South of Scotland MSP Emma Harper welcomed the news that a petition lodged by her constituent, Eileen Bryant, is to be discussed by the Petitions committee in the Scottish Parliament.
The petition “Action Against Irresponsible Dog Breeding” calls on the Scottish Parliament to ask the Scottish Government what action it can take to address the farming and illegal transportation of puppies, was lodged yesterday with 936 electronic signatures and 500 hard copy signatures collected by Eileen Bryant and supported by Raymond Carvill and Willie Scobie who are all working hard locally to address illegal trafficking of puppies.
Commenting, Ms Harper said:
“I am delighted to hear that the petition will now be put on the agenda for the Petitions Committee to discuss at the end of April. Illegal puppy trafficking is a very important issue which was highlighted to me, when I was newly elected, as a local issue as many puppies are transported through the port of Cairnryan.
“However, this seems to be not only a local issue but a Scotland and UK wide problem and I am encouraged that the Scottish Government has made this a priority and made progress to address this issue at its source.
“I will be watching closely the progress of the petition. My plan is to attend the Petition evidence session and continue to work with the local group as well as the SSPCA so that issues of poor animal welfare in trafficked puppies can be addressed at Government level.
