Animal welfare Law updates needed but public and stakeholders confused by fragmented regulations
Scrutiny
10 March 2026
The Environment, Housing, and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel (the ‘Panel’) has reviewed the Draft Animal Welfare (Jersey) Law 202- lodged by the Minister for the Environment and made several recommendations as well as lodging an amendment. This review follows on from the Panel’s examination of the Draft Dogs Law (Jersey) Amendment Regulations 202-. which found structural fragmentation across Jersey’s animal control framework. This was viewed as confusing both for the public and for those responsible for animals as well as making it harder for enforcement agencies to act consistently.
One of the Panel’s main recommendations is that the Minister issue guidance to the States Vet Office, States of Jersey Police, and the Honorary Police on agency responsibility protocols, as well as a public-awareness campaign in order to clarify responsibilities and expectations for the general public.
The Panel also lodged the Draft Dogs Law (Jersey) Amendment Regulations 202- in February as a result of this review, which seeks to amend the Dogs Law to improve existing livestock worrying provisions which are unclear, difficult to enforce and inadequate for protecting livestock – especially in conservation grazing areas. The Panel proposes that a dog not on a lead, or within five metres from the owner or person in charge and on agricultural land containing livestock, is deemed to be worrying livestock.
Furthermore, the Panel has lodged an amendment to the Draft Animal Welfare (Jersey) Law which has two main aims. The first seeks to control the breadth of Ministerial order making powers and strengthen democratic oversight, particularly the ability for licensing schemes of wide commercial and regulatory impact to be made solely through Ministerial Order without guaranteed consultation or oversight.
The second aim of the amendment to the Draft Animal Welfare Law is to seek to remove the ability to issue improvement notices in respect of straying livestock where straying has occurred as a result of inadequate fencing or boundary conditions, while not altering the wider improvement-notice regime so that inspectors can still issue notices to those who fail to meet animals’ needs in accordance with good practice. This part of the amendment was developed in direct response to concerns raised by livestock owners, that the offence was disproportionate to the realities of Island-farming, carrying a penalty of imprisonment for six months and a fine of Level 2, and because the responsibility for boundaries and fencing does not always lie in practice with the livestock keeper.
Deputy Hilary Jeune, Chair of the Panel, said: ‘We 100 percent support the strengthening of preventative and stronger enforcement tools in order to reduce animal suffering, and many of the reforms within the Law will help achieve this. However, the Panel found that there is confusion across the wider animal welfare and control framework which includes various laws, ministerial portfolios and policy instruments, resulting in inconsistent rules, poor signage and limited public understanding of where dogs must be kept on leads.
‘We also are concerned about the amount of power that relying on Ministerial Orders provides to one elected member, and the potential lack of consultation and notice when these MOs are published. These are decisions which could have a big impact on businesses and members of the public, and we believe that there should therefore be the proper democratic oversight of these decisions through the States Assembly and Scrutiny.
‘We hope that our recommendations and amendments will provide for a more balanced update to Jersey’s animal legislation and provides the first steps towards a more aligned and coherent framework for Jersey’s animal owners.’
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