Fund a new government-backed animal cruelty policing unit
Fund a government-backed Animal Cruelty Policing Unit that has legal authority to seize animals, enforce fines and force entry in cases where there are reasonable grounds to believe that an offence against a protected animal has occurred under Section 9 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Signatures
10,475
signatures
Government response threshold (10,000) · 10,000/10,000 · reached
Debate threshold (100,000) · 10,475/100,000
- 25 MAR 2026Government respondedDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural AffairsGovernment reply
The Government is committed to improving animal welfare. A range of established forums and partnerships already support coordinated enforcement across animal welfare legislation.
Read full response - 14 MAR 202610,000 signatures reachedEligible for a government response
- 10 FEB 2026Petition opened for signaturesCreated by Sammie Wilkinson
Background
Animal welfare charities, such as the RSPCA, have no legal powers to seize animals or force entry into properties, and we believe the police seldom act on cruelty cases due to being a low priority for them. This dedicated unit could effectively bridge the gap between animal welfare charities and the police by enforcing welfare laws without burdening police forces.