Debate contribution: Aversive Training Tools for Domestic Animals

Debate contribution by Mr John Blair on 5 October 2026.

MLA: Mr John Blair
Party at the time: Alliance Party
Date: 5 October 2026
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Private Members' Business
Heading: Aversive Training Tools for Domestic Animals
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 5774048

Text

Thank you, Deputy Speaker. Like the proposer of the motion, I do not think that I will take all the allocated time, but I welcome the opportunity to speak on the motion and begin by thanking the Ulster Unionist Party for tabling it for debate today. In recent years, there has been a notable increase in efforts to enhance animal welfare standards in Northern Ireland. That progress reflects the dedication of the animal welfare groups and organisations that have consistently ensured that animal welfare remains high on the political agenda. A major driver of that progress has been the Alliance Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Andrew Muir. Minister Muir has made animal welfare a clear priority and has demonstrated his commitment to it through his words and his actions. In particular, Minister Muir has advanced important work through his animal welfare pathway. That pathway provides a structured, long-term framework to improve standards across the sector and to strengthen enforcement. I am pleased that the specific but serious animal welfare concern that is being discussed today is included in the animal welfare pathway. I look forward to hearing from the Minister shortly about his progress towards introducing legislation to ban aversive training devices. Training devices such as shock collars are designed to cause pain, fear or discomfort in order to control an animal's behaviour. Electronic collars can deliver shocks of up to about 6,000 volts for as long as 11 seconds at a time. I ask Members to think through the impact that that would have on any animal. Evidence has shown that such methods can damage the relationship between owner and animal and, over time, can even make behavioural problems worse and more challenging. Positive, reward-based training is a more humane and more effective approach in the long term.
When I served as chair of the all-party group (APG) on animal welfare, the issue of aversive training devices was raised repeatedly by animal welfare organisations such as the USPCA and the Dogs Trust as a real and growing concern. Time and again, we heard from experts that those devices caused harm and that, to put it in straightforward terms, the law had not kept pace with the evidence. To the organisations that consulted on the issue, I record my sincere thanks for their sustained work to bring it to light and to press for change. They continue to campaign against such devices and to educate the public about the harm that they can cause. I also welcome the work that Minister Muir is taking forward. His recent consultation on animal welfare reform offers a critical opportunity to modernise and strengthen protections for animals in Northern Ireland. Alongside the broader animal welfare pathway that I have already mentioned, it offers a strategic approach to raising standards and closing the gaps that have allowed harmful practices to persist. For that reason, we tabled our amendment. It does not weaken the motion; rather, it enhances it by eliminating the references to exemptions for veterinarians, animal rescuers and dog wardens to allow them to use the tools in certain circumstances, about which we remain unclear as we start the debate. We do not believe that any circumstances warrant the use of such devices, given that there are ample more humane methods that can be used. Furthermore, if such devices can continue to be sold, legally owned or acquired, they will remain readily available, meaning that the risk of their continued use will also remain. A ban covering the sale, use and ownership of aversive training tools in all circumstances would help close the potential loopholes, restrict the circulation of devices and provide a clearer framework for enforcement. Legislation is effective only when it can be properly enforced, however. That is why our amendment does not remove the call in the motion for:
"the Minister of Justice to work with the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in considering appropriate penalties"
for those who continue to use such devices. Alliance has always been a party that stands up for animal welfare. We have a responsibility to give a voice to those who cannot speak up for themselves and to ensure that our laws reflect the best available evidence on animal welfare. In summary, I have laid out the Alliance position on the motion and the basic thinking behind our amendment. Another reason that I ask for support for the amendment is that, in my role as an MLA, in my role as chair of the all-party group on animal welfare or in any other circumstance, I have not seen conclusive evidence that those who seek or would benefit from such exemptions have trialled, scoped out or exhausted all the other more dog-friendly solutions and alternatives that would avoid the severity and cruelty that the proposer of the motion pointed out and that, I am sure, other contributors to the debate will mention. I ask that Members keep that in mind. The Alliance Party supports the motion as amended. I hope that Members will support our amendment and deliver a clear message that it is our intention to have in place stronger protections for domestic animals across Northern Ireland.

866 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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