Explanatory Memorandum

Transcription

1 IN THE KEYS DOGS (AMENDMENT) BILL 2016 Explanatory Memorandum 1. This Bill is promoted by Minister Geoffrey Boot, M.H.K. on behalf of the Department of Environment, Food and Agriulture. 2. Clauses 1-3 deal, respetively, with the Short Title, Commenement and Expiry of the resulting At. 3. Clause 4 stipulates that the remainder of the Bill sets out the details of the amendments made to the Dogs At Clause 5 repeals and replaes Part I of the Dogs At The existing Part I provides for liensing of dogs. This regime is replaed with a regime on mirohipping of dogs, whih is what the new Part I provides for. The new Part I ontains new setions 1-5, whih respetively provide as follows (a) The new setion 1 (Obligation to mirohip dogs and abolition of liensing regime) imposes an obligation to mirohip dogs and also abolishes the dog liensing regime. Every dog owner is required to ensure that eah dog he or she owns is mirohipped, provided the dog is at least 8 weeks old. The mirohipping must be done by a qualified person and the mirohip implanted in the dog must meet presribed requirements. Possession of a dog, aged 8 weeks or older, that is not mirohipped is an offene of strit liability. This means that the mere fat that the dog is not mirohipped is suffiient basis for a onvition and the defendant s state of mind at the relevant time is immaterial. A person who keeps a dog with the onsent of the owner stands in plae of the owner for the purposes of the requirement to ensure that the dog is mirohipped and therefore is in jeopardy of being proseuted for failure to mirohip. (b) The new setion 2 (Defenes) presribes defenes to a harge for an offene under setion 1. It is a defene to prove that the dog in question was imported into the Island less than 30 days before the person was harged with the offene, or that the dog was examined by a veterinarian and the findings upon examination were that mirohipping would pose a danger to the dog s health. In the ase of the veterinarian s examination the person has to produe a ertifiate to that effet from the veterinarian, and the ertifiate must state the period during whih mirohipping would be hazardous to the dog s health. () The new setion 3 (Duties in respet of databases) imposes a requirement on the keeper (i.e. either the owner or a person keeping the dog with the owner s onsent) of a mirohipped dog to promptly enter presribed information on an approved database. The information on the database must be updated within 21 days of any hange, and the original owner (in

2 Explanatory Memorandum Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 ase of hange of ownership of the dog) will be held aountable for any failure to update the information. The new setion 3 also empowers the Department to require a database operator to furnish it with suh information as it onsiders neessary for its administration of the At. Further, the Department is empowered to presribe onditions to be met by database operators, information to be entered into databases by keepers, details regarding the information the Department may require database operators to furnish it with, and that failure to furnish required information is an offene punishable on summary onvition by a penalty that the Department may also presribe (in aordane with the guidelines presribed in the Summary Jurisdition At 1989 and any other relevant legislation). The setion ends by making it an offene for keepers to fail to update information on databases or to fraudulently or negligently enter inaurate information in a database. (d) The new setion 4 (Power to seize dogs) authorises a onstable, dog warden or authorised offier to seize any dog found outside the urtilage of a dwelling house, and authorises different treatment of the dog depending on whether or not it has been mirohipped. If it has not been, it is to be treated as a stray dog in aordane with Part III of the At. If it has been, then the information on the database is to be used to ontat the keeper and time is to be given for the keeper to retrieve the dog. A 50 fee is presribed for a keeper who retrieves the dog within 3 hours of being notified. If, however, attempts to ontat the keeper have been unsuessful, or the keeper refuses to pay the 50 fee for late retrieval of the dog, or the keeper has not retrieved the dog within 3 hours, the dog may be treated as a stray. (e) The new setion 5 (Attempts to ollet unidentifiable dog) provides for ases where a person omes to retrieve a dog on whih there are no visible means of identifiation, whih was not mirohipped, and whih was seized within the urtilage of dwelling house. In suh a situation the person must give his or her name and address to the onstable, dog warden or authorised offier, who may demand that the person furnish additional information to substantiate his or her laim to the dog. One this has been satisfatorily done, the dog may be released in aordane with setion 15 (Release of dog). Failure to furnish name and address under this setion is made a summary offene. 5. Clause 6 amends setion 7 (Registration of guard dog kennels) by updating ross-referenes to related primary legislation. 6. Clause 7 amends setion 13 (Notie to be given to polie) so as to exempt from the operation of setion 13 in ases where mirohipped dogs have been returned to their owners. The amendment removes referenes to lienes, and requires onstables to serve a notie on a person who omes to laim a dog that has not been mirohipped. The notie is to require the person to ensure that the dog is mirohipped within 7 days of reeipt of the notie or fae proseution in default. Page ii

