DOG BREEDERS —
CRUELTY PROSECUTIONS
640. Hon
COLIN TINCKNELL to the Minister for Agriculture and Food:
Ample notice of this question has
been given.
(1) How many
prosecutions have there been in WA in the last five years against dog breeders
who have committed acts of cruelty that the proposed legislation will seek to
reduce?
(2) How many of
these instances were able to avoid prosecution due to the inadequacies of the
current legislation?
Hon
ALANNAH MacTIERNAN replied:
I thank the member for the question.
(1)–(2) I
apologise that this has been a little bit difficult—and the answer here
today is not ideal, either. Part of the difficulty is due to the member's
original question talking about the Dog Act, whereas, in fact, I think we are
talking here about something that comes under the Animal Welfare Act. The
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development is responsible for
the Animal Welfare Act, but it has entered into a memorandum of understanding
with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals by which the
RSPCA is responsible for the reports of cruelty to companion animals, including
investigating and prosecuting cruelty to dogs.
In the grant agreement, the RSPCA
is required to prepare an annual report to the department. That report details
the charge under the act and the outcome under the prosecutions. The Animal
Welfare Act does not set out specific offences in relation to dog breeders, so
the RSPCA is not asked to specify what offences have been committed by dog
breeders as opposed to other individuals in charge of dogs. The department says
it has no information relevant to this question, but I will direct the
department to get on the phone and contact the RSPCA and see whether we can
find that information for the member.