26 March 2008
Local authorities in Wales will receive £700,000 of additional funding next year (2008/09) to ensure high standards of animal welfare among companion animals. A further £200,000 will be available for special projects.
Welcoming this additional Welsh Assembly Government funding, A WLGA Regulatory Spokesperson said:
“This additional funding is much needed by local authorities to enhance the existing work being carried out to raise Animal Health and Welfare Standards.
We are particularly pleased to receive this in light of recent cuts of up to 12% in DEFRA funding to local authorities for Animal Health and disease control purposes. Welsh local authorities are being faced with the likelihood of job losses amongst Animal Health officers who have had a major impact in ensuring Foot and Mouth disease was kept out of Wales and who will be needed as a result of the additional surveillance required to monitor the Bluetongue disease restrictions.”
“Some council’s may consider utilising this new funding to help them retain experienced staff, for at least another year, who, with additional training, can carry out Animal Welfare work.”
“Local authorities have a good track record of multi-agency working and we are looking forward to working with the Welsh Assembly Government and Animal Welfare organisations across Wales to educate pet owners and keepers of animals and to improve the welfare of all animals living in Wales.”
Notes to editors
Allocations, based on human population and to reflect the density of companion animals are as follows:
County £
Isle of Anglesey 20,000
Blaenau Gwent 20,000
Bridgend 29,881
Caerphilly 39,079
Cardiff 70,534
Carmarthenshire 41,464
Ceredigion 20,000
Conwy 26,988
Denbighshire 22,436
Flintshire 33,475
Gwynedd 31,734
Merthyr Tydfil 20,000
Monmouthshire 20,742
Neath Port Talbot 31,482
Newport 32,293
Pembrokeshire 29,682
Powys 32,120
Rhondda Cynon Taff 53,802
Swansea 52,606
The Vale of Glamorgan 26,428
Torfaen 20,257
Wrexham 27,924
Wales 702,926
• The Animal Welfare Act 2006 (AWA) consolidated and updated legislation to promote the welfare of ‘domesticated’/non-wild vertebrate animals. It creates new responsibilities for persons responsible for animals and provides new powers for local authorities. It further provides for the creation of secondary legislation by the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG).
• Local authorities already operate services responsible for regulating agricultural animal health and welfare and the licensing of various animal keeping establishments/activities (eg Dog Breeders, Riding Establishments, Dangerous Wild Animals). Local authorities have not traditionally been involved in regulating animal welfare outside these categories (eg for pet/companion animals or rescue centres) due to the previous lack of any specific duty or reasonable powers under which to operate. Any education and enforcement in relation to these animals has therefore largely been carried out by the voluntary sector.
• The introduction of the AWA provided a new opportunity to raise the profile of companion animal welfare issues in Wales and to promote amongst pet owners and keepers of animals an increased understanding of their responsibilities. In order to achieve this, the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) is providing new funding to local authorities in Wales of £900,000 in 2008/09 to raise the profile of Companion Animal Welfare issues in Wales and to broadly assess compliance levels with the new legislation.
• DEFRA Funding arrangements for animal health and welfare work
An element of councils’ animal health work is funded directly via the Animal Health and Welfare Framework, which was put in place following the last foot and mouth disease outbreak in 2001 to effectively enforce a raft of new legislation aimed at preventing and controlling animal disease. The money has also been used to fund controls relating to avian influenza and TB, despite no additional money being included within the total amount available.
This funding was cut by up to 12% for each local authority half way through 2007/08 and the funding arrangements announced for 2008/09 have maintained this position.