PROPOSED CONTROL OF DOGS (SCOTLAND) BILL

[brothermagrew]

PROPOSED CONTROL OF DOGS (SCOTLAND) BILL
STATEMENT OF REASONS BY CHRISTINE GRAHAME MSP ON WHY CONSULATION ON THE DRAFT PROPOSAL IS NOT REQUIRED

Background to proposal
In line with Rule 9.14.3 of Standing Orders, my draft proposal for a Control of Dogs (Scotland) Bill was lodged on 13 March 2009. The proposal is for a Bill—
to modernise the law on out of control dogs including dangerous dogs
Currently the law aimed at controlling dogs focusses on banning certain breeds of dog considered dangerous but takes no account of the behaviour of dog owners and has no effective preventative measures aimed at stopping dogs from getting out of control in the first instance. This Bill would introduce preventative measures in the form of a Dog Control Notice regime which places a duty on the owner of a dog which has been out of control to keep their dog under control at all times.
In addition, the current legislation does not cover incidents in private places of allowing a dog to be dangerously out of control (i.e. attacking or causing reasonable apprehension that it will attack a person) for example, in their own home. Yet some of the most serious dog attacks of recent years have happened on private premises. The Bill would make it a criminal offence to allow a dog to be dangerously out of control in any place, public or private.

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bi ... sFINAL.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Proposal Proposed Control of Dogs (Scotland) Bill
Proposer Christine Grahame
Proposer Details Proposal for a Bill to modernise the law on out of control dogs including dangerous dogs
Draft proposal Lodged 13 March 2009

•Proposed Control of Dogs (Scotland) Bill Statement of Reasons (29KB pdf posted 16.03.2009)

Final proposal Lodged 24 April 2009
Supporters 1 month from date lodged 33 (19 SNP, 12 Scot Lab, 1 Scot Lib Dem, 1 Scot Green Party, 1 Independent) - Surprisingly no support from the Tories.

Proposed Control of Dogs (Scotland) Bill - supporters (11KB pdf posted 27.05.2009)

Outcome: The proposal has gathered sufficient support for a Bill to be introduced.

Addendum:
The Bill is being reintroduced after Alex Neil MSP, the member who first proposed the Bill, became Minister for Communities and is therefore not permitted to pursue this legislation as an individual member. Ms Grahame said:

“This is a very important Bill and I am very happy to promote it and take this forward.

“This Bill importantly places the onus on the owners, not the dogs, to ensure they are properly controlled. There was a very large gap in the Dangerous Dogs Act where there was a lack of protection against attack on private property. This means that the postman, the gas man, or any tradesman visiting the dog's home can be attacked, without criminal charges being brought against the owner.

“My proposed Bill will close that loophole and ensure greater protection for a wide range of people.

“The focus of this proposed legislation is on the deed not the breed, an aspect that is entirely lacking from the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act. The Bill will offer a flexible range of Control Orders, like ASBOs for dogs, that will provide practical measures to stop dogs getting out of control and place the focus on the owner.”

[brothermagrew]

Further info on this issue:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bi ... introd.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bi ... rod-en.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bi ... rod-pm.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[brothermagrew]

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bi" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... od-dpm.pdf

Also took the time out to Email Christine Grahame MSP (Tuesday) on how this Bill was progressing and received the following short response:

The bill has been laid before Parliament and will now be allocated to a committee (possibly Local government) and then go through the Stage one evidence session . If it passes that there are two other stages. To follow the progress of any Bill if you log on to the Parliament's web-site you can follow this.
I do hope the union will submit evidence to the committee when it puts its call out.

Yours for Scotland
Christine

Addendum:
This Member's Bill was introduced by Christine Grahame MSP on 22 June 2009.

•Bill (as introduced) (157KB pdf posted 23.06.2009)
•Explanatory Notes (164KB pdf posted 23.06.2009)
•Policy Memorandum (162KB pdf posted 23.06.2009)
•Delegated Powers Memorandum (38KB pdf posted 03.07.2009)

Stage 1
The lead committee for Stage 1 is the Local Government and Communities Committee.

The Bill is also being considered by the following committee:

Finance Committee on 1 September 2009.
Subordinate Legislation Committee on 15 September 2009 and 6 October 2009.
•Subordinate Legislation Committee Report on Control of Dogs (Scotland) Bill at Stage 1

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/co ... gsBill.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The deadline for completion of Stage 1 is 29 January 2010.