Page 854 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 16 June 1992
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The Dog Control (Amendment) Act 1991, which was passed by the last Assembly in December 1991, sought to control, among other things, the serious problem of nuisance generated by dogs being kept in large numbers on residential premises. It is certainly the intention of the Government in introducing the amendments to ensure responsible keeping of dogs, but it has never been the intention of the Government to penalise keepers who have always demonstrated responsibility.
Under the amendments passed last December and due to commence on 25 June this year, keepers of more than three dogs must obtain a keeper's licence. In deciding whether to approve a licence application, the Registrar of Dogs will be required to have regard to certain matters. In particular, the registrar must be satisfied that the dogs will be confined in a yard, no part of which is less than nine metres from a dwelling house, other than the keeper's, and two metres from a boundary fence. Since the passage of the amendments it has become apparent that many people who currently keep more than three dogs on residential premises have already established facilities for keeping those dogs, in some cases at considerable cost. However, in many cases the existing facilities do not comply with the new requirements.
The Bill amends the Act to enable the registrar, where these facilities are already established, to issue a licence for the keeping of more than three dogs, provided that all requirements other than the nine- and two-metre rule are met. This amendment is intended to avoid requiring people who have already established facilities bearing the cost of relocating those facilities to comply with the rule. Where they have done a good job in the past we are not going to say, "You have to do something new".
The Bill will provide also a period of grace until 30 September 1992 for affected keepers to lodge their licence application with the Registrar of Dogs. Applications received from 1 October 1992 onwards will be required to meet the two- and nine-metre rule. To guard against fraudulent applications, the registrar will be able to cancel a licence if the licence was obtained through fraud or misrepresentation.
Organised dog clubs have also raised concerns about registration requirements under the Act. The Act requires, subject to some exceptions, that once a person has kept a dog for more than 14 days the dog must be registered. This can cause difficulty when dogs are exchanged for short periods for breeding purposes. I have been advised that up to 30 days is required for successful breeding activities. Accordingly, it is proposed to amend the Act to provide an exemption from the registration requirement in the case of a person who keeps a dog for breeding purposes. The Bill enables a breeder of dogs to keep an interstate registered dog for a limited period for the purposes of breeding without requiring that the dog also be registered in the ACT.
Madam Speaker, I believe that this Bill will help ensure that the ACT Government's initiatives in dog control and promotion of community responsibility in the keeping of dogs do not penalise those keepers who have always acted responsibly. I present the explanatory memorandum for the Bill.
Debate (on motion by Mr Westende) adjourned.
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