Pet theft: debate on e-petitions

Two e-petitions, Pet Theft Reform: Amend animal welfare law to make pet theft a specific offence (244530) and Make pet theft crime a specific offence with custodial sentences (300071) have each received over 100,000 signatures. Both call for changes to the legislation surrounding pet theft but differ slightly in the details of how the law should change.

Calls to change the legislation and sentencing of pet theft have been the subject of a previous petition. In 2018, Reclassify the theft of a pet to a specific crime in its own right, received over 100,000 signatures and was debated in Parliament on 2 July, 2018. The petition was supported by the Stolen and Missing Pets Alliance (SAMPA), which campaigns for tougher legislation for pet theft.

This pack contains background information on pet theft and sentencing, together with links to relevant news items and Parliamentary material.