CHILDREN FACE PET SHOP BAN.

Byline: By Joe Quinn 

THE minimum age for buying animals in Scotland is to be raised from 12 to 16.

New legislation, unveiled yesterday, would also ban giving creatures as prizes, such as goldfish at fairgrounds.

The Animal Health and Welfare Bill would introduce a new duty of care on those keeping animals.

It would allow them to be taken into care before they start to suffer.

Environment minister Ross Finnie said: 'I want animal suffering to be a thing of the past in Scotland.

'This draft Bill will put in place measures to help this happen.'

Other provisions in the Bill are intended to help protect the country against disease, enabling swift action to be taken in an outbreak.

It will provide for mandatory codes of bio-security and extend powers of slaughter in any 'exotic' disease outbreak.

Finnie said the duty of care means those keeping animals would be legally obliged to look after them and ensure they did not sufferResponsibility He said: 'When people do not comply with this, we will be able to remove the animal before it starts to suffer.'

Finnie added the measures 'give the clear message that owning a pet is a responsibility that must be understood and thought through