Coming into force on 5th December 2024 and applying to England and Wales.
These amendments have been passed via a Statutory Instrument; the Dangerous Dogs (Exemption Schemes) (England and Wales) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order - No 1149 2024.
The details can be viewed in full here:
DEFRA Information - changes include:
Extension of the neutering deadline date in the 2023 Order for dogs aged under
7 months on 31 January 2024 from 31st December 2024 to 30 June 2025.
This
change is being made to reduce health and welfare risks associated with
neutering large dogs before they have physically matured. As a result of the
change the majority of XL Bully dogs exempted under this Order will be at least
18 months old when they are neutered. The 2023 Rehoming Order does not
need to be amended as no dogs exempted under that legislation were less than 7
months old on 31 January 2024.
Amendment of the neutering requirements in the 2015 Order in relation to an
XL Bully dog exempted through the court- approved exemption scheme to
ensure that XL Bully dogs do not need to be neutered until they are 18 months
old.
Amendment of the requirements relating to Public Liability Insurance so that
owners holding Certificates of Exemption are required to provide evidence of
insurance on request rather than annually. Owners of all banned breed type dogs with a certificate of exemption are required to have public liability insurance in place for the lifetime of the dog. Previously they were also required, as a condition of the exemption certificate, to send proof annually to Defra that their insurance had been renewed. In light of the large increase in the number of exempted dogs registered with Defra following the implementation of the XL Bully ban, we have reviewed the administrative burdens associated with the processing of annual insurance notifications. We have concluded that it would be more proportionate to replace this approach with spot-checks. The requirement for insurance will remain in place, but Defra will be able to request evidence of insurance from owners and owners will be in breach of their conditions of exemption if they do not provide this evidence within 5 days of the request being made. Non-compliance with this request will result in a dog’s Certificate of Exemption becoming invalid.
This change is being made to reduce
the administrative burden on owners and Defra.
Amendment of the 2015 Order to allow substitution of the person in charge of
an exempted XL Bully dog, in the event of death or serious illness of the
exemption holder. This will align with provisions that already apply to other
banned breed types.
Previously in the event of serious illness or death of the owner of an XL Bully dog
exempted under the 2023 Order, it was not possible for another person to lawfully take charge of the dog and keep it. The amendment means that in this situation the
prospective new owner can apply to the court for the ownership to be transferred to
them and the dog can remain with them until the case is heard, rather than being
seized, if the Police deem that there is no risk to the public from the dog, and that the
person is fit and proper. This change aligns the policy for XL Bully dogs with that
which is already in place for other banned breed types.
