Dog owners slam UK ban which is 'knee jerk reaction' and 'unlawful'

A UK dog ban could be reversed in a huge u-turn - after campaigners were given the go-ahead to take an appeal to the High Court. XL Bully campaigners have been given the green light to bring High Court challenge against the UK-wide ban on the dog breed.

Dog owner Sophie Coulthard and the campaign group Don't Ban Me, Licence Me are taking legal action against the Department for Environmental and Rural Affairs (Defra). A spokesperson Don't Ban Me, Licence Me told the Mirror earlier today: "The prime ministers decision to ban the XL bully was a knee jerk reaction and beyond that, we believe unlawful and that proper process was not followed. That is why we are challenging the legislation by asking for a Judicial Review.

"There is an issue with dogs in this country and we’ve seen the dog population and dog-related incidents rise in the last few years, but we don’t believe a breed ban will solve the problem. We have seen five serious attacks involving a different breed in the last few weeks alone.

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"While the legal challenge is specifically challenging the legislation around the XL bully, as a campaign group we believe in licensing for all dogs. Having seen the success of dog licensing in other countries, we think the government should be looking to a better solution for the long term and the future of responsible dog ownership."

Cathryn McGahey KC, representing campaigners, said the ban came from a “hasty” announcement by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in September last year, the day after a fatal dog attack, which led to legal errors. In written arguments, the barrister said Defra has “no material on which to base a rational decision that dogs involved in recent attacks were disproportionately of XL bully type”.

XL bully owner Sophie Coulthard, 40, said she was “elated” by the judge’s decision, which “feels like a victory for responsible dog owners”. “We know how passionately people feel that this legislation is unfair, unjust,” she said, adding: “The decision to ban the XL bully was made so quickly, and the fallout and impact on people’s lives, we don’t believe, has been considered.”