Document type: Report submitted by the Economic Affairs Committee of the FrenchNational Assembly
Authors : Anne-Laurence Petel, Danielle Simonnet
Preview: The purpose of this report is to given an account of the publication of the regulatory texts provided for by the Law [no. 2021-1539 of November 30, 2021 to combat animal abuse and strengthen the bond between animals and humans] that allow its full application. By extension, as the measures to be taken for its application may, in their detail, fail to follow the letter or the spirit of the law, this report is also intended to ensure that the texts adopted for its application are in accordance with the intentions of the lawmakers.
Adopted at its first reading by the French National Assembly on January 29, 2021, and then by the Senate on September 30, 2021, the text of the law to combat animal abuse and strengthen the bond between animals and humans was agreed by the cross-party committee (CMP), then approved by these two chambers on November 16 and 18, 2021 respectively, before being promulgated on November 30, 2021.
The final text [...] constitutes a very important step in the fight against animal abuse and marks, in the words of Mr Jacques-Charles Fombonne, President of the Société protectrice des animaux (SPA), "the end of the animal as a commodity and the end, at least in part, of the animal as a spectacle ". Beyond the application of the provisions it contains, this text also contributed to a collective awareness of and greater pubic sensitivity to the issue of animal protection [...].
The deferred entry into force of important provisions contained in the law, notably the prohibition on the keeping of non-domestic animals shown to the public in travelling establishments from 30 November 2028 and on keeping cetaceans in dolphinariums from 30 November 2026, though, leaves us, as your rapporteurs, in a singular position. The situation is as follows: the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion (MTECT) wishes to initiate, at the time of publication of the implementing regulations, a support plan for those involved, including both professionals who will have to decide how to adapt their model of care or even retrain, and the shelters that will receive the animals, a fact that explains why the decree has not yet been published. [The] rapporteurs are nevertheless concerned about the extent of the conditions that still need to be met to allow the animals to be received in an appropriate manner, as well as the low level of acceptance of the prohibition measures by some circus owners.
This report therefore provides an opportunity to issue a strong warning: without a more proactive approach by the public authorities, the application of Chapter III of the law will not be effective - even though these provisions are the result of a long-standing commitment by the Government and the will of parliamentarians, and respond to strong public demand.
