Issue - meetings

This report seeks approval to implement proposed new fees in relation to Animal Welfare licensing, in accordance with the new regulations that came into force on 1 October 2018.

Resolved:  That Option 1 be approved and the new proposed fees relating to Animal Welfare licensing covered by the new regulations, as set out in paragraphs 15 and 16 of the report, be implemented from 1 December 2018.

Reason:     To allow the council to recover the cost of the licensing functions in relation to Animal Welfare licensing.

The Executive Member considered a report which sought approval to implement new fees for Animal Welfare licensing, following the introduction of new licensing regulations.

The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 had come into force on 1 October.  They introduced more prescriptive and wide-ranging legal requirements for licensing a number of functions, as well as licence conditions and a rating system. Details were provided in paragraphs 3 to 9 of the report.  As noted in paragraph 6, most of the licences currently issued by the council were due for renewal before 31 March 2019.

The proposed fees, detailed in paragraphs 15 and 16, had been set at a cost recovery level.  Licences would initially be granted for one year, except for the keeping or training of animals for exhibition, for which the regulations stipulated a three year licence. The following options were considered, as detailed in paragraphs 12 to 17:

Option 1 – approve the implementation of the new proposed fees from 1 December 2018.  This would prevent any financial loss to the council when renewing licences before 31 March 2019.

Option 2 – defer the decision until the budget process in February 2019, implementing the new fees from 1 April 2019.

In response to questions from the Executive Member, Officers at the meeting confirmed that:

·        The number of applications for dog breeding licences was increasing, and the criteria for needing a licence included the number of litters and whether the pups were sold for profit.

·        Dog walkers did not require a licence, but ‘day care’ for dogs was a licensable activity.

Resolved:  That Option 1 be approved and the new proposed fees relating to Animal Welfare licensing covered by the new regulations, as set out in paragraphs 15 and 16 of the report, be implemented from 1 December 2018.

Reason:     To allow the council to recover the cost of the licensing functions in relation to Animal Welfare licensing.