Dangerous Dogs: An analysis of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and Breed-Specific Legislation. Are We Barking up the Wrong Tree?
| Published date | 01 December 2024 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/00220183241283763 |
| Author | Cheryl Weir |
| Date | 01 December 2024 |
Dangerous Dogs: An analysis of the
Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and
Breed-Specific Legislation. Are We
Barking up the Wrong Tree?
Cheryl Weir
Teesside University, UK; University of Law, UK
Abstract
The enactment of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 is an example of a reactive introduction of
legislation in response to a series of dog attacks that year. In September 2023, the Prime
Minister, Rishi Sunak, announced that the Government would again be taking action to ban
an additional dog breed type by the end of 2023 in another reactive action. The proposal
to add the American Bully XL breed type to the list of banned breeds detailed in S.1
Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 came into force on 31 December 2023. No other proposals for
reform of the Act have been suggested to date. This article will explore the legislative amend-
ments and consider whether the Government’s recent reform is sufficient to adequately pro-
tect the public from dangerous dogs and dog attacks.
Keywords
Dangerous Dogs, banned breeds, breed-specific legislation, Anna Paun, American Bully XL
Introducing banned breeds of dog types was the 1991 Government’s reaction to a spate of dog attacks on
members of the public.
1
There were 11 serious attacks in the space of 1 year, seven of which involved
young children. One such incident involved 6-year-old Rukhsana Khan from Bradford, who was attacked
by a Pit Bull Terrier and taken to hospital with critical head and chest injuries.
2
Corresponding author:
Cheryl Weir, The University of Law, Leeds Campus, 15-16 Park Row, Leeds, LS1 5HD, UK.
E-mail: cheryl.weir@law.ac.uk
1. See Harry Howard, ‘How Britain became one of the first countries in the world to ban breeds of dog: Eleven attacks in year,
including the mauling of six-year-old girl and a grandfather, prompted John Major’s Government into passing controversial
Dangerous Dogs Act in 1991’(Daily Mail, 13 September 2023)
Britain-one-countries-world-ban-breeds-dog-Eleven-attacks-year-including-mauling-six-year-old-girl-grandfather-prompted-
John-Majors-government-passing-controversial-Dangerous-Dogs-Act-1991.html> accessed 24 October 2023.
2. HL Deb 20 January 1993, Vol 541, Col 942.
Article
The Journal of Criminal Law
2024, Vol. 88(5-6) 347–357
© The Author(s) 2024
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/00220183241283763
journals.sagepub.com/home/clj
Get this document and AI-powered insights with a free trial of vLex and Vincent AI
Get Started for FreeStart Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting