Submitted on Monday 26th June 2023
Rejected on Friday 30th June 2023
Current status: Rejected
Rejection code: irrelevant (see below for details)
dogs in hot cars to be a criminal offence and not viewed as a civil case
Enforce the animal welfare act. It is currently stated it is a criminal offence to cause unnecessary suffering to an animal by act or failure. Yet the police will not get involved and advise it is a civil matter for the RSPCA to investigate. The law should NOT be in the hands of a charity.
Recently 2 very different cases have happened, both resulting in the dogs dying in hot cars. In both cases the police dismiss the events stating it is only the RSPCA who can prosecute. This is a criminal offence and should NOT be relying soley on a charity. The police state it is a civil matter, yet the law states its a criminal offence. If the actions of a person directly cause suffering/death to an animal the police AND RSPCA should enforce appropriate penalties as per current legislation
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The Government e-Petitions Team gave the following reason:
We understand you're concerned about the welfare of dogs in hot weather, however the Animal Welfare Act 2006 already makes it an offence if a person causes, by act or omission, an animal to suffer. This would cover suffering caused by taking a dog for a walk in excessive heat.
The Government's code of practice for the welfare of dogs, which provides owners and keepers with information on how to meet the welfare needs of their animals, and can be used in courts as evidence in cases brought before them relating to poor welfare, specifically highlights the risks of heat stress: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/697953/pb13333-cop-dogs-091204.pdf
Decisions about investigating alleged animal welfare offences and prosecuting these are a matter for the police and Crown Prosecution Service, not the Government or House of Commons.
If you are concerned about how police in your area respond to reports of animal cruelty, you could raise these concerns with your Police and Crime Commissioner, who is responsible for overseeing policing in your area. You can find contact details for your Police and Crime Commissioner here: www.apccs.police.uk/find-your-pcc/
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