Celia Wade-Brown: Green MP on the party's proposal for compulsory microchipping

Compulsory microchipping of pet cats could be on the cards with the introduction of a new Green Party bill. 

The party is proposing a law obliging people to chip and register felines - to keep cats with owners and protect native wildlife. 

MP Celia Wade-Brown says a lot of people will want it to include compulsory de-sexing, and this may come up during the select committee process. 

"The first step is to get this bill to select committee so that we can hear the public's views, the experts' views, the animal welfare people."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Greens are having a crack at compulsory microchipping for
all domestic cats. Green and p Cilia Wade Brown is
proposing a new law that would force every cat owner
to microchip their cat and register it in a national
Register of domestic Cats. However, the bill doesn't include making
D six in compulsory. Green party in p Cillya Wade

(00:22):
Brown is with me. Now, Hello, good afternoon, Ryan, How
are you very well? Thank you? How difficult do you
think it's going to be to microchip all domestic cats?

Speaker 2 (00:32):
Well, I think about half of people's pets are already microchipped,
and we want to make sure that all of them
can be reunited with their owners.

Speaker 1 (00:43):
And why aren't you including compulsory D six ing, Well.

Speaker 2 (00:49):
About eighty eight percent of cats are already defixed, So
we think it's important that the second half of cats
that aren't microchipped and registered that that's our priority. That's
going to improve welfare because they'll be reunited and it
will also decrease the number of strays that become ferrals
and are a big problem for our wonderful, unique wildlife.

Speaker 1 (01:12):
But why not make it compulsory to D six and
so they don't keep procreating and causing more problems.

Speaker 2 (01:20):
Many people do desect their cats already, but what about
god free chips. That's only twelve percent of the total.
And we think about breed life very unifications.

Speaker 1 (01:31):
Breed like rabbits, don't they cats?

Speaker 2 (01:33):
Certainly, uncontrolled breeding can cause problems, and there are far
too many feral cats. This bill is a step towards
producing the number of cats.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
Why, certainly, why take one stick when you can take two?
I mean, why leave why leave the gate open to
twelve percent? Gate open to feral breeding.

Speaker 2 (01:53):
I think there's a lot of people that would like
to consider whether we do compulsory desexing, and that may
when I get the bill to Select Committee. The first
step is to get this bill to Select Committee so
that we can hear the public's views, the experts views,
the animal welfare people in more detail. I've been working
with animal welfare people and conservation groups, and you're right,

(02:16):
there are a lot of people that are interested in
cats being desex It's a bit more complex. You need
a breeder's register, and it's just a step too far
for a private members bill, a members film.

Speaker 1 (02:30):
What happens to all the stray cats when they aren't microchipped.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
Well, it depends what the councils or other organizations are
already doing. I mean feral cats in the middle of
Fiordland where you're not allowed to have cats anyway. That
will continue with the whatever trapping procedures that they're using
at the moment, But there's some new technology with live
traps that they won't even go off if it's a

(02:56):
domestic cat, and also if it's a life up where
it's difficult to know near people's houses there are cat's
a pet cat or a feral cat, and so having
the micro chip will make it much easier to return
them home.

Speaker 1 (03:13):
We should bring back those competitions where they shoot the
fieral ones. Do you like those?

Speaker 2 (03:18):
I think that the Mirror Mar Peninsula that would be
much better off with live traps.

Speaker 1 (03:22):
You yeah, me, Wire and Mirror Mar, I suppose. But
you know, in the rural areas you're all on board
with them, you know, shooting them.

Speaker 2 (03:31):
Well, the rural communities have been doing a fantastic job
in the catchment communities of bringing that wildlife and they
don't want to harm their neighbors pet cats either. So
we'll just see horses for courses, rural and town and
city and wild field landage.

Speaker 1 (03:48):
It's hard. It's hard seally because because it's because you're
a you're a greenient pea, and you can't say shoot cats,
you know what I mean, even though you might want to.

Speaker 2 (03:58):
I think the green MP's have pretty keen on our
overall commitment to both climate protection and nature protection, and
this is one step towards protecting nature with some added
benefits for petcats.

Speaker 1 (04:12):
All right, I can get on your Celia, Cilia around
Green imp is sixteen to six

Speaker 2 (04:17):
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