RSPCA Announcement

[yola]

We at Reading Cats Protection were copied on this email recently. If you can, please take a moment to support this Animal Welfare Bill . . . it should make a difference to all animals at threat of abuse in the UK.

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The RSPCA is delighted to announce that last Friday, 14 October, the government published the new Animal Welfare Bill! The bill should become the most significant piece of legislation to protect pet animals for almost one hundred years.
The new welfare offence would, for the first time, protect thousands of animals from enduring serious ongoing neglect each year, by legally obliging owners to care for their animals properly, something the RSPCA has been campaigning on for many years.
The Animal Welfare Bill will now begin its passage through parliament, where MPs and Lords will debate its content before passing it into law.
We still need your help to ensure the bill is enacted into law. Please take action by:
writing a letter or e-mail to your MP to ask him/her to support the Animal Welfare Bill
telling your friends and family about the Animal Welfare Bill and asking them to contact their MP. To find the name and contact details of your MP, and to get helpful letter writing tips, go to: www.rspca.org.uk/actnow
Thank you again for your support.
Best wishes,
RSPCA Online

[Emm]

is the new animal welfare bill going to cover Scotland as well?


I need to spend some time reading through what the changes are - I'm all for a change in the law to protect animals more and tougher sentencing for those who are cruel to animals - my only worry is if the RSPCA have the power to take your animal with no questions asked - what happens if you have a spiteful neighbour that reports you for "animal abuse" and they take your animal away and you have to fight to get them back?

[yola]

Emm - the way I understand it is that the RSPCA will not just go in and snatch an animal, the situation will be monitored in the same way as it currently is only they will not have to wait weeks or potentially months to rescue an animal if they can validate it is actually in distress or being neglected/abused.

I have reservations about some of the modus operandi of the RSPCA myself but on the whole they and other organizations such as CP need as much amunition as possible to stop animals being hurt, neglected and abused. I have seen and heard some real horror stories from people at Reading CP who have rescued cats . . . it would make your blood run cold and it beggars belief that humans can be such cruel b@$****$.

As for Scotland? I'm not sure if the law extend to Scotland. I'd have to read the RSPCA site and also the various links the provide to determine this.

[Emm]

absolutely I agree that something has to be done to save the real animals being abused - it must be so frustrating when you know an animal is suffering and there is nothing you can do about it


It would be sad if it didn't include Scotland as well - we are already in a bad way here for animal welfare - our SSPCA isn't as big as the RSPCA and they don't get the same amount of money - because people don't realise that the two organisations are seperate and people in Scotland give money to the RSPCA not realising that that money isn't spent at all in Scotland. Its crazy it should be for all animals in Britain - sorry for digressing a bit

[yola]

No worries about digressing Emm. You're right - all animals deserve protecting and those in Scotland are just as valid as those anywhere else.

Maybe the SSPCA should approach a Scottish based advertising or marketing agency as many of the companies will carry out campaigns FOC to charities and use them to raise their own profile also. That way people will get to hear and understand about the difference?

Just a thought . . .

[John]

this country definatly needs a new animal protection bill at the moment the rspca have very limited powers..and they are the only charity that most people turn to to help animals

[Az]

Good Work everyone at CP!! (Cats protection - hey just noticed they have the same initials as CP - Catpages )

Keep us posted please Yola!