On the 19th
December 2008 a bill was tabled in the House of Lords by the Liberal
Democrat Peer, Lord Redesdale, which would repeal the Dangerous Dogs
Act 1991 and Dogs Act 1871.
The Kennel Club,
which runs the secretariat for the Dangerous Dogs Act Study Group
(DDASG), has long been calling on the government to repeal the current
legislation and believes that it is the breed specific nature of
current legislation that has caused it to fail. Focusing on individual
breeds has not prevented a large number of dog attacks. Lord
Redesdale’s ‘Dog Control Act’ will do far more to protect the public,
responsible owners and their dogs.
There will be
three major changes to the current dangerous dogs legislation if the
bill is passed:
1. Instead of banning specific
breeds of dog, the dog’s behaviour – as well as its treatment by its
owner – will be used to determine if it is a risk to public safety.
2. Instead of applying only to
attacks that take place in public, the Bill will also make attacks on
private property a criminal offence.
3. It would be an offence to
breed dogs for fighting or to keep a dog that has been used for
fighting.
Caroline Kisko,
Kennel Club spokesperson said:
“The Kennel Club
has been working with Lord Redesdale and a number of other
organisations to provide assistance and advice in drafting his Bill.
The current legislation is draconian and severely flawed, and does
little to protect the public. Lord Redesdale’s proposals are measured
and would do what the Dangerous Dogs Act should have done in the first
place, which is to target irresponsible owners.”
Lord Redesdale
said:
“The Dangerous
Dogs Act is a bad piece of legislation that places the responsibility
on dogs, this Bill puts the responsibility on the owners themselves.
This should address the problem on our streets and go some way in
combating the growing culture of using dogs as weapons.”
Edward Lister,
Council Leader of Wandsworth Borough Council, which is a member of the
DDASG said:
“The head of our
dog unit has been working hard with the other members of the Dangerous
Dogs Act Study Group to think through the best way to enable police and
local councils to tackle this problem. We can no longer just allow
people to own these dogs and let them act in an aggressive way.
Something has to be done. We believe the measures outlined in this Bill
are the best way forward. Together with our new dog microchipping
scheme, they would go a long way towards tackling this problem.”
