The Government will ban the American XL Bully canine by the top of the yr, Rishi Sunak has stated.
Speaking on Friday morning, the Prime Minister stated “new laws” can be in place by the top of the yr to ban the breed after a spate of assaults, a few of which have been deadly.
It got here as a person was pronounced lifeless following a dog attack in Walsall, with work ongoing to verify the breed of canine concerned.
Ian Price, 52, died in hospital after being significantly injured in Main Street, Stonnall, at about 3.15pm on Thursday.
A custody extension has been granted giving detectives one other 10 hours to proceed questioning a 30-year-old man from South Staffordshire in reference to the incident. He was arrested on suspicion of being in control of dogs dangerously uncontrolled and manslaughter.
DNA testing is underway to verify the breed of the dogs, however skilled examination up to now signifies they’re XL bullies.
Nursery employee Amanda Ward stated her daughter Amy, 20, heard an ear-piercing scream” coming from the backyard and went to analyze.
She instructed MailOnline: “In the end some brave locals used wheelie bins to separate the dogs from the man and they tied one of the dogs’ legs together.
“The other dog went back to its flat.”
Ms Ward claimed that Mr Price had been defending his elderly mom on the time of the attack.
Neighbour Matt, 43, stated Mr Price was a “lovely guy”, including: “It could have been me or my wife or any of us in the village.”
Staffordshire Police later confirmed that one of many dogs died after being restrained and the opposite died after being injected by a vet.
The pressure additionally revealed that officers had been in contact with the canine proprietor twice this yr, prompted by stories from involved members of the general public.
It stated its Professional Standards Department has reviewed body-worn video of the deadly incident and the earlier stories regarding each dogs and concluded there will likely be no referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
The police acquired a report on January 14 saying that two XL bully dogs had been off their lead in a discipline in Stonnall.
Officers went to the proprietor’s deal with and gave phrases of recommendation round maintaining the dogs underneath management whereas in a shared public place.
The proprietor was co-operative and each dogs had been within the deal with on the time and gave the impression to be calm, police stated. They didn’t present any indicators of aggression in the direction of officers.
Meanwhile, the Government has been underneath rising strain to outlaw the breed after footage showed an 11-year-old girl being attacked by a Bully-Staffie cross in Birmingham last weekend.
In a clip launched on Twitter, Mr Sunak stated: “The American XL Bully dog is a danger to our communities, particularly to our children.
“I share the nation’s horror at the videos we’ve all seen. Yesterday we saw another suspected XL Bully dog attack, which has tragically led to a fatality.
“It’s clear this is not about a handful of badly-trained dogs. It’s a pattern of behaviour and it cannot go on.”
Mr Sunak stated work would first happen to outline the breed in regulation, describing it as a “vital” first step earlier than it may be outlawed.
“We will then ban the breed under the Dangerous Dogs Act and new laws will be in place by the end of the year,” he stated.
“These dogs are dangerous, I want to reassure the public that we will take all necessary steps to keep people safe.”
The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 bans any breeds that look like “bred for fighting or to have the characteristics of a type bred for that purpose”.
So far, solely 4 breeds are on the listing: the American pitbull terrier, the Japanese tosa, the Dogo Argentinos and the Fila Brazileiro.
The American bully XL can weigh greater than 9 stone (60kg) and is powerful sufficient to overpower an grownup.
It has been linked with a collection of deadly assaults, together with that of a 65-year-old grandmother in Liverpool and the demise of a 17-month-old toddler in St Helens final yr.
Among those that had been calling for a ban had been Emma Whitfield, whose 10-year-old son Jack Lis, was fatally attacked by a bully XL named Beast in Caerphilly, South Wales, two years in the past.
However, the Dog Control Coalition, which incorporates the RSPCA and the Dogs Trust, has beforehand resisted requires a ban on American bully dogs, saying it might not adequately defend the general public.
It has known as for the Government to as a substitute deal with selling accountable canine possession and coaching.
