The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
SNP ‘ban’ on shock collars ‘just PR gloss’
A north-east MP has said Scottish Government efforts to “ban” electric shock collars for dogs and cats are little more than “PR gloss”.
Aberdeen South Conservative MP Ross Thomson has said in a letter to Cabinet Secretary for Environment Roseanna Cunningham that animal welfare campaigners are “bitterly disappointed” with new guidance issued by the Scottish Government that falls far short of a ban.
Senior SNP politicians have repeatedly claimed that the devices are outlawed in Scotland, but Mr Thomson said action so far has been limited to updating guidance for prosecutors, which has been marked as “advisory only”.
Defra Secretary Michael Gove announced legislation to ban ESCs in England in August.
However, the SNP’s programme for government, launched in September, does not include any equivalent legislation for Scotland.
In his letter to the Cabinet Secretary, Mr Thomson said: “It is not the ban you promised. “
The Scottish Government was contacted for comment but did not respond.
“It is not the ban you promised”