Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of conducting a review of (a) Breed-Specific Legislation and (b) the Dangerous Dogs Act by the end of 2022.

The primary purpose of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 is public protection. The Government must balance the views of those who want to repeal or amend the breed specific legislation relating to the Pit Bull terrier, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro and the Japanese Tosa with that responsibility.

The Government considers that a lifting of the restrictions on these types of dogs would more likely result in an increase in dog attacks, rather than contributing to any reduction in such incidents. This position is supported by the police.

In December 2021, Defra published research in collaboration with Middlesex University investigating measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog.

Defra have subsequently set up a Responsible Dog Ownership project in collaboration with the police, local authority representatives and animal welfare stakeholders to consider the recommendations set out in the Middlesex University Report in detail and provide advice to the Government as to how these could be taken forward.

We expect the work of the work of the Responsible Dog Ownership project to be concluded in early 2023, at which point the Government will consider the advice.