Northern Territory Second Reading Speeches

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ANIMAL WELFARE BILL 1999

Bill presented and read a first time.

Mrs BRAHAM (Local Government): Mr Speaker, I move the bill be now read a second time.

I have pleasure in introducing the Animal Welfare Bill 1999 into the House. Society’s interaction with and its dependence upon animals is well recognised. Animals provide essential companionship for many people of all ages. Animals interact with people in many recreational and sporting fields and animals are an essential part of the food chain for most of us. Animals have also been indispensable in the development of many medical and scientific advances. There is an concomitant responsibility upon us to ensure the welfare of animals is well provided for.

Public awareness of animal welfare needs, the consideration and the requirements of animals in our care are both important elements. So too, is an effective legislative framework. To this end, the Northern Territory has been reasonably well-served by the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act since its adoption in 1935. However, it has been recognised for some time that this legislation should be recast and updated. It should have an emphasis more on animal welfare and care rather than just the focus on prevention of cruelty. Following the release in 1995 of a government policy statement on animal welfare legislation, there was considerable community interest and feed back. Public consultative meetings were held in all regional centres. From these processes the frame-work for a new animal welfare legislation was developed.

There is a very widespread of interest represented in the overall field of animal welfare. These include that the animal welfare organisation such as the RSPCA, companion animal representative groups, the livestock industry, professional organisations such as the Australian Veterinarian Association, Rodeo Horse and Dog racing interests, Local Government Council, with respect to urban dog management, Wildlife Conservation Protection and Management, Research in teaching involving animals, commercial and recreational fishing, wildlife parks, zoos and circuses, and this list is not exhausted.

I want to outline the main elements of the proposed legislation. The objectives of the act will be to ensure that animals are treated humanely, prevent cruelty to animals and promote public awareness about the welfare of animals. The act will cover all species of vertebrate animals - that is those with a spinal column. Whilst this description includes fish, only fish in captivity or dependent upon persons for food are covered by the proposed act. Thus recreational fishing and commercial fishing will not be covered by the act.

A range of offences are identified in the act. These include neglect of, or failure to care for, an animal; cruelty to an animal; failure to obtain veterinarian treatment for a sick or injured animal or to take reasonable action to alleviate suffering; abandonment; failure to provide appropriate food, drink or shelter; tail docking in some circumstances; unreasonable confinement and tethering; failure to provide for appropriate exercise; transportation of animals which causes unreasonable or unnecessary suffering; transporting dogs unsecured on vehicles on public streets; failure to take reasonable action to alleviate the suffering of animal which the person has injured; administering poison to an animal unless authorised by law eg baiting of vermin; using traps with serrated steel jaws, unless authorised; using electrical devices improperly on an animal, and using spurs with sharpened or fixed rails; and participating in animal fighting or blooding of greyhounds.

The act will provide for the adoption of codes of practice. It is proposed that these will be developed by the Animal Welfare Advisory Committee in conjunction with community representatives with expertise in each area. The codes will require ministerial approval. They will set out the best practice for animal management and provide benchmarking standards. That will require the minister to appoint a public sector officer to be the animal welfare authority. This is likely to be the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Local Government. The authority will have a number of responsibilities under the act including the appointment of inspectors and the licensing of persons to conduct teaching or research involving animals.

Where it is proposed to use premises for teaching or research involving animals, a license will be required. Certain conditions will have to be met to ensure best practices are maintained in respect of animals. Animal welfare ethics committees will be required to monitor such activities; I might add that this already happens at the Northern Territory University for example. Persons involved in these activities will require a permit for their work from the Ethics Committee. Provisions are included in the act regarding applying for a licence or permit; how applications should be considered and how they may be rejected or approved. An appeal mechanism is included. These provisions regarding teaching or research will not apply to animals kept as pets in classrooms.

Provision is made in the act for the appointment of animal welfare inspectors who will usually be RSPCA persons. It will also be possible to appoint certain veterinarians to be animal welfare officers; they’ll be able to inspect teaching or research premises. Inspectors and officers are termed authorised persons in the act; they’ll be issued with ID cards and will be required to show them when exercising their powers. They will be able to demand a person’s name and address. Powers of entry will be available to authorised persons together with standard procedures and safeguards. Where an authorised person believes there is a neglected, injured or diseased animal, the person will be able to take any necessary action to alleviate the suffering including seizing the animal. Authorised persons will be able to enter onto Aboriginal land for the purpose of exercising their powers. Finally, where an authorised person inspects commercial premises, a written report must be provided by the person to the occupier within 30 days.

The act will require the minister to establish an Animal Welfare Advisory Committee. The committee will be comprised of representatives of various animal related activities. It will be able to advise the minister on animal welfare matters and review and recommend codes of practice. The time for commencing court proceedings under the current act is 1 month, which is restrictive. It is sometimes not possible to gather the necessary evidence and prepare a complaint for the court within such a short period. In the new legislation, this period will be extended to 12 months.

Penalties proposed will increase from the current $200 to a maximum of 100 penalty units for most offences. At $100 per penalty unit, this amounts to a maximum fine of $10 000. Alternatively, a court could impose a sentence of up to 12 months imprisonment. Infringement notices or on the spot fines may be issued by authorised persons for some offences. The courts will also be able to make orders in addition to penalties in respect of a person convicted for an animal welfare offence. These are orders may include a ban on the person owning or caring for animals for a specified time. It is intended to offer to the RSPCA a provision in the act whereby the monetary penalty imposed in an animal welfare case initiated by the RSPCA will be remitted to the RSPCA. This should offset some of the costs incurred in pursuing legal actions.

Certain defences will be available under the act, for example, where a person acts in accordance with an adopted code of practice. Also, where a person seeks to alleviate the suffering of an animal and the act is reasonable in the circumstances, then this will be accepted as a defence.

The minister will be able to grant exceptions to a person or class of persons from complying with the act. Also, an animal or class of animals may be exempt from certain provisions of the act.

The provisions in the bill are the result of long consultations and on-going dialogue with many persons and organisations. I will ensure the bill is widely circulated so that the community is aware of proposals and will have an opportunity to comment on its provisions before the bill is debated during the next sittings of this House.

Mr Speaker, I commend the bill to honourable members for their consideration.

Debate adjourned.

 

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