Rishi Sunak said that the XL Bully dogs are a ‘danger to our communities”. (Representational)
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Friday announced that American XL Bully dogs will be banned in the UK by the end of this year. This comes shortly after a man died following a dog attack in Staffordshire on Thursday.
The UK Prime Minister released a video on X, formerly Twitter, stating that the XL Bully dogs are a “danger to our communities” and that the government is “working on ways to stop these attacks and protect the public”.
“The American XL Bully Dog is a danger to our communities, particularly our children. I share the nation’s horror at the recent videos we’ve all seen. Yesterday we saw another suspected XL Bully Dog attack, which has tragically led to a fatality. It’s clear this is not about a handful of badly trained dogs. It’s a pattern of behaviour and it cannot go on,” Mr Sunak said.
“While owners already have a responsibility to keep their dogs under control, I want to reassure people that we are urgently working on ways to stop these attacks and protect the public,” he added.
The British Prime Minister said that he has asked his ministers to define the breed of the dogs behind the spate of attacks so that it can be outlawed. He added that the breed will be then banned “under the dangerous dogs” by the end of 2023.
“Today I have tasked ministers to bring together police and experts to firstly define the breed of dog behind these attacks with a view to then outlawing it. It is not currently a breed defined in law, so this vital first step must happen fast. We will then ban the breed under the dangerous dogs and new laws will be in place by the end of the year. These dogs are dangerous. I want to reassure the public that we will take all necessary steps to keep people safe,” Rishi Sunak said.
It’s clear the American XL Bully dog is a danger to our communities.
I’ve ordered urgent work to define and ban this breed so we can end these violent attacks and keep people safe. pic.twitter.com/Qlxwme2UPQ
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) September 15, 2023
A man died after he was attacked by two dogs near a school in Staffordshire, UK, on Thursday. The victim had sustained multiple life-threatening injuries in the attack and was rushed to a hospital where he was later declared dead.
Last week, an 11-year-old girl suffered injuries to her shoulder and arm in an attack by an American XL bully crossbreed dog in Birmingham. The dog also attacked two men. Following this, the West Midlands Police said that a 60-year-old man was arrested “on suspicion of possessing a dog dangerously out of control”, reported Sky News.