OTTAWA – A Liberal backbencher’s bill to modernize Canada’s antiquated animal cruelty laws has been defeated, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet ministers joining the Conservatives to vote it down.
Toronto M-P Nathaniel Erskine-Smith’s private member’s bill was shot down yesterday at second reading on a vote of 198-to-84.
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But Erskine-Smith says he’s confident the government will now initiate its own reform of animal welfare legislation.
His bill would have banned the importation of shark fins and cat and dog fur, make any sexual contact with an animal a crime and make it a crime to profit from or breed animals for the purpose of fighting.
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It would also have made the “brutal and vicious” killing of an animal a new offence and would have changed the standard for animal cruelty from wilful neglect to “gross negligence.”
The government had argued that it could have inadvertently rendered lawful activities such as hunting, trapping, fishing, ranching and medical research illegal.
Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould says the government supports the premise of Erskine-Smith’s bill but that more consultations are needed.
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