Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee

Meeting date: Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Official Report 315KB pdf

Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses (Scotland) Bill

Agenda item 4 is consideration of the Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses (Scotland) Bill, as amended at stage 2.

New section 3A confers on the Scottish ministers a power to specify, under subsection (1)(a),

“a kind of animal that is to be regarded as wild”

and, under subsection (1)(b),

“a kind of animal that is not to be regarded as wild,”

for the purposes of the bill.

Any regulations under section 3A(1)(a) that specify a kind of animal as wild are without prejudice to the meaning of “wild animal” in section 2 of the bill. Section 2 provides a general definition of the expression “wild animal”. In turn, the meaning of “wild animal” in section 2 is subject to whatever is done by regulations under section 3A(1)(b), which provides the power to specify by regulations that a kind of animal is not to be regarded as wild for the purposes of the bill.

The effect of the power in section 3A(1)(a) and 3A(2)(a) is unusual in principle. If a kind of animal that was to be regarded as wild were specified in the regulations, that would not affect whether that kind of animal in fact came within the generality of the meaning of “wild animal” in section 2. Regulations that were made under section 3A(1)(a) would therefore indicate only the Scottish Government’s interpretation of kinds of animals that it considered came within the meaning of “wild animal” as specified in section 2. The committee could consider that regulations are not the appropriate form of instrument to provide such an interpretation.

The same issue arises with new section 3B. It confers on the Scottish ministers a power to make regulations to describe a particular type of

“undertaking, act, entertainment or similar thing”

that is or is not to be regarded as a “travelling circus” within the meaning in the bill. Provision in any regulations under section 3B(1)(a) describing something as a “travelling circus” is without prejudice to the meaning that is set out in section 3.

Does the committee therefore agree to recommend that the Scottish Government consider, in advance of stage 3, whether guidance or a Government note would be more appropriate than regulations for the power in section 3A to specify what is a “wild animal” and the power in section 3B to describe

“an undertaking, act, entertainment or similar thing”

that is a “travelling circus”?

Members indicated agreement.

Given that stage 3 has been included in the business programme for Wednesday 20 December, does the committee agree to write to the Scottish Government to ask it to clarify the use of the regulation-making powers in sections 3A and 3B during the stage 3 debate?

Members indicated agreement.