Leaving a dog unattended in a hot car will soon be illegal in New South Wales under new legislation being introduced to NSW Parliament today to strengthen the state's animal welfare laws.
The Minns Labor Government will answer the strong public support for tougher animal welfare laws with the most significant update to the legislation which is more than 45 years old.
The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Enforcement and Operational Powers) Bill 2026 will modernise enforcement powers to ensure NSW's animal welfare laws reflect community expectations by increasing the level of penalties, introducing new offences for unacceptable behaviours and strengthening existing protections.
The Minns Government is delivering sensible animal welfare benefits, together with improved frameworks for enforcement. Some of the key changes include:
- New offence making it illegal to leave a dog unattended in a vehicle without adequate cooling or ventilation for more than 10 minutes when it is over 28°C outside, or to restrain a dog on a hot metal ute tray when it is over 28°C outside. Fines of up to $44,000 apply.
- Tougher animal fighting laws which cover training, preparation, presence at fights and possession of animals for fighting, with penalties going up from $5,500 to $110,000 and imprisonment up from 6 months to 2 years. This will address loopholes and support law enforcement in responding to links between animal fighting and organised crime.
- Allowing inspectors to administer sedation and pain relief to minimise an animal's immediate suffering until veterinary treatment can be sought
- Prohibiting the possession and use of painful dog prong collars
- Requiring pain relief to be administered when mulesing sheep, regardless of the sheep's age
- Updating maximum penalties across the Act to reflect community expectations.
The Minns Government undertook comprehensive engagement with stakeholders such as RSPCA NSW, Animal Welfare League, Australian Alliance for Animals, Animal Care Australia, Humane World for Animals, NSW Farmers, Sheep Producers Australia, and Australian Veterinary Association.
Nearly 7,000 submissions from community and stakeholder groups collated through previous NSW Government consultations and parliamentary inquiries have been considered in these changes.
In the agricultural sector, animal welfare is an increasing consideration for export trading, for example, the Australia-EU Free Trade Agreement covers aspects of animal welfare and trade.
The Government has moved to address animal welfare and potential trade issues regarding sheep mulesing. While pain relief for mulesing is voluntarily occurring across most of the industry, this Bill makes it mandatory across the sector.
The Bill also introduces reforms to enable faster and more humane responses to animal welfare incidents and emergencies such as during floods, bushfires or a livestock transport accident.
This reform will allow appropriately trained Local Land Services officers and council officers to humanely euthanise animals in these sorts of emergency situations. The Bill will also enable accredited inspectors to administer a sedative or pain relief to an animal.
This legislation is the latest in a suite of reforms the Minns Government has introduced ensuring the state has modern laws to protect animal welfare and that people doing the wrong thing are prosecuted. These reforms include:
- Legislation to ban puppy farms
- Reforms preventing individuals convicted of serious animal cruelty offences from keeping or working with animals
- Increased funding for approved charitable organisations, RSPCA NSW and Animal Welfare League, to undertake animal welfare enforcement activities
- Improved financial and performance reporting for approved charitable organisations, RSPCA NSW and Animal Welfare League that are government funded to administer animal welfare compliance and enforcement.
A lot of progress has been made, and the Minns Labor Government will continue to work with stakeholders and the community on future animal welfare policy developments.
Minister for Agriculture Tara Moriarty said:
"The Minns Government is delivering on our election commitment to improve animal welfare standards and outcomes so that we can all be satisfied that our laws reflect the contemporary expectations of our community.
"This Government has been clear in both words and actions that protecting animals and promoting good welfare outcomes are priorities.
"Our Government has been driving sensible changes to animal welfare over three years such as banning puppy farms, boosting funding for RSPCA NSW and Animal Welfare League, and stopping convicted people from keeping or working with animals.
"We are continuing with our work by updating the legislation, so it strengthens protections for animals, closes loopholes that have frustrated enforcement, and brings our state into line with other states on key animal welfare issues.
"The Government has considered more than 7,000 public submissions and engaged with leading stakeholders. This makes me confident that we are providing practical and enforceable changes, which align with the needs of our society and the outlook of everyday people."
