Document type: press release from French Senate
Author : Senate Communications Office
Preview: Following on from her work as rapporteur for the Frenchlaw to combat animal abuse and strengthen the bond between animals and humansSenator Anne Chain-Larché was asked by the Economic Affairs Committee to monitor the law's implementation.
The rapporteur condemned the fact that 14 outstanding regulatory texts, particularly those to be produced by the French government office for ecology concerning, notably, captive wildlife, must still be published before the law can be fully implemented.
In particular, she called for the publication by the end of the summer of the three decrees governing the activities of cetacean water parks, covering animal welfare standards, the specification of scientific programs which, by derogation, will enable parks to keep their animals and continue their activities, and the specification of educational presentations (as opposed to shows, which will be prohibited). This will enable them to invest in improving conditions for the 23 dolphins and 4 orcas kept in France.
The rapporteur also calls on the Government to increase the budget allocated to financial support for circuses, as the surrender payments of €3,000 per lion or tiger seem derisory in view of the professional and emotional commitment that these itinerant professionals, who are all too often stigmatized, have put into their animals. In addition, she called for greater support to be provided for those wishing to set up permanent establishments, enabling them to keep their animals.
In the face of the refusals already being suffered by circuses seeking host communities, even though the ban on travelling wild animals will only apply from the end of 2028, Anne Chain-Larché solemnly declares that "in the meantime, we must apply the law - the whole law, but nothing but the law - and make sure that we don't, under the pressure exerted by associations, effectively ban an activity that remains legally authorized. The solution will necessarily involve greater local consultation, through the commissions for fairground and circus professions provided for by the "3DS" law, which are meant to be set up by 'départements' throughout the country.
The rapporteur reminded the government of the intention, clearly expressed by legislators in the course of the sessions of the joint parliamentary committee, to allow fairground shows - which move around (on an occasional basis) but are not itinerant (on a permanent basis) - to operate away from a home base during shows lasting at least seven days.
Last, a number of the rapporteur's mission observations concern the fight against the abuse of pets, including abandonment, where the most significant advances will not be achieved by the measures most popular with the media - such as banning the sale of dogs and cats in pet shops - but by the consistent application of the 7-day cooling-off period before acquiring a pet, even from shelters, by increased monitoring of the identification of animals purchased online, and by the effective implementation of the awareness-raising training on respect for companion animals provided for by the law - all of which were contributions made by the Senate during the examination of this law.
In the view of Sophie Primas, the Chair of the French Economic Affairs Commission, "we need to strengthen the resources allocated to the monitoring veterinary services, and pass on more cases to the specialist dedicated animal-abuse unit that has just been created within the police force, to ensure compliance with the existing body of rules on animal protection, which is already unique in the world for its stringency. Our "30 million friends" - which actually number 80 million! - deserve effective protection, not just lip service!
