Commentary on provisions of the Act
Section 1: Prohibition of export of livestock for slaughter
- Subsection (1) of this section prohibits the export of relevant livestock from Great Britain for slaughter and subsection (2) makes it an offence to contravene this prohibition.
- Subsection (3) describes "exports" for the purpose of determining whether a person has contravened the prohibition in subsection (1). Subsection (4) defines "relevant livestock" for the purpose of this section, and subsection (5) defines "for slaughter", which includes relevant animals being exported for the purpose of being slaughtered or fattened for slaughter.
- Subsection (6) provides that a person who commits an offence under this section in England and Wales is liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding the maximum for summary offences, to a fine or both. In Scotland, a person who commits an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for up to 6 months, to a fine not exceeding level five on the standard scale or both. Subsection (7) explains that the maximum term for summary offences in England and Wales is 6 months until section 281(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 comes into force, from which point the maximum imprisonment term for England and Wales will be 51 weeks.
Section 2: Regulations about enforcement of section 1
- Subsection (1) of this section empowers the appropriate national authority (the Secretary of State, Scottish Ministers or Welsh Ministers) to make regulations to provide for the enforcement of the prohibition on the export of live animals for slaughter. Subsections (2) and (3) provide non-exhaustive lists of what these regulations may cover, which include powers of entry, seizure or detention, the creation of criminal offences and the imposition of civil sanctions.
- Subsection (4) permits the enforcement regulations to confer a power of entry in relation to a private dwelling without the consent of the occupier or with the use of reasonable force only if the power is exercised under the authority of a warrant.
- Subsection (5) clarifies the scope of the power in subsection (4) of section 3 to make provision for the imposition of civil sanctions in regulations relating to the enforcement of section 1.
- Subsection (6) clarifies the scope of criminal offences that can be created in relation to regulations made under subsection (1).
Section 3: Section 2: supplementary
- This section defines "appropriate national authority", "civil sanction" and "enactment" for the purposes of section 2.
- Subsection (3) provides that the Secretary of State may only make enforcement regulations containing provisions that could be made by Scottish or Welsh Ministers with their consent.
Section 4: Enforcement regulations: procedure etc
- This section provides that enforcement regulations made under section 2 must be made by statutory instrument under the affirmative procedure (or equivalent in the Scottish Parliament and Senedd Cymru) and may include consequential, incidental, transitional or saving provisions and may include different provisions for different purposes and areas.
Section 5: Connected repeals in relation to horses
- This section repeals sections 40 to 49 of the Animal Health Act 1981 (provisions relating to the export of horses) and also makes other amendments to that Act that are consequential to their repeal.
Section 6: Concurrent functions in Wales
- Section 2 of the Act creates powers that are exercisable concurrently by the Secretary of State and the Welsh Ministers. Restrictions in Schedule 7B to the Government of Wales Act 2006 prevent Senedd Cymru from removing a Minister of the Crown function that is exercised concurrently or jointly with the Welsh Ministers without the consent of the UK Government. This section disapplies the relevant restrictions in respect of the concurrent powers in this Act by adding the Act to the lists of enactments in paragraphs 9(8)(b) and 11(6)(b) of Schedule 7B. This will allow Senedd Cymru to alter the concurrent arrangements relating to devolved matters without needing the UK Government’s consent.
Section 7: Extent, commencement and short title
- Subsection (1) sets out the territorial extent of provisions in the Act.
- Subsection (2) provides that section 1 (prohibition of export of livestock for slaughter) and section 5 (connected repeals in relation to horses) come into force in accordance with commencement regulations made by the appropriate national authority.
- Subsection (3) provides that section 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7 come into force at Royal Assent.
- Subsections (4) to (8) provide powers for the Secretary of State, Scottish Ministers and Welsh Ministers to make transitional or saving provisions in regulations that commence provisions in the Act.
- Subsection (9) provides that the short title of this Act will be the "Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024".
