Members voted by 43-0 in favour of the proposed details in the Draft Road Traffic Regulation, which includes a fine of up to £10,000 and/or imprisonment for up to six months for failing to report an accident in which a cat is struck by a motor vehicle.
The matter was at the heart of a 2018 petition, which attracted 5,385 signatures from Islanders, after which Members voted in favour of the principle of a new law in June 2019.
Following that vote, the detail of the law was drafted and supported unanimously by Members at both second- and third-reading stage, meaning it will now become law.
Cats now have the same level of protection as the other animals previously included in the regulation, which refers to ‘injury caused to any horse, cattle, ass, mule, sheep, pig, goat or dog’.
Infrastructure Minister Kevin Lewis said that Islanders should have JSPCA’s telephone number (724331) saved in their phones so that they could report any accident involving a cat when it was not possible to ascertain who owned the animal.
Deputy Jeremy Maçon, who brought the 2019 proposition, said that owners sometimes searched for days for missing cats. He said this was extremely stressful and that the new measure would help to ‘achieve closure’ in many cases.
Jersey’s legislative move was being watched by other jurisdictions, Deputy Maçon added, saying that the Island should be proud to besetting a ‘positive example’.
An amendment to the proposed regulations was accepted, stating that a driver would not be guilty of an offence if they did not know and had no reason to suspect that their vehicle had hit a cat.
