With the provincial election just over two weeks away, the BC SPCA is urging British Columbians across the province to use their voice and their vote to advocate for advancements in animal welfare.
“Elections are a critical time for animal welfare advocacy,” explains Sarah Herring, the BC SPCA’s government relations officer. “Parties and candidates are actively listening to what voters want, and speaking up for animals now can mean critical provincial government action over the next four years.”
The BC SPCA has asked B.C.’s political parties and candidates to recognize the importance of animals in our families, communities and ecosystems and include six key policy recommendations in their platforms. To date, several independent candidates have expressed a commitment to act on at least one, if not all, of the Society’s policy recommendations, and the BC NDP’s newly released platform includes a commitment to increase the availability of pet-friendly rental housing across the province.
“These commitments underscore the importance of BC SPCA supporters and all B.C. voters engaging directly with their local candidates to advocate for animal welfare – they’re listening!” says Herring. To help British Columbians connect with their candidates, the BC SPCA has created an email template that people can easily personalize and send to their local candidates and a toolkit that summarizes the BC SPCA’s policy recommendations, provides tips for talking to candidates and key questions, plus links to find how and where to vote.
The BC SPCA is asking that political parties and independent candidates commit to:
Housing people and pets together – engaging stakeholders to find collaborative solutions to increase the availability and affordability of pet-friendly housing for all British Columbians.
Putting food on everyone’s plate – reducing human and animal food insecurity by providing pet food in provincially-supported food banks and food security programs.
Keeping us all safe in emergencies – expanding post-emergency financial assistance and provincial Emergency Support Services (ESS) to include all animals and their guardians.
Proactively protecting farmed animals – implementing the provincial Farmed Animal Welfare Advisory Committee’s recommendations in their entirety with sustainable funding, including creating a farmed animal inspection and enforcement function within the Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
Reuniting families and ensuring traceability – requiring that all cats and dogs bred, sold, and owned in B.C. be identified with a microchip registered in an internationally recognized database.
Using a One Health/One Welfare lens to evaluate all policy decisions – recognizing, respecting, and basing decisions on the deep interconnections between people, animals, and the environment.
For more information on how the BC SPCA is making it easy to submit your animal welfare priorities to your local candidates and to download the election toolkit, please visit spca.bc.ca/ways-to-help/take-action/vote-soon-for-animals. The BC SPCA will be watching for other platform releases, and responses to a platform survey sent to all parties and candidates will be published on the webpage next week.