New safeguards introduced in relation to XL Bully dogs in Scotland: EIR release

Information requested

Various information concerning the new safeguards that have been introduced in relation to XL Bully dogs in Scotland.

Response

As the information you have requested is ‘environmental information’ for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

Requests for information from the Scottish Government i.e., what evidence they used to make their decisions.

1. What happened in the UK with regards to the Scottish Government being advised on future plans for the ban on XL bullies in the UK? Who represented the Scottish Government in meetings with DEFRA officials before the UK ban was introduced? Please send details of meetings held in chronological order before the UK ban was introduced.

To clarify, despite this action often being referred to as a ‘ban’ of XL Bully dogs, there is no such ban of XL Bully dogs in England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. Rather, new restrictions have been brought in through safeguards for XL Bully dogs that were introduced through a two-stage process with the aim to protect public safety.

The Scottish Government became aware of the UK Government decision to place restrictions on XL Bully dogs via the BBC News website on 15 September 2023 – as it was being reported. The Scottish Government subsequently received a letter from the UK Government on 29 September 2023 on the issue – but this had no detail on the specific approach and no detail of the potential impact on Scotland at that time.

Scottish Government officials then took part in weekly online meetings with DEFRA officials, who chaired all of these meetings with other officials from devolved administrations also attending to understand the implications of the new safeguards for England and Wales. For Scottish Government policy interests, an official from Scottish Government Justice Directorate attended these meeting.

In addition the Scottish Government were also invited to the DEFRA led Expert Working Group and joined these discussions as observers. The purpose of the DEFRA led meetings that were chaired by DEFRA was to develop the document that set out the physical conformation standard for the XL Bully dog type. For Scottish Government policy interests, an official from Scottish Government Justice Directorate and an official from Scottish Government Animal Welfare Directorate attended the majority of these meetings.

2. Did the Minister attend any of these meetings?

The meetings were held at official level therefore no Ministers from the UK or Scottish Governments attended these meetings.

3. When and how were the Scottish Government informed of the introduction of the ban in the UK?

See response to question number 1.

4. Did the Minister attend any meetings, ask to attend any meetings or ask to be involved in any meetings with UK Ministers who were deciding if and when to introduce the XL Bully dog ban in the UK?

As noted above, the Scottish Government was given no prior warning that the UK Government were going to take the decision to place restrictions on XL Bully dogs in England and Wales.

5. What has the Minister done since the introduction of the ban in the UK to engage with UK Ministers and DEFRA? This is to include the attendance at meetings by Jim Wilson but please confirm if the Minister has had any meetings, phone calls, online communications with UK Ministers on this matter (the ban of XL Bully type dogs in the UK).

Scottish Government officials have continued to engage regularly with DEFRA and the other devolved administrations since the UK Government announced their intention to place restrictions on XL Bully dogs.

The Minister for Victims and Community Safety wrote to the UK Government regarding XL Bully dogs on 14 November 2023. A copy of that letter can be found in the published response to FOI case 202400392616: https://www.gov.scot/publications/foi-202400392616/

The Minister for Victims and Community Safety also wrote on 9 February 2024 to formally advise the UK Government of the two-stage approach the Scottish Government was taking in relation to XL Bully safeguards.

6. Evidence of the Minister’s attempts to engage with the UK Ministers and DEFRA in order to allow Exempted dogs to travel to and from the UK and Scotland i.e. to respect each others’ exemption certificates.

The Minister for Victims and Community Safety has written to the UK Government on 8 March 2024 and 20 May 2024 to raise the issue of the cross-border movement of XL Bully dogs within the nations of the United Kingdom.

A copy of the letters to the UK Government from the Minister for Victims and Community Safety dated 9 February 2024, 8 March 2024 and 20 May 2024 are attached as an Annex.

7. Statistics and evidence on the danger of the XL Bully type dog in terms of attacks on humans, the number of XL Bully dogs that have entered Scotland since October 2023 up to now, the number and breed of lethal and serious dog attacks in Scotland in the past 10 years (yearly) and up to now.

The Scottish Government does not collate data on dog attacks broken down by dog breed. However, Public Health Scotland collects data provided by NHS Health Boards on the number of inpatient and day case admissions to hospital where a diagnosis of dog attack (bite or strike) was recorded. I would refer you to the answer given to Parliamentary Question S6W-24486 on 24 January 2024 for the available data from 2004 to 2022. The Parliamentary Question can be viewed at: https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/questions-and-answers/question?ref=S6W-24486

It is not known how many XL Bully dogs there are in Scotland. This is within the context of an unknown number of XL Bully dogs in the UK as a whole.

