Gildernew nearing end of review of animal welfare legislation

Minister Michelle Gildernew MP MLA, has made a statement to the Assembly on animal welfare legislation.

The Minister stated that she endorsed the Assembly Motion, which called for a review of animal welfare legislation. The Minister outlined to the Assembly the actions that her department has already taken with regard to animal welfare legislation, which included undertaking a review of existing legislation and considering lessons learned from Britain, following the introduction of legislation there.

The Minister also said that she was anxious to see the outcome of legislative proposals on animal welfare currently being discussed in the South.

Speaking after her statement the Minister said: “The welfare of animals is something that I have always been passionately concerned about. During 2008 I engaged with a number of local key stakeholders to hear at first hand their concerns on current animal welfare legislation and how their concerns might be addressed.”

The Minister added that valuable lessons had also been learned from the recent welfare cases that have been highlighted in the media, she said: “A detailed review of animal welfare legislation is drawing to a close. I will examine all the evidence presented to me and will then consider the scope for new animal welfare legislation in the North, in line with the resources that are available.”

Notes to Editors

1. Animal welfare is governed by the Welfare of Animals Act (Northern Ireland) 1972. Part I of the legislation provides for the welfare of livestock. Part II of the Act deals with the licensing of petshops, animal boarding, riding and zoological establishments. Part III of the Act covers the protection of all animals and makes it an offence to cause unnecessary suffering or to be cruel to animals. It is also an offence if the owner of an animal fails to exercise reasonable care and supervision so as to prevent unnecessary suffering to an animal.
2. In addition, the Welfare of Farmed Animals Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000, as amended, sets out minimum standards for all farmed animals and provides a framework for species-specific standards. This legislation requires that owners and keepers of farm animals must take all reasonable steps to ensure the welfare of their animals, and to ensure that they are not caused any unnecessary pain, suffering, injury or distress.
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