Scottish Animal Welfare Commission: welfare of animals as sentient beings - activity review 2025

5. Scottish Government Consultations

The 2021-2022 Programme included commitments for consultations on proposals to improve animal transport legislation, and phase out cages for gamebirds and laying hens, and farrowing crates for pigs. With the exception of farrowing crates, these topics were reiterated in the 2023-2024 Programme and are still the subject of work by officials. The Scottish Government has recently convened a round table on farrowing crates at the behest of animal welfare NGOs.

Cages for laying hens and gamebirds

A consultation on phasing out cages for laying hens ran from 2 April to 25 June 2024. The Scottish Government’s preferred option envisaged:

• From 2030, a ban on the building or bringing into service for the first time any enriched cage system for the keeping of laying hens (including those in establishments with fewer than 350 birds), pullets and breeder layers;
• From 2030, a ban on the use of existing (barren) and enriched cages for the keeping of laying hens in establishments with fewer than 350 birds, pullets and breeder layer birds; and
• From 2034, a ban on the use of existing enriched cages for the keeping of laying hens (including those in establishments with fewer than 350 birds), pullets and breeder layer birds.

SAWC supported the proposals for a full ban on enriched cages in Scotland across the laying hen sector, but argued for a phase-in period shorter than the proposed 10 years (from 2024), if possible. The analysis and further proposals are awaited.

A call for evidence on housing systems in use for gamebirds and quail in Scotland ran from 22 April to 12 July 2024. The analysis and further proposals are awaited.

Licensing of activities involving animals

A consultation on legislation to extend the framework for licensing activities involving animals was launched in July 2023, covering dog walking, dog grooming, canine fertility clinics, greyhound racing, animal boarding and equine establishments. The Scottish Government analysis of consultation responses in February 2024 indicated strong support from animal welfare stakeholders for most of the proposals. Many respondents, including SAWC, expressed concerns about the capacity of local authorities to resource enforcement of further licensing controls, and these were acknowledged in the analysis.

An issue of particular concern covered in the consultation was the growth of the canine fertility clinic industry in Scotland and across the UK. SAWC noted in its response that some clinics appear to be offering services that should, under the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966, only be performed by qualified veterinary surgeons, with no indication that these services are actually being performed by veterinarians. SAWC supported Scottish Government proposals to take steps to regulate these businesses, which are known to pose risks to animal welfare as well as fuelling the trade in dogs with extreme conformation.

The Scottish Government has now decided to prioritise development of regulations to license canine fertility services. These regulations are now being drafted and are expected to be brought forward later this year.

Review of the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020

The Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020 made a number of amendments to animal welfare, animal health and wildlife legislation. Section 16 requires the Scottish Ministers to review whether the provisions of the Act are sufficient to ensure appropriate standards of animal welfare, animal health and protection of wildlife. While not an official public consultation, analysts within the Scottish Government carried out a stakeholder survey in July-August 2024 as part of that review and the results were published on 4 April 2025.

The survey focused on three areas: marine wildlife; terrestrial wildlife and animal health and welfare. Overall, respondents agreed that the provisions in the 2020 Act were sufficient, but there were mixed views on whether new animal health and welfare powers had been used or implemented effectively. Respondents highlighted both practical concerns, such as a lack of resources or the significant costs of enforcement, to specific aspects of the legal process. Animal welfare organisations were keen to recognise the positive impacts of these changes and to go further.

The review concluded that no amendments to the 2020 Act were needed but included a commitment to consult on a proposal to prohibit remote controlled training collars for dogs using static pulse as a stimulus (commonly referred to as e-collars). It also confirmed that the Scottish Government did not intend to introduce legislation on pet theft, considering there is a current Member’s Bill on this subject.

Animals and Wildlife Information Sharing Report 2025

As required by s.17 of the 2020 Act, a review of information sharing on persons convicted of animal health, animal welfare and wildlife crime offences was published on 21 July 2025.

The report found a lack of certainty within the Act as to the exact purpose of the information sharing on which the Ministers were required to report, and the parties between whom it was to be shared. SAWC would agree with those observations but notes the discussions around this provision during the passage of the Act in 2019 and 2020. The Stage 1 report from the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee noted (paragraphs 23 – 32 and Recommendations) concern from stakeholders over the lack of a central register or database of offences accessible to authorities and agencies. In addition, given the increasing evidence linking animal cruelty and other violent crime the Committee found there was “a need for joined-up thinking about risk factors for authorities to consider alongside intelligence sharing e.g. with social services”.

The Committee considered that “information-sharing on convictions (disqualification orders, fixed penalty notices issued, fines and custodial sentences) for animal welfare offences and the potential for a database shared by relevant authorities and agencies, including social services, may help track patterns of offending, including animal welfare and other forms of offending such as domestic abuse and criminal activity.”

The Committee encouraged the Scottish Government “to set out proposals to establish a registration system or a means of effectively sharing information between authorities. This would highlight if the same people were receiving a fixed penalty notice for the same offence on a regular basis, warranting further action or investigation, and enable authorities to know where disqualification orders are in place.”

The Committee also noted that that records of Fixed Penalty Notices would be held on a local authority register, but no central register. As it happens, the Scottish Ministers have not yet invoked the powers provided by the 2020 Act to make regulations for the use of fixed penalty notices for minor breaches of animal welfare, animal health and certain wildlife legislation.

SAWC believes that the proceedings of the Bill in the Scottish Parliament provide reasonable context for the Scottish Government’s report and agree with its assumption that: “the intent of Section 17 of the Act is to ensure that information is shared between relevant enforcement agencies within Scotland, including different Local Authorities, in order to ensure joined up enforcement. This could include, for example, enforcement of disqualification orders across LA boundaries, and consideration of licensing applications where declarations are made regarding relevant convictions.

“Information on convictions brought about by the actions of one agency may be of importance to another agency being asked to consider a licence application relating to animal welfare, animal health, or wildlife.”

The Scottish Government is engaging with enforcement authorities to gather information on effective and efficient information sharing, covering current information sharing systems in place, the benefits of information sharing, potential future information sharing and the challenges of information sharing.

SAWC agrees with the Scottish Government’s observation in the report that other forms of intelligence beyond information on offences and convictions are relevant, and equally that intelligence is only of value if it is used. SAWC looks forward to the outcomes of the information sharing survey and to further consideration of this issue.

Animal experiences

In its review last year, SAWC noted that further consultation on performing animals and other “animal experiences” was expected in 2024/25. These issues are now the subject of a SAWC working group which aims to report by early 2026, and it is assumed that the Scottish Government will wish to consider that report before issuing its consultation.