Agenda item
Ban on Pets as Prizes
Councillor Skelt will propose and Councillor Pervaiz will second:
England’s’ local authorities have the opportunity to ban the giving of live animals as prizes on Council-owned land to ensure the welfare of these animals is not compromised. They can also assist by raising public awareness of the issue and can lead the way in terms of prohibiting this outdated practice.
Animal ownership is a big responsibility - one that should be planned and well thought out. Animals often do not have their welfare needs met prior to, during, and after being given as prizes. Because of this, we actively discourage people against taking on an animal in a spontaneous, ill-planned manner.
Prospective owners should have a clear understanding of their responsibilities involved in animal ownership, they should carefully consider whether they have the necessary facilities, time, financial means and level of interest to care for these animals. This is often not the case when an animal is suddenly thrust into your hand as a prize. Being given away as a prize can be extremely detrimental to the welfare of an animal. Sadly, many goldfish will die before even getting back to their new homes, or shortly after.
RSPCA England believes the current legislative provisions under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 do not go far enough, and would like to see England introduce legislation similar to Scotland’s. The Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 makes it is an offence to give an animal as a prize to anyone, regardless of their age, except within the family context - such as a parent rewarding their child’s achievements with a new pet, for example
By issuing an outright ban of such activities on Council-owned or operated land, or their properties, the Council will send a clear message of its commitment to ensure the welfare of animals and help reinforce the message that these practices are no longer desirable in our community, these small changes could make a big difference; 36 of England’s’ local authorities have already taken this step.
We as a local authority have an ideal opportunity with this Motion to ban the giving of live animals as prizes on all Tewkesbury Borough owned land.
This Council:
· Is concerned about the number of cases reported to the RSPCA each year regarding pets given as prizes via fairgrounds, social media and other channels.
· Is concerned about the welfare of those animals being given as prizes.
· Recognises that many cases of pets being as prizes may go unreported each year.
· Supports a move to ban the giving of live animals as prizes, in any form, in TewkesburyBorough.
The Council therefore agrees to:
· Ban outright the giving of live animals as prizes, in any form, on Tewkesbury Borough land.
· Write to the UK Government, urging an outright ban on the giving of live animals as prizes on both public and private land.
Minutes:
75.1 The Mayor referred to the Notice of Motion, as set out on the Agenda, and indicated that, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure, it was necessary for the Council firstly to decide whether it wished to debate and determine the Motion at this evening’s meeting, or whether it wished to refer the Motion, without debate, to a Committee for consideration with authority either to make a decision on the matter or bring a recommendation back to Council.
75.2 Upon being proposed and seconded, it was
RESOLVED That the Motion would be discussed at this evening’s meeting.
75.3 It was proposed and seconded that England’s local authorities have the opportunity to ban the giving of live animals as prizes on Council-owned land to ensure the welfare of these animals is not compromised. They can also assist by raising public awareness of the issue and can lead the way in terms of prohibiting this outdated practice. Animal ownership is a big responsibility - one that should be planned and well thought out. Animals often do not have their welfare needs met prior to, during and after being given as prizes. Because of this, the Council actively discourages people against taking on an animal in a spontaneous, ill-planned manner. Prospective owners should have a clear understanding of their responsibilities involved in animal ownership, they should carefully consider whether they have the necessary facilities, time, financial means and level of interest to care for these animals. This is often not the case when an animal is suddenly thrust into your hand as a prize. Being given away as a prize can be extremely detrimental to the welfare of an animal. Sadly, many goldfish will die before even getting back to their new homes, or shortly after. RSPCA England believes the current legislative provisions under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 do not go far enough, and would like to see England introduce legislation similar to Scotland’s. The Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 makes it an offence to give an animal as a prize to anyone, regardless of their age, except within the family context - such as a parent rewarding their child’s achievements with a new pet, for example. By issuing an outright ban of such activities on Council-owned or operated land, or their properties, the Council will send a clear message of its commitment to ensure the welfare of animals and help reinforce the message that these practices are no longer desirable in our community, these small changes could make a big difference; 36 of England’s local authorities have already taken this step. As a local authority, Tewkesbury Borough Council has an ideal opportunity with this Motion to ban the giving of live animals as prizes on all Tewkesbury Borough owned land. This Council is concerned about the number of cases reported to the RSPCA each year regarding pets given as prizes via fairgrounds, social media and other channels; is concerned about the welfare of those animals being given as prizes; recognises that many cases of pets being as prizes may go unreported each year; and supports a move to ban the giving of live animals as prizes, in any form, in TewkesburyBorough. The Council therefore agrees to ban outright the giving of live animals as prizes, in any form, on Tewkesbury Borough land and write to the UK Government, urging an outright ban on the giving of live animals as prizes on both public and private land.