3 Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 Explanatory Memorandum 7. Clause 8 amends setion 14 (Disposal of strays) to make referene to the requirement to ensure that a dog in whih ownership is being transferred is mirohipped. 8. Clause 9 amends setion 15 (Release of dog) to make referene to the requirement to mirohip dogs. 9. Clause 10 amends setion 19 (Dogs ausing danger, nuisane et) by updating ross-referenes to related primary legislation. 10. Clause 11 amends setion 25 (Duty to give name and address) by deleting the referene to the existing setion 4(2), whih will no longer exist based on the Bill s proposed repeal and replaement of the existing Part I. 11. Clause 12 amends setion 27A (Fixed penalties) by substituting the words proseuted for for onvited of (so as to make the provision onsistent with the presumption of innoene) and by removing ross-referenes to internal provisions that will no longer exist onsequent on the proposed repeal and replaement of Part I. Clause 12 also amends subsetion (3) of setion 27A to larify that if the penalty is paid in full before 14 days following the date of the notie, then proeedings will not be ommened at all. It further larifies that if the penalty is not paid in full, proeedings annot be ommened before those 14 days have elapsed. 12. Clause 13 amends setion 28 (Orders, regulations and byelaws) by deleting subsetion (1) and substituting a broader enabling power for the making of regulations. 13. Clause 14 amends setion 29 (Meaning of keeper ) by repealing subsetions (5) and (6), both of whih will be rendered obsolete by the introdution of the requirement to mirohip dogs. 14. Clause 15 amends setion 30 (Interpretation) by deleting speified terms and their definitions and inserting new terms and orresponding definitions. 15. Clause 16 repeals Shedule The resulting At is not expeted have any human resoures impliations, but is expeted to result in a modest loss of revenue for the Isle of Man Post Offie, the Treasury and the Department. However the antiipated loss of revenue is too small to be onsidered material and is justified due to the need to replae the urrent system, whih is outdated and ineffetive. 17. In the opinion of the member moving the Bill its provisions are ompatible with the Convention rights within the meaning of the Human Rights At Page iii

4

5 Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 Index e DOGS (AMENDMENT) BILL 2016 Index Setion Page 1 Short title Commenement Expiry Amendment of the Dogs At Repeal and replaement of Part I Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Amendment of setion 27A Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Amendment of setion Repeal of Shedule Page 5

6

7 Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 Setion 0 e DOGS (AMENDMENT) BILL A BILL to amend the Dogs At 1990 to impose a requirement for every dog on the Island to have implanted in it a mirohip; to require the keeper of every dog on the Island to ensure that the dog is mirohipped; to abolish the liensing and duty regime for dogs on the Island; and for onneted purposes. BE IT ENACTED by the Queen s Most Exellent Majesty, by and with the advie and onsent of the Counil and Keys in Tynwald assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: Short title The short title of this At is the Dogs (Amendment) At Commenement (1) This At, other than setion 1 and this setion, omes into operation on suh day or days as the Department of Environment, Food and Agriulture ( the Department ) may by order appoint. (2) An order under subsetion (1) may ontain suh inidental, transitional and transitory provisions as the Department onsiders appropriate. 3 Expiry (1) This At expires (a) on the day after its promulgation if all of its provisions are in operation on its promulgation; or (b) otherwise, on the day after the last provision is brought into operation. (2) Despite subsetion (1), the expiry does not (a) revive any provision, whih this At amends, as the provision operated before the amendment ommened; 23 Page 7

8 Setion 4 Dogs (Amendment) Bill (b) () (d) revive anything not in operation or existing when the amendment took effet; affet the ontinuing operation of the amendment; or revive any provision repealed by the earlier operation of this At Amendment of the Dogs At 1990 The Dogs At 1990 is amended as follows. 5 Repeal and replaement of Part I Delete Part I and substitute the following PART I MICROCHIPPING OF DOGS 1 Obligation to mirohip dogs and abolition of liensing regime (1) Every dog owner shall ensure (a) that a mirohip is implanted by a qualified person in eah of the owner s dogs that is 8 weeks old or older; and (b) that every mirohip implanted in a dog meets suh requirements as may be presribed. (2) Subjet to subsetion (3), a dog owner ommits a separate offene in respet of eah of his dogs that has not been mirohipped, and on summary onvition of eah suh offene shall be liable to a fine not exeeding 500. (3) Where a dog that has not been mirohipped is, with the onsent of the owner, kept by another person, that person instead of the owner ommits an offene under subsetion (1) and shall be liable to be proseuted and, if onvited, fined in aordane with that subsetion. (4) In proeedings for an offene under this setion, the proseution disharges its evidential burden by adduing suffiient evidene that the dog in question has not been mirohipped, and no regard whatsoever shall be had to mens rea. (5) As of the date on whih this Part omes into operation (a) the issuing of lienes shall forthwith and forever ease; and (b) all lienes previously issued in respet of dogs, regardless of the date on whih they were issued, shall immediately be null, void and of no effet. Page 8

