Hansard

I begin by paying tribute to the Dogs Trust. All too often we MSPs are approached by organisations promoting an approach that they wish the Government to adopt, with no recognition of the cost implications for local or national government or, indeed, for individuals. In addition, very often they have not entirely considered the unintended consequences of what they are calling for.

However, when it comes to pressing the case for compulsory microchipping, the Dogs Trust is to be commended both for marshalling a robust argument and for being prepared to put its hands in its own pockets, as it were, to make its proposal a reality.

I must admit that initially I had some slight reservations about compulsory microchipping; reservations that its cost could put people on lower incomes off dog ownership or push them down the road of purchasing pups from irresponsible breeders. However, I have become a convert through a combination of the case that the Dogs Trust has made and its commitment to carrying out free chip implantation across Scotland. That commitment is backed by a track record of delivery, with 2,214 dogs being chipped last year and 3,500 more so far this year. I do not know whether the Dogs Trust is represented in the gallery today, but I would happily promote a visit by one of its roaming chipping teams to my constituency.

The arguments for microchipping—if it is financially achievable and thereafter can be monitored in a way that is practical and non-burdensome for local authorities—have always been there, but with only four minutes at my disposal I will not rehearse them. By highlighting how such a scheme could be made to work through passive enforcement, by identifying how councils need not face considerable additional expense and by offering to buy additional scanners for local authorities, the Dogs Trust has, for me, won the argument.

It has done the same when comparing and contrasting the effectiveness of microchipping versus re-introducing a dog licensing scheme, and in challenging the need for compulsory muzzling of all dogs in public—a proposal that clearly has no support in Parliament.

We must recognise the huge importance of education when it comes to encouraging responsible dog ownership. The Dogs Trust claims to have engaged since the beginning of 2012 with more than 100,000 Scottish schoolchildren through its education programme. That is terrific, but it is not alone in working in that area. In my constituency of Angus South, for example, a membership group called Carnoustie Canine Capers is extremely active in encouraging responsible dog ownership through, among other things, its green dog walkers project and its talks for youngsters.

We must recognise that responsible dog ownership does not end at having the pet microchipped, but involves treating the dog well and ensuring that it behaves in a manner that does not cause fear and alarm to others, or create an environmental menace.

I want to conclude by focusing on how those last two points pertain to rural settings. Although probably the majority of owners would not allow their dogs to stray and interact in a menacing way with other animals, and are always geared up to clean up when their pets have done their business in public places, there are those who do not and are not, and such disregard for the countryside environment that they enjoy can have serious implications.

The NFU Scotland is to lodge a petition in Parliament on having agricultural land included—albeit with provisos—in the Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003, and to have enforcement powers granted to the police or local authorities under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. My colleague Fiona McLeod has been involved in the issue for some time. The petition has been sparked by problems over livestock being harassed by dogs that are off the lead, and the livestock’s coming into contact with parasites that are found in some dog faeces, which leads, it is claimed, to abortions in cattle and death in sheep.

It is an important issue and one that I hope the Dogs Trust might incorporate into its messaging regarding responsible dog ownership. The countryside is not just there to be enjoyed; it is also a place of work. The message to dog owners who visit it must be this: Keep your dogs under control and please clean up after them.