75.4 In speaking to the Motion, the proposer of the Motion advised that the Animal Welfare Act was introduced in England and Wales in 2006 in a bid to improve animal welfare across the two countries and, whilst this legislation remained one of the most important pieces of legislation ever introduced for animals, it could go further in protecting the welfare of pets currently issued as prizes. Under Section 11 of the Act - Transfer of animals by way of sale or prize to persons under 16 - it was an offence to give an animal as a prize to anyone under the age of 16, unless they were accompanied by someone over the age of 16 or it was within the family context. Animals were being kept and transported in conditions which did not meet their needs, often resulting in their death before the new owners even got them home. As such, she advocated a law which stated that it was an offence for an animal to be given as a prize regardless of age, except where given within the family context. Despite the current law, many were also being given to individuals aged under 16, potentially highlighting issues around enforcement of the existing provision and the need to rethink. Whilst a range of animals were given as prizes each year, goldfish were the animal most commonly associated with pets as prizes. Goldfish were easily stressed and, very often, fish won as prizes suffered miserably from shock and oxygen starvation, or died from changes in water temperature. As someone who owned tropical fish and had previously worked in the aquarist sector she knew how to look after fish properly and people who were given goldfish as prizes did not normally have an aquarium set up so may keep them in unsuitable environments, such as fish bowls, and some fish may even get illegally dumped in local waterways. Unsuitable environments provided limited or no opportunities for enrichment, shelter, company or a stable temperature, all of which were important factors in providing fish with a suitable living environment. Local authorities had the opportunity to ban the giving of live animals as prizes on Council owned land, ensuring the welfare of these animals was not compromised, as well as raising public awareness of the issue. Due to strong public opinion, the licence for the Mop Fair was updated in 2019 to ban the use of pets as prizes but this did not change policy.
75.5 The seconder of the Motion indicated that animal ownership was a big responsibility that needed to be planned and well-thought out in order to help provide the best quality of life for that animal, not a spur of the moment event resulting from a game. To put it into context, 57% of UK households were pet owners so this issue was important to a lot of constituents. Acquiring an animal to be kept as a pet should be the result of careful planning and prior consideration. The prospective owner should have a clear understanding of the responsibilities involved and carefully consider whether they had, and would continue to have, the facilities, time, financial means and level of interest necessary to ensure a satisfactory standard of care for their animal prior to acquiring it. Ultimately, the introduction of an outright ban on animals as prizes on both public and private land by the UK government was the most effective means to prevent animals being given thoughtlessly as prizes and therefore ensuring the welfare of these animals; however, in implementing a ban on Council-owned land, local authorities could deliver a powerful message to the local community, the government and their counterparts elsewhere on the importance of this issue. Councils not only had the opportunity to ban the giving of live animals as prizes on their land, but also, in the process, to raise wider public awareness as to the impact that this practice has on the welfare of the animals.
75.6 A Member asked whether it was possible to write to Town and Parish Councils to ask them to extend this to Parish-owned land. The Leader of the Council suggested that the letter to the UK government should go out in his name and this could be shared with Town and Parish Councils to ask for their support and potentially put their names to the letter. Another Member felt that Gloucestershire County Council should also be included given that Winchcombe Mop Fair was on County Council land. The Leader of the Council indicated that he had spoken to the Mop Fair organisers who had confirmed they had stopped the practice of offering pets as prizes some time ago due to concerns over animal welfare so this would not be putting any of the local travelling community in a difficult position. The proposer and seconder of the Motion confirmed they were happy with that approach and this subsequently became part of the substantive Motion. Another Member asked if there were issues in any particular parts of the borough and the Leader of the Council advised that there were no operators offering pets as prizes within the borough as far as he was aware so this Motion was more about sending a very strong message
75.7 During the discussion which ensued, a Member indicated that she had previously received many complaints from residents regarding the Mop Fair offering goldfish as prizes and she was pleased this was no longer the case; however, there were other events, such as circuses, and she felt it was important to note that the Council did not allow any live animals in circuses in the borough.
75.8 Accordingly, the substantive Motion was proposed and seconded and it was
RESOLVED That it be AGREED that:
i. the outright the giving of live animals as prizes, in any form, be banned on Tewkesbury Borough land; and
ii. the Leader of the Council write to the UK Government urging an outright ban on the giving of live animals as prizes on both public and private land and the letter be sent to Town and Parish Councils and Gloucestershire County Council asking for their support and to add their names to the letter.