9 Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 Setion Defenes (1) In proeedings for an offene under setion 1, it is a defene to prove that the dog to whih the offene relates (a) was imported into the Island less than 30 days prior to the date on whih the keeper was harged with the offene; or (b) was examined by a veterinarian whose findings were that the dog should not be mirohipped for reasons of the dog s health. (2) When raising a defene under subsetion (1)(b), a ertifiate setting out the veterinarian s findings shall be suffiient proof of those findings. (3) A ertifiate referred to in subsetion (2) shall state the period for whih the dog will be unfit to be mirohipped. 3 Duties in respet of databases (1) A keeper shall (a) within the presribed period after mirohipping a dog, aurately enter presribed information in an approved database ( the database ); (b) ensure that (i) within 21 days of a hange, the information on the database is updated to reflet the hange whilst the dog remains in the same ownership; or (ii) when the dog is transferred to new ownership, the information of the new owner is substituted in the database, in default of whih the original owner will retain full legal responsibility for the dog. (2) The Department (a) may require a database operator to furnish it with suh information in respet of the database as it onsiders neessary or onvenient for its administration of this At; and (b) shall presribe the following (i) the onditions to be met by a database operator; (ii) the information that keepers shall ensure is entered in the database; (iii) details regarding the information that the Department may require the database operator to furnish under paragraph (a) and the reasons for whih it may require that information; and Page 9

10 Setion 5 Dogs (Amendment) Bill (iv) that failure to furnish information as required in aordane with paragraph (a) is an offene, and the penalty on summary onvition of suh an offene. (3) A keeper who (a) fails to update details in the database when those details have hanged, ommits an offene and shall be liable on summary onvition to a fine not exeeding 500; or (b) fraudulently or negligently enters inaurate information in the database, ommits an offene and shall be liable on summary onvition to a fine not exeeding Power to seize dogs (1) A onstable, dog warden or authorised offier shall (a) seize any dog found outside the urtilage of a dwellinghouse; and (b) omply with either of the following, as appropriate (i) where the dog is not mirohipped, treat it in aordane with Part III; or (ii) where the dog is mirohipped (A) use the information in the database in respet of the dog to ontat the owner and request that the owner or his representative ollet the dog from presribed premises; and (B) if the owner or his representative omes to ollet the dog within 3 hours of being ontated, ollet from the person who omes to ollet the dog a fee of 50 before turning the dog over to that person. (2) Where, in the irumstanes desribed in subsetion (1)(b)(ii) (a) after a reasonable number of attempts, efforts to ontat the owner using the information in the database have been unsuessful; or (b) the owner or his representative refuses to pay the 50 fee or omes to ollet the dog more than 3 hours after having been ontated, the dog may be treated in aordane with Part III. 5 Attempt to ollet unidentifiable dog (1) Where (a) a dog desribed in setion 4(1)(b)(i) has been seized; Page 10

11 Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 Setion (b) there are no visible means on the dog of identifying its owner; and () a person omes forward to laim the dog, that person shall give his name and address to the onstable, dog warden or authorised offier, as the ase may be. (2) On reeipt of the person s name and address the onstable, dog warden or authorised offier, as the ase may be (a) may demand that the person furnish any additional information that he may require in order to be satisfied that the person is in fat the keeper of the dog; and (b) shall at in aordane with setion 15. (3) A person who fails or refuses to give his name and address in aordane with subsetion (1) ommits an offene and shall be liable on summary onvition to a fine not exeeding Amendment of setion 7 Amend setion 7 (a) in subsetion (5), by deleting setion 1 of the Cruelty to Animals At 1955 and substituting setion 5(1) of the Cruelty to Animals At 1997 ; and (b) in subsetion (6), by deleting the Cruelty to Animals At 1925 and substituting the Cruelty to Animals At Amendment of setion 13 Amend setion 13 (a) in subsetion (1), (i) by deleting A onstable or dog warden and substituting Subjet to subsetion (1A), a onstable or dog warden ; (ii) by deleting, unless the dog has been restored to its owner, ; and (iii) by deleting paragraph (); (b) by inserting immediately after subsetion (1) the following (1A) Subsetion (1) does not apply where the dog seized under setion 12 (a) has been mirohipped; and (b) has been returned to its owner. ; () in subsetion (3), by deleting, or to whom a dog liene in respet of the dog has been issued, ; and (d) by deleting subsetion (4) and substituting the following Page 11

