Animal Health Fixed Penalty Notice Scheme: consultation analysis

Introduction

Background

The Animal Health Act 1981 (the Act) was introduced to protect public health and the health of animals through reducing the risks of disease entering the animal population. It is the primary legislation that provides Scottish Ministers with the powers to make secondary legislation for the prevention, control and eradication of animal diseases. In 2020, an amendment was made to the Act through the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020, to give Scottish Ministers the power to make regulations allowing for fixed penalty notices (FPNs) to be used for certain animal health offences.

Under the Act, FPNs are a financial penalty offered to a person alleged to have committed an offence and may be an alternative to the case being referred to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) for consideration of criminal prosecution under relevant animal health legislation. This is to support early redirection through behaviour change to promote compliance with animal health rules. The Act provides that a FPN may be issued, however, there is no compulsion to issue a FPN. The use of a FPN will not be suitable in every instance and it would therefore be a matter for those enforcing the legislation to determine when they will be used. Penalty notices are not designed for serious offences or for minor breaches where advice and guidance in the first instance would be sufficient in rectifying the issue. Therefore, the option to use alternative enforcement measures, including offering verbal advice or written warnings, will continue to be available. Additionally, the option to prosecute instead of offering a fixed penalty will continue to be available and may be used for more serious or repeat offending.

An Animal Health FPN Scheme public consultation was launched to gather views on specific proposals for an animal health FPN scheme, including:

• who can issue FPNs
• how FPNs will be issued
• what the effect of paying a FPN will be
• what the consequence of not paying a FPN will be
• where FPNs should be paid to
• where the proceeds of FPNs should go
• how FPNs can be appealed or withdrawn
• if the FPN regulations should create offences of obstruction and what the penalty should be
• what the maximum and minimum penalty amount should be
• if there should be a scale of penalties
• if there should be any circumstances where the penalty amount is increased or decreased
• which offences should be covered by the scheme
• which SSIs to include a FPN provision in the first tranche of legislation

Consultation

The consultation asked respondents to provide their views on proposals for an animal health FPN scheme. The consultation was split into three sections:

• Section 1 considered the general characteristics of the animal health FPN scheme including how FPNs will be issued, how they should be paid, and how they can be appealed or withdrawn
• Section 2 considered the penalty levels and amounts
• Section 3 considered the offences that would be applicable for FPNs

Respondents were invited to respond to the consultation using the Scottish Government's consultation hub, Citizen Space. Those unable to access or use Citizen Space were asked to respond via email or in writing to the addresses provided.

The consultation was launched on Citizen Space on 7 March 2025 and closed on 30 May 2025. The consultation was promoted through social media posts, and through stakeholder groups. Key stakeholders with a known interest in the issue were also contacted by e-mail to alert them to the consultation. We would like to thank all our stakeholders for responding to this consultation and providing detailed information which has helped to inform our next steps.

Overview of Respondents

The consultation received 69 responses. One response was received by email, and the remaining 68 responses were submitted through Citizen Space. Responses were received from 16 organisations and 53 individuals. Throughout the report “respondent” is used to refer to organisations and individuals.

21 respondents refused permission for their response to be published. The remaining 48 respondents agreed to the publication of their responses, which can be found on Citizen Space. All responses have been included in this analysis, irrespective of whether or not they have been published.

The consultation contained 28 questions, however, not all respondents answered all of the questions.

A group of respondents expressed their disagreement with the concept of FPNs for animal health offences, mostly in response to the first question though a small number reiterated these comments throughout their response to the consultation. As it has already been established that FPNs should be introduced for animal health offences, we have primarily included comments from this group within the analysis of the first question.

Analysis and reporting

The remainder of this report presents a question-by-question analysis of responses to the consultation questions and follows the layout of the consultation document.

The consultation asked 28 questions, of which 24 were closed questions that also invited respondents to provide further comments. One question (question 18) was a closed question only, and three questions (questions 25, 26 and 27) were open questions only. The number of responses received to the closed questions are presented in tables in the report. A summary of comments provided by respondents at each applicable question are presented below each table. For open questions, the analysis presents a summary of comments provided by respondents.

This report does not aim to reflect every viewpoint expressed in the consultation responses. It provides a summary of common themes submitted to this consultation and some key points raised. The full responses of all those organisations and individuals who gave permission to do so have been published on Citizen Space.

Qualitative analysis of open-ended questions does not permit the quantification of results. However, to assist the reader in interpreting the findings, a framework is used to convey the most to least commonly identified themes in responses to each question:

• Many respondents: 15 or more respondents, a prevalent theme
• Several respondents: between 10 and 15 respondents, a recurring theme
• Some respondents: between five and 10 respondents, another theme
• A few/a small number: fewer than five respondents, a less commonly mentioned theme
• Two/one respondent: a singular comment or a view identified in only one or two responses