Yesterday, as part of the Programme for Government, the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon set out plans for the introduction of a new Housing Bill before the end of this parliamentary year.
This will include further reform of the rental sector in Scotland and begin to deliver a New Deal for Tenants.
In response the UK’s largest dog welfare charity, Dogs Trust, is calling on The Scottish Government to ensure the rights of pet owners are included in the new Housing Bill, to make it easier for tenants to have pets in their rented homes.
Claire Calder, Head of Public Affairs at Dogs Trust, said: “We welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to a rent freeze in both the public and private housing sector to help protect tenants. But, with the number of people privately renting increasing year on year, and dog ownership at an all-time high, we would like to see the new Housing Bill include proposals to make it easier for tenants to have much-loved pets in their rented homes.
“We are currently experiencing record numbers of people needing to hand their dogs over to us. One of the reasons people are making this heart-breaking decision is that, as that rent and energy bills have increased, people are being forced to move home to reduce their bills but are finding it incredibly difficult to find dog-friendly accommodation.
“For most dog owners, being separated from their dog is no different from being separated from a family member, so the addition of pet-friendly policies in the Housing Bill will help ensure that fewer owners are forced to make the heart-breaking decision to give up their beloved pets.
“Through our work on the Hope Project with dog owners who are experiencing homelessness or in housing crisis, we know how important it is that pet-friendly housing is available at every step of the housing pathway so that owners can move through without having to be parted from their pet.
“Dogs Trust has been providing advice and resources to pet owners, landlords and letting agencies for more than a decade through our Lets with Pets scheme. We welcome the opportunity to work alongside the Scottish Government and other animal welfare organisations on the details of the Housing Bill to ensure it will effect real change in helping keep people and their pets together.”
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
