Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 16 March 2022
16 Mar 2022 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Dog Theft
I will make a short contribution to support my colleague and friend Maurice Golden in his attempt to bring forward this piece of legislation, the shape of which is currently being defined through the process that he is taking it through.
I look forward to Scotland taking a lead in this area. It is something that we should endeavour to do. Truth be told, we do not have a dog at home. I often wish that we did, because I grew up with dogs. My mum and dad always had a dog and it was always a west Highland terrier.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Annabelle Ewing)
SNP
The final item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S6M-02745, in the name of Maurice Golden, on tackling dog theft. The debate will be conclu...
Maurice Golden (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
I thank members on all sides of the chamber for supporting the motion. Dog theft is a serious and growing problem. It is estimated that in 2020, almost 200 ...
Christine Grahame (Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP)
SNP
I thank Maurice Golden for securing the debate, which I welcome. I acknowledge that the theft of dogs is on the rise, although we know that actual figures—fo...
Maurice Golden
Con
To clarify the point on sentencing guidelines, I will be consulting on the length of term. Having discussed that with dog charities, we think that five years...
Christine Grahame
SNP
Indeed—there is a role for the Scottish Sentencing Council. The motion refers to the impact on owners, which, we can infer, should have an impact on sentenc...
Jamie Greene (West Scotland) (Con)
Con
It has been a year, almost to the day, since I adopted my dog Astro. He is a rescue dog from Romania. Yes, I have heard the joke many times that he has a Eur...
Colin Smyth (South Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
I thank Maurice Golden for lodging his motion for debate, and for raising the important issue of whether we need a new criminal offence of dog theft. As we ...
Christine Grahame
SNP
I do not know whether the member is aware that one of the horrors that are associated with microchipping is that, often, the criminals will remove the microc...
Colin Smyth
Lab
That is an important point, and highlights why taking pet theft seriously is important: some of these criminals, frankly, care very little about the animals ...
Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP)
SNP
I congratulate Maurice Golden on securing the debate and bringing this important matter to the chamber. I share his concern about the rapid increase in dog t...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
SNP
I call Finlay Carson, who has up to four minutes. 17:52
Finlay Carson (Galloway and West Dumfries) (Con)
Con
I thank my colleague Maurice Golden for bringing to the chamber this important debate on tackling dog theft. Sadly, hardly a week passes without a story appe...
Maurice Golden
Con
I clarify that, although I will be consulting on the inclusion of cats and other companion animals, my focus is on ensuring that the member’s bill is sound a...
Finlay Carson
Con
I absolutely take that on board and I sympathise with the member for having a small office in Broughty Ferry. My priority, too, is for the bill to protect do...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
SNP
Mr Carson, could you please conclude? You are at about five minutes now.
Finlay Carson
Con
I will, Presiding Officer. Finally, I go back to Colin Smyth’s discussion of microchipping, which is really important for cats, too. I am sure that the issu...
Stephen Kerr (Central Scotland) (Con)
Con
I will make a short contribution to support my colleague and friend Maurice Golden in his attempt to bring forward this piece of legislation, the shape of wh...
Jamie Greene
Con
Does Stephen Kerr want one?
Stephen Kerr
Con
Having listened to Jamie Greene’s speech, I am not sure that I want that particular dog. Each of those west Highland terriers had its own personality. In fa...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
SNP
I call Ash Regan to respond to the debate. 18:02
The Minister for Community Safety (Ash Regan)
SNP
I thank Maurice Golden for securing this evening’s debate on the important subject of dog theft. We are a nation of dog lovers. As the stories that many memb...
Maurice Golden
Con
Does the minister accept that dog theft is not recorded in a consistent way by the police across Scotland, that it is sometimes not even recorded as dog thef...
Ash Regan
SNP
I agree that there are always ways in which we could improve the data to which we have access. I take that point. Police Scotland has indicated that, whil...
Jamie Greene
Con
It is not just the level of the sentence. One of the key benefits of having specific offences is the message that it sends to criminals that there is a high ...
Ash Regan
SNP
I have set out the context, and I am not sure that it is right to characterise the situation as a rise in cases, because we think that dog theft has returned...