Animal abusers to face tough prison penalties, hefty fines under ‘nation leading’ changes
The state parliament has voted in sweeping changes to the Animal Welfare Act.
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People who abuse animals will face tough new penalties, including up to 10 years in prison and hefty fines, under “nation leading” welfare laws.
The state parliament voted in sweeping changes to the Animal Welfare Act this week — the first since 2008 — that will see jail time for wrongdoers increase from four to a maximum 10 years in prison and fines increase from $50,000 to up to $250,000.
Corporations who mistreat animals could be slapped with the highest fines in the country of up to $1 million.
Environment Minister Susan Close called the legislation “nation leading”.
“We now have nation leading animal welfare legislation, legislation that is tougher than the other states because we are intolerant of any kind of cruelty towards the animals that we love and that we care for,” she said.
RSPCA SA chief executive Marcus Gehrig said the old animal welfare act did not meet community expectations.
“Often, we are so frustrated when we’ve prosecuted somebody to see them get away with a very small penalty and now seeing penalties increase is really satisfying,” he said.
More than $16 million over four years has been budgeted for RSPCA SA to deliver animal welfare compliance activities in accordance with the new Act.
Mr Gehrig said the organisation was seeing a gradual increase in cruelty in SA and the additional funding would allow them to increase the number of inspectors on the road and respond quicker to cruelty reports.
Other changes include requirements for pet owners to provide minimal care – such as appropriate food, water and shelter for animals — and mandatory reporting of suspected animal welfare offences within the greyhound racing industry.
“We are especially grateful that under the changes, our inspectors will be empowered to address neglect before harm occurs,” Mr Gehrig said.
Dr Close said in line with other states the definition of animal will also be broadened to include fish in a bid to address cruel practices such as harvesting of shark fins and stingray tails.
However, she added that changes won’t affect recreational and commercial fishing.
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Originally published as Animal abusers to face tough prison penalties, hefty fines under ‘nation leading’ changes
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