Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Minister Andrew Muir has published an ambitious 10-point plan aimed at significantly improving animal welfare across Northern Ireland through a series of impactful reforms.

The "Animal Welfare Pathway—Advancing Animal Welfare in Northern Ireland 2025-27" outlines a "radical plan" focused on strengthening the welfare of both companion and farmed animals through enhanced legislation and new initiatives.

Announcing the plan during a visit to the Dogs Trust in Ballymena, Minister Muir stated: "Caring for our animals should be a priority for all of us, whether they are our beloved pets or in a farm setting. The current legislation and practices simply don't go far enough to protect animals from exploitation or poor behaviour." He expressed his determination to ensure robust legislation and initiatives are in place to ensure animals are cared for appropriately.

The Minister emphasised the plan's dual focus: "This means not only protecting them from bad practices like third-party selling, aversive training and lack of microchipping, but also ensuring that when people do treat animals poorly, our enforcement partners have robust powers and effective penalties." The Pathway details a range of practical interventions planned within the current Assembly mandate until 2027. The 10 key reforms proposed in the document include: prohibiting third-party pet sales; an expert review of dog breeding laws, including canine fertility services; examining mandatory microchipping for cats; strengthening dog microchipping requirements; an awareness campaign for responsible dog ownership; considering licensing for dog and cat day-care and home-boarding; reviewing dog licence fees; examining evidence for prohibiting aversive training devices; regulating rescue and rehoming organisations; and mandatory CCTV in all areas of slaughterhouses where animals are kept.

Minister Muir highlighted ongoing initiatives, such as the Paws for Thought campaign, and other measures for farmed animals, including the blueprint to eradicate bovine TB and the rollout of new Bovine Viral Diarrhoea legislation. "Since coming into office, I have been determined to move forward quickly on animal welfare issues and many actions are already in progress," he said, noting recruitment for a dog breeding advisory group and a recently closed consultation on mandatory CCTV in slaughterhouses. A public consultation on prohibiting third-party pet sales is also expected soon.

Adam Clowes, Dogs Trust Chief of Staff, welcomed the publication, stating: "The proposals within the Pathways reflect many of the priorities Dogs Trust, and other rehoming organisations, have consistently advocated for, including a ban on third-party puppy sales, a review of existing dog breeding legislation, and the regulation for rescue and rehoming organisations."

The Pathway was developed following extensive engagement with key animal welfare stakeholders, including councils, PSNI, veterinary associations, and agricultural bodies.