It was evident from media coverage and social media that some XL Bully dogs had been transported to Scotland. It is this context of uncertainty and the failure of the UK Government to ensure XL Bully dog owners in England and Wales cannot evade the new safeguards by disposing of their dogs outside of England and Wales that led to the decision by the Scottish Government to introduce similar safeguards in Scotland.

8. Attempts made to strengthen the Dog control measures already available before the introduction of the two SSIs XL Bully type dog ban, into Scotland.

A Scottish Government led Short Life Working Group was established in 2022 to assist with taking forward a commitment to review the 1991 Act. The focus of the review was on the criminal offence in the 1991 Act of a dog being dangerously out of control. The working group has undertaken this review, and we are now considering the wide range of views offered to determine what may be appropriate as next steps.

The Minutes of Short Life Working Group meetings have been published on the Scottish Government website: https://www.gov.scot/groups/dangerous-dogs-act-short-life-working-group/

There has been a considerable amount of activity in the area of dog control policy. The Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 (“the 2010 Act”) provided powers for local authorities to respond to incidents of dog owners allowing their dogs to be out of control in public places by imposing Dog Control Notices (DCNs). The Scottish Government updated operational guidance for the 2010 Act in December 2020. This reflected the first decade of use of the 2010 Act and built on best practice to assist local authorities in discharging their responsibilities. This guidance is available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/updated-guidance-control-dogs-scotland-act-2010/

The Scottish Government also introduced a national DCN database which is helping independent enforcement agencies (local authorities and Police Scotland) access information on dog owners who allow their dogs to be out of control.

9. Attempts to meet with and consult XL Bully dog owners prior to and since the SSIs were laid before Parliament and up to today.

The Scottish Government engaged over a period of months with a number of dog control interests in Scotland to understand their views on the potential for the introduction of new safeguards in Scotland on XL Bully dogs. A range of views were offered through this engagement with many views offered indicating caution about introducing in Scotland the controls introduced in England and Wales. This caution related to the policy merits of the new safeguards. It is however, as already noted, a decision made in light of the undue impact on Scotland of the new controls in England and Wales. The Scottish Government has also engaged with a significant number of citizens, stakeholders, and XL Bully dog owners through responding to items of correspondence and also through an XL Bully dog enquiries email mailbox to set out the Scottish Government’s policy on XL Bully dogs and to also provide advice, support when dealing with a range of queries on the new safeguards on XL Bully dogs. In addition the Scottish Government have engaged through written correspondence with the representatives from the ‘Stop the XL Bully Ban in Scotland’ campaign group.

10. The reasons for not engaging with the Applicant.

Please see response to question number 9.

11. The reasons or lack of clarity in the legislation and the number of communications from people who have asked for clarification.

We do not consider the legislation to lack clarity.

More generally, we have received a very wide range of letters and emails in relation to the Scottish Government’s policy on the new safeguards on XL Bully dogs. We do not hold a centrally held list of communications from people who have specifically asked for clarification on the legislation.

12. Why seriously ill people were not allowed to find new homes for their dog before they died or because they can no longer meet the needs of their XL Bully dog.

The then First Minister announced on Thursday 11 January 2024 that new safeguards on XL Bully dogs would be introduced in Scotland. The restrictions on rehoming XL Bully dogs subsequently came into force on 23 February 2024. XL Bully owners had until 22 February 2024 to make the necessary arrangements to rehome their dogs if thought necessary. It is of course now an offence to sell, give away or rehome an XL Bully. As such there is no mechanism that allows for someone to permanently give up ownership of their XL Bully and pass the dog to someone else. Allowing someone to give up their dog and transfer ownership would create a potential loophole that could be exploited by those who are simply looking to sell or give away a dog.

13. Why finding a keeper for a dog is not permitted with the original owner staying on the exemption certificate and the keeper being responsible for the dog - in effect a monitored foster carer.

It may be helpful to explain that if someone who has an exemption certificate for their XL Bully dog is, for example, admitted to hospital for a short term, there is flexibility in terms of up to 30 days where their dog can be kept away from the owner’s address under the terms of the exemption.

In a situation where long-term care is needed, clearly there will be a considerable numbers of issues to assess including the future care for their dog. Any potential offence that may be committed through a breach of the exemption granted would always be considered with the public interest in mind by prosecutors and that includes an assessment of the circumstances of any given situation. There is also nothing to prevent others from assisting in caring for the dog, so long as it is owned by the same person and lives at their address.

