Page 2206 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 31 October 1989
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want to do the right thing about keeping their dogs under control and out of mischief.
In recent weeks the Government has sponsored a dog control community awareness campaign with the cooperation of the media, and the theme has been "Your dog ... your responsibility". The campaign attempted to make people realise that the responsibility for their animals' behaviour and the consequences of their actions rested with them. Too many people are not prepared to believe that their beloved pets can frighten people, attack other pets, cause traffic accidents and be a pest around schools and shopping centres. Mr Speaker, I might say that in Cabinet this morning somebody said we could put "child" there instead of "pet".
Mr Kaine: Who said that?
MRS GRASSBY: I couldn't tell, Mr Kaine. The community survey which I mentioned earlier will list the major proposals for change which have been raised by individuals and groups interested in this issue. It asks people to indicate whether they agree with, disagree with or are undecided about proposed changes to the law, and it asks people to note any other issues they believe are important. The questionnaire will be collected through our Office of City Management shopfronts and ACT Parks and Conservation depots.
As I said earlier, the sorts of changes we are asking the community to comment on include tougher penalties for offenders, on-the-spot fines and making it compulsory for dogs to be on leads in public places. We also want to know people's views on the law covering the seizure and destruction of savage and nuisance dogs and ways in which we can make access to dog registration more freely available - for example, at the point of sale in pet shops.
Another suggestion is that the Government should establish an advisory group to assist us with the development of policy on dog control. I think this idea has merit.
Mr Kaine: You could be a DAG - a member of the dogs advisory group.
MRS GRASSBY: Behave yourself, Mr Kaine. It would be a way for dog owning and training groups and the general community to have an ongoing say on the problem. Mr Speaker, my friends from the RSPCA have told me that problems caused through pet owners not accepting their responsibility are worse in Canberra than in other capitals. There are probably many reasons for this, but our Government wants to join with the community in trying to change that very unsatisfactory reputation.
As soon as we have feedback from the community, we will produce draft legislation to change the dog control laws. We do not believe that the issue is one for political point
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