Docking of Working Dogs' Tails (England) Regulations 2007 in Turmoil

In the House of Lords yesterday (7th March) Lord Rooker moved that the Grand Committee considered the draft Docking of Working Dogs’ Tails (England) Regulations 2007. After an unprecedented debate, the motion was forced to be withdrawn.

This situation has never occurred before in this form in a Lords Committee. Because it is impossible to have a Division in Committee, there is a strong possibility that the docking regulations will not now be introduced at the same time as the Animal Welfare Act in England on 6 th April.

It was The Countess of Mar who objected formally to the regulations after declaring her interest as an honorary associate of both the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and the British Veterinary Association.

“As a result of this farce, all tail docking could now be illegal in England from 6th April 2007 up until such time as the regulations can be introduced” said Peter Squires of the Council of Docked Breeds. “It would seem that those opposed to docking will stop at nothing to scupper these new regulations, however undemocratic their actions may appear. They continue to bring spurious objections into the debate, designed merely to delay introduction and to confuse the issue.

Time is short and they are fast approaching the Easter recess, so finding extra parliamentary time to introduce further changes is unlikely to happen”.