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 introducing penalties for dog owners whose dog attacks wildlife.

There are already several potential penalties available to deal with dog owners who do not keep their animals under control.

It is an offence under section 3(1) of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to allow a dog to be dangerously out of control. Under section 2 of the Dogs Act 1871 a magistrates' court may make any Order they consider appropriate to require an owner to ensure that their dog is kept under proper control. The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 also includes specific measures to enable the police and local authorities to tackle irresponsible dog ownership.

Defra has also commissioned research in collaboration with Middlesex University to consider the effectiveness of current dog control measures. The report is currently being peer reviewed and will be finalised in light of peer review comments. Our intention is to publish the final report later this year.