Scottish
Parliament e-Brief
SECTION
1 - BUSINESS THIS WEEK
Parliament is in recess.
SECTION 2 - NEWS
Consultation
begins on licensing laws
Consultation on the Licensing
(Scotland) Act 2005 Draft Guidance and Regulations starts today.
The consultation will cover key parts of the Licensing Act, including:
Premises, mandatory, discretionary, occasional and personal licences;
Mandatory licence conditions for late night and adult entertainment venues;
Controls and regulations to tackle underage drinking;
A discretionary condition which would create separate display areas for alcohol off-sales;
Training of Licensing Standards Officers and Licensing Board members; and
Transitional arrangements until the Act fully comes into force in 2009.
The consultation ends on 8th December 2006 and is online here: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/10/03141448/0 The Executive will then examine its findings before laying the Regulations in Parliament next year.
Animal
welfare law strengthened
People who abuse animals will face stiffer penalties under the Animal
Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006, which came into force on Friday.
It means that people who cause unnecessary suffering to animals could face 12
months in jail and fines of up to £20,000.
The Act introduces a duty of care on everyone responsible for animals, obliging them to meet animals' basic welfare needs. It bans using animals as prizes or selling animals to people under 16 and supports the response to serious outbreaks of animal disease.
The Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament on May 31 and received Royal Assent on July 11.
Other Welfare provisions in the Act:
Introduce 'care notices' which would give the owner time to make improvements to the care of their animals before a case would be considered for court action;
Allow animals to be removed from owners before they begin to suffer;
Make it illegal to supply, publish, distribute or show a recording of an animal fight, or to possess a recording with the intention of distributing or showing it; and
Allow Ministers to introduce Codes of Practice.
Health provisions:
Allow the Executive to respond more quickly and effectively to outbreaks of exotic disease;
Extend the slaughter powers available to Scottish Ministers to tackle quickly and eliminate exotic animal disease;
Provide powers to license animal and bird gatherings; and
Allow Scottish Ministers to set Biosecurity Codes to reduce the risk of disease occurring or spreading.
It is intended that Regulations under the Act, which will be made over the next few years, will cover:
Mutilations, such as tail docking;
Pet dealing in Scotland;
Animal sanctuaries;
The use of wild animals in circuses; and
The welfare of racing greyhounds.
The Act amends the Animal Health Act 1981 and strengthens animal welfare legislation, some of which dates back to 1912.
SECTION
3 - NOTES ON THIS WEEK’S CHAMBER BUSINESS
Parliament is in recess.
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