Royal Mail and CWU Dog Awareness Week

Dog Awareness Week July 2017:

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Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union are launching their annual dog awareness week 3 – 7 July.
As the UK school break for their summer holidays, families enjoy the summer weather, which is good news for them but BAD NEWS FOR POSTAL WORKERS as this signals what Posties know as the ‘dog-bite season’ and the time of the year which traditionally sees a big spike in the number of attacks.

Royal Mail and postal workers trade union the CWU will be campaigning again to raise public awareness and urge customers to be responsible dog owners as well as urge caution amongst postmen and women who want to provide a good service but sometimes pay a heavy price.

CWU National Health and Safety Officer Dave Joyce said: "Seven postal workers are attacked by dogs every day of the year. It is unacceptable and the whole idea of Dog Awareness Week is to highlight the problem and the repercussions for dog owners and the victims, many of whom are seriously injured and some can not return to mail delivery work”.

“Over 70% of Dog Attacks on Postmen and Women occur on the garden path or at the doorstep of the dog owners home. It just needs owners to restrict their animals access to the front garden or to put their dog in another room before opening the door to collect a parcel or sign for an item.”

“Customers are always pleased to see the Postman or Postwoman arrive as they’re eager to take delivery of their goods they’ve ordered and paid for on the internet but thousands of customers who own a dog unfortunately don’t give a second thought to the Postal Worker’s safety by putting the dog in a safe, secure place.”  

“The vast majority of our customers and their dogs aren't a problem but irresponsible and reckless dog owners are.”

“The new dog control laws now identify and penalises irresponsible dog owners and many are now facing prosecution and paying heavy court penalties and end up withcriminal records. So it’s in their best interest in more ways than one to make sure the dog don’t bite the Postman.”

“One Essex dog owner was recently fined £8,800 after his dog injured a Postwoman’s fingers as she put letters through the door – which is another problem Postal workers face!”

“The penalties can also include losing their dogs, being banned from dog ownership, paying compensation and even a Jail sentence.”

“Dog owners need to fully understand that their actions usually are the cause of a dog being dangerous and simple precautions can prevent the pain for everyone concerned. No matter what breed of dog is involved, the dog can present a substantial danger to postal workers."

Top tips for dog owners to help the postman or woman deliver the post in safety:
• Keep your dog indoors around the time that the postman calls to deliver mail.
• Before you opened the door to collect a parcel or sign for an item - put your dog in another room.
• Make sure children don’t open the door, as dogs can push by them and attack the postman.
• If you have a back garden, close off the access, so your dog can't get round to the front when the postman calls.
• If your dog attacks the mail and could bite a postman’s fingers as he puts mail through your letterbox, please fit a letter box cage.
• If it’s not practical for you to keep your dog away from a postman delivering your mail, consider fitting a secure mailbox on the edge of your property.

Dangerous Dog Act - Amendments Planned

The government has published proposed amendments to the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 - the amendments are now underway; if passed as law, these amendments will affect not only the prohibited dogs but all breeds and types of dog in England and Wales.
 
The draft Dangerous Dogs (DD) Amendment Bill was recently published by Defra, shortly afterwards the EFRA committee launched a two week inquiry to invite written evidence followed by oral evidence specifically on the proposed Bill; they received 86 written responses.

Details of written evidence submitted to the EFRA Committee can be found here.

The draft DD Amendment Bill was expected to be in the Queen’s speech on 8^th May (meaning it will be one of several bills addressed in the next parliamentary session), but, it was not.

The proposed changes had appeared, without explanation within the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing (ASCP) Bill which is a Home Office bill and was included in the Queen’s speech; on the government’s legislative agenda - it is now underway to become an Act – new legislation, which is far reaching, for all dogs and their owners.

The planned amendments to the DDA were published in the ASCP bill before EFRA had published its written report on the evidence it received. Previously the Home Affairs Committee had held an inquiry into this bill ending in January but this was before the amendments from the draft DDA bill were placed into this bill.

