10 Jan 2024
Ministers at Holyrood say they don’t want the country to become a “safe haven or a dumping ground” for dogs being moved to escape a ban on them elsewhere.
Allister Webb
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Image: © otsphoto / Adobe Stock
The Scottish Government has confirmed it is reviewing its XL bully stance amid reports of dogs being moved across the border to evade an impending ownership ban.
Until now, ministers at Holyrood have resisted calls to adopt the measures currently being implemented in England and Wales.
But a Scottish Parliamentary session yesterday (9 January) was told it would be “preferable not to acquire such a dog at the present time in Scotland”, while media reports have suggested a ban could be introduced within weeks.
Responding to questions on the issue, community safety minister Siobhian Brown said the situation was being “urgently” reviewed and further updates would follow “imminently”.
She argued legal clarity was needed on the movement of XL bully dogs into Scotland from England or Wales, despite a UK Government assessment that such actions were “unlikely” to constitute an offence.
She added: “The unintended consequence of the UK Government’s policy is that we are now seeing an influx of XL bully dogs to Scotland.
“It is important to ensure that Scotland does not become a safe haven or a dumping ground for XL bully dogs from England and Wales.”
Labour MSP Pauline McNeill and Conservative Jamie Greene both called for urgent action, with Mr Greene claiming the SNP Government had “dithered and delayed” on the issue.
But Ms Brown said she had held talks with a range of stakeholders on the subject, insisting that she and her colleagues were “approaching the matter in an evidence-based manner”.
Meanwhile SNP backbencher Christine Grahame attacked what she described as “hasty and simplistic regulations” as she called for law amendments that would hold owners and breeders accountable for the actions of their dogs.
