Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Act 2019

United Kingdom legislation

Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Act 2019Act of Parliament

Parliament of the United Kingdom

Long title| An Act to amend the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in relation to service animals.
Citation| 2019 (c. 15)
Introduced by| Sir Oliver Heald (Commons)
Dates
Royal assent| 8 April 2019 (2019-04-08)
Commencement| 8 June 2019 (2019-06-08)
Other legislation
Amends| Animal Welfare Act 2006

Status: Current legislation

History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted
Text of the Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Act 2019 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.

The Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Act 2019 (c. 15), also known as Finn's law, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

## Background

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After a series of incidents involving attacks on police dogs caused public outrage, a petition on the UK Parliament petitions website was created that called for police dogs to be given the same status as police officers, similar to the law in the United States that makes it a federal offence to maliciously harm a police dog or horse and is punishable with up to 10 years' imprisonment.[1] The petition received over 127,000 signatures and, as a result, was the subject of an extensive debate in the House of Commons.[1] This petition and subsequent debate formed the impetus behind the introduction of the Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Bill, commonly referred to as Finn's Law after a police dog that was stabbed and seriously injured during the course of his work while pursuing a suspect.[1]

The Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Bill was introduced to the House of Commons by Sir Oliver Heald on 13 June 2018.[2] The Act came into force on 8 June 2019.[3]

## Act

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The Act prevents those who attack or injure service animals from claiming self-defence.[3]

## References

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1. ^ a b c Feikert-Ahalt, Clare (4 September 2019). "England and Wales: Man Receives First Conviction Under the Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Act For Stabbing Police Dog". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
2. ^ "Royal Assent: Finn's Law". Parliament of the United Kingdom. 12 April 2019. Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
3. ^ a b This article incorporates text published under the British Open Government Licence: "'Finn's Law' delivered to protect brave service animals". GOV.UK. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. 8 June 2019. Archived from the original on 7 June 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.

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