Working dogs exempt from chipping

[bigdoglover]

tvnz.co.nz

Parliament has voted to exclude working dogs from its controversial microchipping law following a decision by four Green Party MPs to vote in favour of National's amendment to exclude working canines.

The Greens have been opposed to microchipping but in a surprise move Sue Bradford, Keith Locke, Nandor Tanczos and Sue Kedgley supported National's amendment to exempt working farm dogs.

"We took the tactical option of at least eliminating microchipping on farm dogs as a step towards eliminating microchipping on all dogs," says Locke.

The other two Green MPs voted against the move.

The opposition was elated after the Green votes were cast but Locke still refused to shake the hand of National's John Carter.

And the decision has also put the farming lobby in the rare position of thanking the Greens. Rob Nicolson from Federated Farmers says all farmers in New Zealand will be very happy that people in the Green Party have altered their views.

"We owe them our gratitude."

It was a surprise defeat for Labour which wanted all dogs microchipped. Associate Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta says the Greens changed their mind at the last minute and assurances given were not kept.

The decision is another victory for the rural lobby.

"We've had the emission's levy canned, we've had the access debate put on hold, although it's doing the rounds again, and we've had this one today," says Nicolson.

Compulsory dog microchipping for other newly registered dogs will come into force July 1 but the government has withdrawn plans to have owners fined up to $100 if they don't report their pet's death.

Parliament has been debating several proposed amendments to the Local Government Law Reform bill which aimed to change the microchipping requirement. The law was introduced in 2003 after a vicious dog attack on seven-year-old Carolina Anderson.

The difficulty authorities will now face is whose dog is working and whose is not. The government is warning that could be a headache for councils to administer and may bring about a rise in fees.