Animal Welfare (Responsibility for Dog Attacks) Bill

Paul Beresford Excerpts

2nd reading
Friday 17th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Anna Firth]

I agree. That is exactly what this Bill—Emilie’s law—seeks to do. It will close the loophole and deal with this issue as a matter of animal welfare, placing responsibility on the dog owner. It is not about dogs, because dogs have owners. The owners should be responsible.

[Sir Paul Beresford (Mole Valley) (Con)]

I am listening with considerable interest. There are a large number of farmers in my area, and some of them are sheep farmers. One of their complaints is that people stray on to their land with their dogs and often let them go. Let us imagine a situation in which a farmer is bringing in his sheep and has sent out his huntaway, which disappears over the brow. Unbeknown to him, a stray dog attacks the huntaway, which will probably be bigger than most dogs, and the stray dog is killed. Who is to blame?

[Anna Firth]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his intervention. As I said at the beginning of my speech, the Bill is about placing responsibility on a dog owner to take all reasonable steps. In that instance, it may be that the farmer has taken all reasonable steps, in which case there would not be liability; if he has not, he would potentially be caught by the Bill.

First, the Bill would criminalise fatal dog-on-dog attacks, extending the same protection to pet dogs that already exists for service, guide and assistance dogs. Secondly, Emilie’s law would empower owners to pursue justice if their beloved pet is brutally attacked, while not demonising any particular breed or creating unhelpful stereotypes around certain breeds of dog. As I have said, the issue is poor ownership. Thirdly, the Bill would encourage responsible dog ownership and animal welfare by placing the responsibility for a fatal dog attack fairly and squarely on the person in charge of the dog, and empowering the police to take action, which will have a deterrent effect, thus encouraging more responsible dog ownership.

It is important to note that the Bill also includes a number of defences for good owners who are not to blame if their dog causes a fatality, such as if the dog that caused the fatal injury was responding to provocation from another animal or human, and the steps taken by the responsible person to prevent the situation from escalating. The point is to keep the onus on owners but ensure that they are dealt with fairly, and not punish them for a situation out of their control. Finally, my Bill would ensure that local police forces record dog-on-dog attacks as separate offences, enabling us finally to see the full scale of these offences.

The Bill is about protecting every single dog across the UK. The vast majority of dog owners are responsible but, for those who are not, there must be consequences. Passing the Bill would make our dogs safer, and it would also make our parks, streets, towns and cities—especially the new city of Southend—safer places for us and our dogs to live, work and visit. Finally, the Bill would send yet another signal to the world that we in the UK take animal welfare seriously, and make us the international exemplar that we all know we are. I have left just a little time, in which I hope to hear from the Minister.