Home Office says existing laws are sufficient
Changing the law to give police animals equal status to human officers when they are injured at work is 'unnecessary', the Home Office has said.
The issue is set to be debated in parliament on Wednesday (14 November), after a petition campaigning for 'Finn's Law' garnered more than 120,000 signatures.
Police dog Finn and his handler PC Dave Wardell were both stabbed while they were chasing down a suspect in Stevenage last month. Finn suffered multiple knife wounds to his head and chest and underwent major emergency surgery.
A teenager was subsequently charged with ABH assault on PC Wardell and criminal damage relating to Finn, among other charges. A petition was launched calling for police animals 'to be given protection that reflects their status if assaulted in the line of duty'.
Responding to the petition, the Home Office said existing legislation is sufficient: 'The Government agrees that attacks of any sort on police dogs or horses are unacceptable and should be dealt with severely under the criminal law. The law already allows for significant penalties to be issued to those who attack animals that support the police.'
The statement goes on to say that attacks on police animals can be treated as causing unnecessary suffering to an animal under section four of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, for which the maximum penalty is six months in prison or an unlimited fine, or both. Such an attack could, under some circumstances, be treated as criminal damage, allowing for up to 10 years in prison.
'An additional offence dealing specifically with attacks on police animals or a move to change their legal status is unnecessary in light of the maximum penalties already in place. An additional and separate offence may not result in more prosecutions, or increased sentences.'
However, Mark Tasker from the Finn's Law Twitter campaign told BBC News: "The government's response is not that surprising. They must reply to any petition that achieves 10,000 signatures.
"We had a very positive meeting with the Home Office before the weekend and we feel confident that the government are reviewing all options. We believe we will see a new law within the next year."
Image courtesy of Hertfordshire Constabulary
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