Animal welfare and the law

Sentencing powers set to increase

At the beginning of July 2019, a West Yorkshire farmer was banned from keeping livestock for seven years and ordered to pay costs of more than £36,000 for keeping animals without food and water and endangering the food chain.

Jennifer Pickles, 69, of High Royd Farm, Hebden Bridge, pleaded guilty to a number of offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 at Bradford Magistrates’ Court on Friday 5 July. The ban was accompanied by an order to do 250 hours unpaid work

Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 as it currently stands, animal welfare cases can only be tried by a Magistrates Court and the maximum sentence which the Magistrates can impose is a prison term of up to six months and/or an unlimited fine. In addition and, as in the case of Jennifer Pickles, the Magistrates can disqualify the person who has been convicted from keeping animals for such a period as it thinks fit.

However, the maximum sentencing powers available to Courts when sentencing those convicted of animal welfare offences are set to increase significantly. Following public consultation, the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill was published on 26 June 2019 and has is due to have its report stage and third reading in the House of Commons on 4 September 2019. The draft legislation provides for the maximum sentence for animal welfare offences to be increased to up to five years in prison and/or an unlimited fine. The Court’s power to order disqualification from keeping animals will remain unchanged. As a result of these changes, the most serious animal welfare cases will be tried in the Crown Court.

Cases involving outright abuse of animals are, thankfully, comparatively rare. Far more common are cases involving allegations of neglect. Such cases often involve a difference of opinion between Trading Standards and/or the RSPCA – the bodies that usually prosecute animal welfare cases – and the person who keeps the animal and his/her vet as to whether or not the way the animal was treated was deficient.

Obtaining early, expert advice in these cases has always been essential. This is even true now that the potential consequences of being convicted of such offences are more severe. If you need any advice on any animal welfare issue please do not hesitate to contact us.