All canines in Scotland will be fitted with a microchip. Microchipping in dogs is to be introduced in order to track irresponsible owners and also reduce the number of strays. The move will be introduced in England in 2016 and it would help hold dangerous dog owners to account. It has gained the nod of animal charities like the Dogs Trust and SSPCA which say that it is the 21^st century equivalent of the dog collar. However, the government claims there’s no evidence that microchipping could help solve the issue of abandonment or dog fighting and has no plans to introduce it.

During a visit to the Dogs Trust in West Calder, a labor rural affairs spokeswoman Clair Barker, said that “Microchipping has a number of advantages: returning stray dogs, easy identification of those undertaking animal cruelty, ensuring the owners of dangerous dogs are held to account and a deterrent to dog theft.