In addition, where an owner who had an exemption certificate for their dog passes away, the exemption regime operates to give three months for any person inheriting the dog to either seek an exemption themselves or to have the dog euthanised.

14. Why dogs who deformities to their faces or have had surgery are not exempt from muzzling?

The Scottish Government understands the concerns expressed by dog owners about the impact that the new controls may have on their dogs. The Scottish Government takes dog welfare very seriously and is committed to the highest possible welfare standards. There is however a balance to be struck between protecting dog welfare and protecting public safety. As such, all XL Bully dogs must be muzzled and on a lead when in a public place.

15. Why was the term rehoming introduced into the SSIs when it is not in the primary legislation? The absence of the ability to approach rehoming rescue centres when peoples’ life circumstances change e.g. divorce, pregnancy, ill health, loss of job, eviction, homelessness etc is a loss of assistance to people whose family and personal life is affected by incidents or changes outwith their control. Rehoming by responsible, professional and expert centres is an answer to this lack of respect for dog owners’ change of circumstances. Why are the owners of XL Bully type dogs not being accorded this Human Right when a ban on rehoming is not in the primary legislation? Changing this would be so helpful to the owners of these dogs - especially when the Minister states regularly that the exemption of these dogs is for their animal welfare. Please explain how not allowing them to be rehomed by professionals to responsible, checked and validated as fit and proper persons to own such a dog is not possible?

The restrictions on rehoming XL Bully dogs came into force on 23 February 2024. This meant rehoming organisations had up until 22 February 2024 to consider the opportunity to rehome XL Bully dogs in their care. Alternatively, rehoming centres were also provided the opportunity to seek an exemption for any dogs taken into their care before 23 February 2024 or puppies born of such a dog prior to 31 July 2024. These new safeguards are intended to protect communities from the potential harmful effect of XL Bully dogs.

16. What happened up to the announcement of the SSI - how were decisions made to introduce this ban on XL Bully type dogs? What meetings were held with advisers?

An exception under regulation 10(4)(e) of the EIRs applies to some of the information you have requested. This regulation covers internal communications which can take the form of internal email exchanges, file notes prepared for internal use, notes of meetings and documents which have been circulated internally.

This exception is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception.

We recognise that there is some public interest in release because of the material relates to an important policy area of XL Bully dogs. However, this is outweighed by the public interest in ensuring the Scottish Government, and those who the Scottish Government engages with, have private space within which to discuss important issues relating to the policy area of XL Bully dogs. If this private space did not exist, it is likely to inhibit how engagement takes place with an adverse impact on how policy is developed.

I would however also refer you to the statement that the Minister for Victims and Community Safety gave to Parliament on 18 January 2024 explaining the reason for the Scottish Government’s policy decision to introduce new safeguards in reaction to XL Bully dogs.:
https://www.gov.scot/publications/new-safeguards-relation-xl-bully-dogs-community-safety-ministerstatement/.

17. How were statistics from Bullywatch used to come to this decision?

No statistics from Bullywatch were used by the Scottish Government when reaching the policy decision to introduce restrictions on XL Bully dogs.

18. Which social media platforms contributed to the decision to introduce the ban and what comments caused this to happen?

No social media platform contributed to the decision to introduce the new safeguards. being made.

19. Which newspaper reports contributed to the Minister making the decision to introduce the ban?

No specific newspaper reports led to the decision to introduce the new safeguards.

20. How can the Minister justify her claims that the Scottish Government is still following the Deed not Breed policy when it is clear that this breed is being victimised and repeating claims that these dogs are not dangerous. It is contradictory at best and negligent at worst.

The action taken by the Scottish Government does not represent a fundamental shift away from deed to breed. It is acknowledged this decision is a limited departure from the deed not breed approach is not one we have taken lightly. However, we had to respond to the circumstances in other parts of the UK that impacted on Scotland.

No new breed types have been added to the prohibited breed list for more than 30 years. This reflects the policy approach over the last decade to encourage and require responsible dog owners to control their dogs as being key to public safety. And this applies whatever the breed may be. This ‘deed not breed’ approach is supported by welfare organisations including the Scottish SPCA as being the most effective in helping to keep dogs well-looked after and under control.

While we believe that additional safeguards specific to XL Bully dogs are now required, we want to continue to encourage responsible dog ownership.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.

EIR 202400411738 - Information released - Annex

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