So in a nutshell;

·         an Inquiry ending in January 2013 was previously held into the ASCP Bill but at the time the DDA Amendments were not included in the bill

·         a draft Dangerous Dogs Amendment Bill was published by Defra on 9th April

·         a separate inquiry was held by the EFRA Committee - with a deadline of 22nd April

·         the Queen’s speech on 8th May included the ASCP Bill

·         the Government went ahead and placed the amendments within the ASCP Bill which was published on the 9th May

·         the EFRA committee published its report on 16th May on the pre-legislative inquiry it just held but the Amendments were already published

The ASCP Bill is now in progress – this is a large detailed bill where a relatively small portion relates to dogs - it could easily slip past undetected unless you were actually looking for it.

To follow the progress of the Bill click here - you will see that the second reading is due in the Commons on the 10th June 2013

You can read the Bill online here - Part 7 - specifically relates to ‘Dangerous Dogs’ – keeping dogs under proper control and whether a dog is a danger to public safety.

The text from the original draft DDA Amendment Bill has been changed as it’s moved from bill to bill – in reference to the ‘Householder defence’ – there is no longer the need for the owner to be present at the time of an incident in a building that is a dwelling (ie your home) - but this defence applies to the building only, not the garden etc. So presumably if a burglar is in your garden and your dog injures him or there are reasonable grounds your dog might - you are on the wrong side of the law.

The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime & Policing Bill also contains the new provisions of Public Spaces Protection Orders and Community Protection Notices are also included in this Bill.

Currently we have Dog Control Orders which are to be repealed and replaced with Public Spaces Protection Orders. PSPO's – these will also be made by local authorities but not parish councils. There’s no limit to what a PSPO can command and they can remain for up to three years.

Community Protection Notice (CPN) will be issued by the police and local authorities, this is a new power for when there is ‘conduct of a persistent or continuing nature’. The CPN specify requirements to do specified things, cease doing specified things or to take reasonable steps to achieve specified results.

 

New Dog Law for Wales:

Public Consultation – Control of Dogs (Wales) Bill

This public consultation began on the 23/11/2012 and closes on the 01/03/2013.

Your opinions are being sought in a public consultation which is asking for your views on a proposed Bill - the ‘Control of Dogs (Wales) Bill.

The welsh Assembly plan to introduce the proposed Bill in Spring 2013 and if the Bill was passed by the Welsh Assembly, the legislation which includes changes in current law would apply Wales.

The proposals include:

- The introduction of ‘dog control notices’ (DCNs).

- The extension of Section three (which applies to all breeds/types of dog) of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to cover any place (i.e. inside your home) whether or not a public place in Wales.

- The extension of Section Three, aggravated and non-aggravated, of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 which currently applies to a person and under the proposed changes would be extended to also apply to - all protected animals (protected animals are defined under the Animal Welfare Act and include dogs and cats).

For example; your dog chasing a cat in your garden could become a criminal offence in Wales, as could your dog defending your home from a burglar – there are no defences given in the draft Bill.

- An amendment to Section one (4A) offences and section 4b applications (DDA 1991, as amended)

There are also changes proposed on the draft Bill relating to those found guilty of being a prohibited type - the breed specific element of the DDA legislation – currently the court can order a dog is exempted once satisfied that the dog would not ‘constitute a danger to public safety’ – the Welsh Bill seeks to amend this – the court would also need to be satisfied the dog would not constitute a danger to the safety of protected animals (for example other dogs and cats).

If the court is unable to order exemption the only other alternative is a death sentence and this is based largely on how a dog looks –its physical appearance.
It is a dismal state of affairs that the Welsh government do not propose to scrap flawed BSl altogether and lead the way out of the dark ages, but no, they intend to make exemption more difficult which as it stands will result in the deaths of even more innocent family companions and there are also plans to increase the exemption fee-payable to the Index of Exempted Dogs which is run by Defra.

The full details of the consultation are available online here

To download your consultation explanation and questions go here

To read the draft Bill which is proposed and will affect dogs and their owners in Wales can be found here

How to respond:

Please submit your comments by 01 March 2013, in any of the following ways:

Email:
companionanimalwelfare@wales.gsi.gov.uk

Post:
Animal Welfare Team
Environment and Sustainable Development Department
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff CF10 3NQ