❓ Mr Britza asks about the impact of the Cat Act 2011, particularly in Morley. The Minister responds with an update highlighting reduced euthanasia rates and the importance of desexing, microchipping, and registration.
AnsweredQoN 86Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
CAT ACT
2011
86. Mr I.M. BRITZA to the
Minister for Local Government:
As we all know, the Cat Act 2011 was a well-debated bill when
it was introduced into this place. Could the Minister for Local Government
please provide an update to the house on the practical cat legislation—namely,
its impact in Western Australia? Especially with metropolitan communities like
mine in Morley, and particularly because our house has a young female cat, and
Harry needs to know what is in line for her!
2011
86. Mr I.M. BRITZA to the
Minister for Local Government:
As we all know, the Cat Act 2011 was a well-debated bill when
it was introduced into this place. Could the Minister for Local Government
please provide an update to the house on the practical cat legislation—namely,
its impact in Western Australia? Especially with metropolitan communities like
mine in Morley, and particularly because our house has a young female cat, and
Harry needs to know what is in line for her!
AnswerView source ↗
I did not know that a female cat could be called ''Harry''!
As the Minister for Local Government, I suggest that the member for Morley
should get her desexed, microchipped and registered with the local council.
Please, do! I noticed a sigh of, ''Oh, my goodness'', when the
member for Morley stood up and spoke about the Cat Act 2011. I will take the
opportunity to update the house on this legislation. We have made some great
inroads on this alone. Members may remember that I provided an update to the
house last year. Over 5 000 cats per year are being euthanised, which is nearly
100 cats a week. It was great to see in the paper last Sunday the report about
the Cat Haven experiencing a considerable decrease in the amount of cats it has
to euthanise, given the passage of the new legislation. When we step back and
look at where we are with this legislation, we can see that each local
government authority knows how many cats each person has in the area. Local
governments are also receiving data to find out where the cats are. It is
interesting to note that owners need to get their cat registered, and to
receive the discount, owners also need to have their cat desexed and microchipped.
The legislation has been brought into line with the Dog Act
1976. As Minister for Local Government, we have addressed an issue that no-one
in government has tried to address in years gone by and arrived at the point at
which today we are not only seeing a reduction in the amount of cats being
euthanised, but also recording some hard data. I acknowledge the member for
Jandakot, who chaired the first committee to look into this, for his
contribution to the legislation and for being the great animal lover that he
is. As I said, it is great to see the reduction in the number of cats being
euthanised. We can look at how we can help our community and, through my
Department of Local Government and Communities, provide a subsidy towards the
desexing of cats. It is a good news story for not only the people of Western
Australia, but also the government's commitment to cats.
As the Minister for Local Government, I suggest that the member for Morley
should get her desexed, microchipped and registered with the local council.
Please, do! I noticed a sigh of, ''Oh, my goodness'', when the
member for Morley stood up and spoke about the Cat Act 2011. I will take the
opportunity to update the house on this legislation. We have made some great
inroads on this alone. Members may remember that I provided an update to the
house last year. Over 5 000 cats per year are being euthanised, which is nearly
100 cats a week. It was great to see in the paper last Sunday the report about
the Cat Haven experiencing a considerable decrease in the amount of cats it has
to euthanise, given the passage of the new legislation. When we step back and
look at where we are with this legislation, we can see that each local
government authority knows how many cats each person has in the area. Local
governments are also receiving data to find out where the cats are. It is
interesting to note that owners need to get their cat registered, and to
receive the discount, owners also need to have their cat desexed and microchipped.
The legislation has been brought into line with the Dog Act
1976. As Minister for Local Government, we have addressed an issue that no-one
in government has tried to address in years gone by and arrived at the point at
which today we are not only seeing a reduction in the amount of cats being
euthanised, but also recording some hard data. I acknowledge the member for
Jandakot, who chaired the first committee to look into this, for his
contribution to the legislation and for being the great animal lover that he
is. As I said, it is great to see the reduction in the number of cats being
euthanised. We can look at how we can help our community and, through my
Department of Local Government and Communities, provide a subsidy towards the
desexing of cats. It is a good news story for not only the people of Western
Australia, but also the government's commitment to cats.
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