Anti-social behaviour bill fails to deal with dangerous dogs

Blue Crosshas warned that the proposed Anti-social Behaviour Bill isn’t enough to address the wider problem of dangerous and out of control dogs in the long term.

We have responded to the Home Affairs Committee’s call for evidence on the draft bill, which has a number of proposed measures to tackle antisocial behaviour involving dogs.

These include the replacement of dog control orders with public spaces protection orders, the introduction of community protection orders and the replacement of anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) with injunctions.

We are disappointed that the government has not taken this opportunity to deal with the problem of dangerous dogs. With no consolidated bill from DEFRA we were assured that the draft Anti-social Behaviour Bill would take real steps in dealing with the problem of dangerous and out of control dogs; the government however have again failed to deal with this problem head on.

Rachel Cunningham, Public Affairs Manager at Blue Cross, said: “While we are pleased to submit written evidence on the draft bill, we feel the proposals outlined will create a situation where both enforcers and dog owners are left without clear guidance on what to do to actually prevent unwanted dog behaviour.

“If practical measures to help address antisocial behaviour involving dogs – from fouling to fighting – are not introduced, dog welfare will continue to suffer and communities will fail to see any real improvement.”

The consultation opened on 14 December 2012 and closed on 9 January 2013.

Blue Crosshas been campaigning for many years for a reform of the current dangerous dog legislation.