The senators from the Canary Islands have wanted to convey to the general director of Animal Rights, Sergio García Torres, the need to guarantee the air transport of companion animals in the connections from the Peninsula to the Canary Islands.
The coordinator of the group of socialist senators from the Canary Islands, Paloma Hernández, and the senator for Lanzarote and La Graciosa and member of the Justice Commission, Manuel Fajardo, attended the meeting, who showed "their interest" in the Animal Welfare Law, which is currently being processed in the Congress of Deputies.
The senator for Fuerteventura also insisted on the need to guarantee this service as much as possible, "given that the island status means that the plane is our preferred means of transport and the one that offers the greatest connectivity." For this reason, both representatives requested that the bill consider that not only railway operators, but also air and maritime operators, guarantee the transport of pets both in the cabin and in the hold.
Along these lines, the senators conveyed to the general director the work that is being carried out in the Parliament of the Canary Islands on a bill that modifies the autonomous regulatory status with respect to animal welfare, as well as the suitability of combining the same interests and objectives in a coordinated and consensual manner between the different administrations with respect to the distribution of powers.
On the other hand, the treatment of feral cat colonies contemplated in said regulations was brought up and they conveyed "the possibility of studying a better fit for the particularities of the Canary Islands" in terms of animal species. "This project should make possible an advisable reconciliation between the animal welfare bill and the protection of native species, in order to achieve optimal preservation of Canary biodiversity," added Fajardo.
Finally, they expressed their interest in the modification of the Canary law and highlighted the good collaboration between the state and regional governments so that the legislation respects and complements the statute of autonomy. "In this way we have an updated and modern law with respect to animal welfare and the role that all administrations play in this regard," Hernández highlighted.