12 Setion 8 Dogs (Amendment) Bill (4) Where the dog in the onstable s possession is not mirohipped, the onstable shall serve upon the person who omes to laim the dog a notie (a) requiring the person to ensure that the dog is mirohipped within 7 days of reeipt of the notie; and (b) stipulating that the person will be liable to proseution under setion 1 if the person fails to omply with the notie. (5) Any person who seizes a dog and fails without reasonable exuse to omply with the requirements of subsetion (1) ommits an offene and shall be liable on summary onvition to a fine not exeeding Amendment of setion 14 Amend setion 14 by deleting subsetion (4) and substituting the following (4) On the sale or gift of a dog under subsetion (3) (a) if the dog is mirohipped, the buyer or donee shall within the presribed period after taking possession of the dog update the details on the database; or (b) if the dog is not mirohipped, the buyer or donee shall [within 24 hours] ensure that the dog is mirohipped and thereafter forthwith provide the Chief Constable or the Department, as the ase may be, with evidene that the dog has been mirohipped, and in either ase the property in the dog is transferred to the buyer or donee on sale or gift, as the ase may be.. 9 Amendment of setion 15 Amend setion 15 by deleting subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) and substituting the following (ii) that the dog has been mirohipped or that, in aordane with setion 13(4), a notie has been issued requiring that the dog be mirohipped; and. 10 Amendment of setion 19 Amend setion 19 by deleting from subsetion (6) Setions 1(2) and (3) and 2 of the Cruelty to Animals At 1955 and substituting Setions 5(2) and (3) and 6 of the Cruelty to Animals At Page 12

13 Dogs (Amendment) Bill 2016 Setion Amendment of setion 25 Amend setion 25 by deleting 4(2),. 12 Amendment of setion 27A Amend setion 27A (a) in subsetion (1), (i) by deleting 4(2), 5(1) or ; and (ii) by deleting onvited of and substituting proseuted for ; (b) in subsetion (2), by deleting onvited of and substituting proseuted for ; and () by deleting subsetion (3) and substituting the following (3) Where a person is given a notie under this setion in respet of an offene, riminal proeedings shall not be taken (a) at all, if the penalty has been paid before the expiration of 14 days following the date of notie, or suh longer period (if any) as may be speified in the notie; or (b) until 14 days, or suh longer period (if any) as may be speified in the notie, have elapsed following the date of the notie.. 13 Amendment of setion 28 Amend setion 28 by deleting subsetion (1) and substituting the following (1) The Department may by regulations presribe anything whih is neessary or onvenient for the administration of this At, and suh regulations shall be laid before Tynwald.. 14 Amendment of setion 29 Amend setion 29 by repealing subsetions (5) and (6). 15 Amendment of setion 30 Amend setion 30 (a) by deleting the following words and their definitions (i) ollar ; (ii) urrent token ; (iii) dog liene ; (iv) neutered ; Page 13

14 Setion 16 Dogs (Amendment) Bill (b) (v) token ; and (vi) year ; and by inserting the following in the appropriate alphabetial sequene approved database means a database (a) that meets the presribed requirements; and (b) that the Department has endorsed in the presribed manner; ; mirohip, when used as a verb, means to implant with a mirohip that meets the presribed requirements, and when used in respet of the owner or keeper of a dog shall mean having the dog mirohipped by a qualified person; ; qualified person, when used in respet of mirohipping, means a person who meets suh requirements as shall be presribed; Repeal of Shedule 1 (1) Shedule 1 is repealed. Page 14

15

16 IN THE KEYS DOGS (AMENDMENT) BILL 2016 A BILL to amend the Dogs At 1990 to impose a requirement for every dog on the Island to have implanted in it a mirohip; to require the keeper of every dog on the Island to ensure that the dog is mirohipped; to abolish the liensing and duty regime for dogs on the Island; and for onneted purposes. Approved by the Counil of Ministers for introdution in the House of Keys. MR GEOFFREY BOOT DECEMBER 2016 Published by Authority