Hansard

Despite the lateness of the evening, I am pleased to be leading for the Scottish Government in this discussion of a positive legislative consent memorandum that will give effect in Scotland to the Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Bill.

It is regrettable that the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee feels that it has not had the time to fully consider the LCM relating to the bill. I emphasise that the Scottish Government has no role in the timetabling of UK bills. We recognise the concerns of the committee members in relation to their workloads and their ability to scrutinise legislative instruments as well as to undertake the other aspects of their roles. We understand that, just as ministers require detailed preparation, co-ordination and time to consider legislative instruments in order to ensure that high-quality contributions are made to parliamentary committees, committee members require the same in order to ensure that they can properly scrutinise items.

At every step, the Government acted promptly and constructively. No meeting was cancelled, no deadline was missed and no information was withheld. In the interests of time, I am happy for members to reach out to me in writing, and I can provide timelines and copies of the letters relating to the bill that I sent to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee and the Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee, as well as correspondence with Baroness Hayman in which we obtained clarification and assurances from the UK Government on some of the proposals in the bill.

The Rural Affairs and Islands Committee has raised the fact that the Welsh Government lodged its LCM on 21 May. However, as is my responsibility, before confirming support for the bill’s extension to Scotland, I considered it necessary to obtain clarification and assurances from the UK Government regarding some of its proposals, in order to protect this Parliament’s right to scrutinise any legislation that is put before the chamber. That took time. I wrote to the UK Government on 28 March but did not receive a response until 13 May, a situation over which I had no control. However, from my point of view, it was essential that I got that response in order to protect the rights of this Parliament. It is my view that the Scottish Government has given as much notice as possible to the Scottish Parliament.

The bill will make provision for, and in connection with, the restricting of the importation and non-commercial movement of dogs, cats and ferrets from third countries, on the grounds of animal welfare. Puppies are frequently imported when they are underage and unvaccinated, with fraudulent paperwork, and they are then transported and sold to unsuspecting buyers in Great Britain by dealers who are illegally posing as home breeders. The measures in the bill have been strongly called for by many of the main animal welfare organisations, and the Scottish Government supports their introduction.

Let me be clear that, if the Scottish Parliament does not grant legislative consent to the bill, it is highly likely that Scotland will inadvertently enable routes for increased puppy smuggling. That is why the Scottish Government supports the bill and believes that granting legislative consent is the right decision at this time.