The Government plans to submit amended versions of both the Animal Protection Bill and the Domestic Violence Bill to the Legislative Assembly by next month.

The Government has been working on improving the bills following discussions with members of the Legislative Assembly. The Animal Protection Bill passed its first reading in the Legislative Assembly on 24 October 2014, and the Domestic Violence Bill passed its first reading on 13 January 2015.

With regard to the amendment of the Animal Protection Bill, Government representatives had a total of 17 meetings with members of the Legislative Assembly’s first standing committee, responsible for detailed examination of the bill.

Government representatives also met with legal advisors from the Legislative Assembly for technical exchanges on provisions of the Animal Protection Bill.

The revised version of the Domestic Violence Bill is based on suggestions from academics and legal experts from non-governmental organisations, and opinions from the Legislative Assembly’s legal advisors. The Government also consulted judiciary authorities on issues relating to criminal offences.

A draft of the new version of the bill was delivered to the legal team of the Legislative Assembly last December. The legal team has already completed its analysis of the document.