in the last six months. "Such influential brands turning their backs on cruel fur makes the few designers like Fendi and Burberry who are still peddling fur look increasingly out of touch and isolated.”

Loading Four Paws Australia, the Australian representative of the Fur Free Alliance’s Fur Free Retailer Program also commend the move. “Versace’s decision is good news for ethical consumers in Australia as it provides them with another guaranteed fur-free brand to shop from,” country director of Four Paws Australia, Jeroen van Kernebeek, said. "People may not realise that trims and collars from real animal fur are prevalent in Australia in both high-end fashion and mass-market products. "Due to inadequate labelling laws, the cruel products are not always easy to distinguish from their synthetic cruelty-free alternatives so Four Paws Australia encourages consumers to check the Australian Fur Free Retailers list of guaranteed fur-free brands and retailers."

The Fur Free Alliance is a coalition of more than 40 animal protection organisations working together to end the fur trade. Activists of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) hold placards reading, in Italian, from left, "Rabbits' fur does not belong to you" and "Rabbits suffer because of fur and angora", in Milan last month. Credit:AP PETA Australia spokeswoman Emma Hurst said that the group was "delighted that Versace is joining the ever-growing list of luxury brands that recognise that being associated with the fur industry makes them look totally out of touch". "Thanks to technological advances that have resulted in an abundance of new eco-fabrics on the market – from pineapple leather to down alternatives – the future of fashion is vegan. We now look to local designer Vicky Mar and to KOOKAÏ to follow the example of ethically driven designers by also pledging to ditch the use of fur. "Major Australian organisations and brands such as Anglicare, Vinnies, Kym Ellery, David Jones, and Myer now have fur-free policies.

"Mink lash purveyors are the prevalent fur pushers ... and PETA will continue to target those designers who insist on living in the last century. "There is nothing glamorous about killing animals for their fur. The fur trade is a violent, bloody industry. Trapping, beating, drowning and ripping animals' skins from their bodies for vanity is indefensible. Cruelty to animals is never in fashion. "Day in and day out, life for animals on fur farms is hell. They spend their entire lives imprisoned in small, bare mesh cages. Minks are usually killed by gassing or lethal injection. Foxes are usually electrocuted by electrodes attached to their mouths and genitals. Often the anal probe falls out during electrocution, and when this happens, the animals convulse, shake, and often cry. Their teeth may break and fall out. They eventually die from the excruciating force of a massive heart attack." Loading Last October, Gucci announced it would no longer use animal fur, beginning with its spring/summer 2018 collection.

"Being socially responsible is one of Gucci's core values, and we will continue to strive to do better for the environment and animals," Gucci's president and chief executive Marco Bizzarri said during the 2017 Kering Talk at The London College of Fashion. Other top designers that have banned fur from their collections include Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Stella McCartney, Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani, Vivienne Westwood and Tommy Hilfiger.