Runciman anti-cruelty Bill a step in the right direction, says Ontario SPCA
Ontario SPCA
Monday, June 04, 2007
NEWMARKET, ON, (June 4, 2007) — The Ontario SPCA fully supports a new anti-cruelty Private Member’s Bill presented in the legislature on May 31 by Leeds-Grenville MPP Bob Runciman that would amend the Ontario SPCA Act to offer more significant and widespread protection for cats and dogs in Ontario. But the Society is not giving up its request to the government to conduct a comprehensive review of the Act with the goal of revamping many other sections of the legislation in order to bring it to the standard of other province’s animal cruelty legislation and thereby offering all animals in the province the protection they so deserve.
“Mr. Runciman’s Bill addresses a significant weakness in the current legislation,” says Ontario SPCA Acting Chief Inspector, Hugh Coghill. “Currently only cats, kittens, dogs and puppies kept for breeding or for sale are protected under the offence section of the Act. Expanding the standards of care in the Act to apply to any person who owns or has custody of a cat or dog would help to offer protection to thousands more pets across the province.”
In order to pass through the legislature before the house rises for the current session, the Bill requires unanimous support among all political parties. We are asking all three provincial parties to support this Bill, and are encouraging members of the public to voice their support for the Bill to their local MPP and Monte Kwinter, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services.
“This is a great first step in a positive direction for animal welfare in this province,” says Coghill. “But we would still ask the government to conduct a comprehensive review of the Ontario SPCA Act to address other weaknesses, especially expanding the legislation to protect all animals.”
The amendments put forth by Mr. Runciman would address investigative challenges in cases like that of AK, the six-month old pup in Windsor who had his ears cut off, but would do nothing to empower Ontario SPCA investigators to determine the health status of Tyson, the kangaroo at Lickety-Split Ranch and Zoo that has grabbed media headlines internationally and has raised many questions about Ontario’s commitment to animal welfare.
Take Action:
Write: The Honourable Monte Kwinter
Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services
18th Floor
25 Grosvenor Street
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 1Y6
Fax: (416) 325-6067
Phone: (416) 325-0408
Visit www.gov.on.ca and click on Contacts MPPs to find the contact info for your MPP.
For media enquiries, please contact: Hugh Coghill, A/Chief Inspector, (905) 898-7122 ext. 342, hcoghill@ospca.on.ca or Christine Arnett, Director of Marketing & Communications, (905) 898-7122 ext. 305, e-mail: carnett@ospca.on.ca.
To report suspected animal abuse call the Ontario SPCA at 1-888-ONT-SPCA (668-7722) extension 1, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), your local Ontario SPCA Branch, affiliated humane society or police.
————————————————————————————————————————The Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Ontario SPCA): Protecting animals since 1873, the Ontario SPCA is a registered charity comprised of over 50 branches and affiliated humane societies relying primarily on donations to fund animal protection, care and rehabilitation for all animals, government and industry advocacy, and public education. The Ontario SPCA Act mandates the Society to enforce animal cruelty laws and provides Society investigators with police powers to do so – making the Ontario SPCA unique among animal welfare organizations in the province. The Ontario SPCA is a member of the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, the World Society for the Protection of Animals, and is affiliated with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Ontario SPCA Provincial Office, 16586 Woodbine Avenue, RR3 Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 4W1 • 1 888 ONT-SPCA (688-7722) • www.ontariospca.ca • info@ospca.on.ca
Charitable Business Number 88969 1044 RR0002
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