Questions and answers

Question reference: S6O-03023

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what support it can offer to assist in the establishing of a small museum or exhibition centre in Galashiels to celebrate the life and times of Robert Coltart, the author of the children’s song, Ally Bally Bee.

Question reference: S6W-24484

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government who it expects would be responsible for the enforcement of any regulations in Scotland regarding XL bully dogs.

Question reference: S6W-24482

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publicise what it considers to be the definition of an XL bully dog, in order to assist the public, particularly dog owners, in determining whether they may potentially be required to register their dog.

Question reference: S6W-24480

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what issues it raised with the UK Government regarding the potential displacement of XL bully dogs to Scotland from England and Wales in the event that legislation that exists in England and Wales were not to be replicated in Scotland, and when it raised any such issues.

I wrote to the then UK Government Minister for Biosecurity, Marine and Rural Affairs, The Rt Hon Lord Benyon, on 14 November 2023 seeking clarity from the UK Government on whether XL Bully dog owners would be committing the offence of sale of an XL Bully dog if a dog owner living in England and Wales sought to do that outside of England and Wales.

The UK Government were unable to give a definitive answer indicating it would be ‘unlikely’ an offence would be committed in such a situation.

Question reference: S6W-24485

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the First Minister’s announcement on 11 January 2024 that it will, in essence, replicate in Scotland the legislation that exists in England and Wales on XL bully dogs, what alternative protections it considered in order to address the potential displacement of XL bully dogs to Scotland from England and Wales, and for what reason it dismissed any such alternative options.

In light of the UK Government failing to ensure English and Welsh XL Bully dog owners cannot evade the new safeguards through selling or otherwise disposing of their dogs in Scotland, the Scottish Government has been left with little choice to decide to replicate the new safeguards in Scotland. Through replicating the new regime, this will ensure owners in England and Wales have no ability to evade the new controls in England and Wales by selling their dogs to people in Scotland.

More generally, we are considering how best the preventative dog control regime in the Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 could be improved. The need for the new safeguards for XL Bully dogs specifically arises separately from the general Scottish Government continuing policy focus on ‘deed, not breed’.

Question reference: S6W-24488

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the First Minister’s announcement on 11 January 2024 that it will, in essence, replicate in Scotland the legislation that exists in England and Wales on XL bully dogs, whether it has decided not to proceed to amend the Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 as an alternative means of protecting the public, and, if this is the case, for what reason it has taken that decision.

Question reference: S6W-24478

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings its ministers have had with organisations or campaign groups regarding the consideration of replicating in Scotland the UK Government’s legislation on XL bully dogs; on what date any such meetings took place; what organisations were involved, and what views were expressed by those organisations or campaign groups.

I can confirm I have met with a range of stakeholders over the winter period to discuss XL Bully dogs and the restrictions in England and Wales.

I met with:

The Scottish SPCA and the Dogs Trust on 21 November 2023

The National Dog Warden Association on 21 November 2023

Dog Control Coalition on 22 November 2023

The Kennel Club on 30 November 2023

Blue Cross on 6 December 2023

Edinburgh Cat and Dog Home on 15 December 2023

Communication Workers Union on 9 January 2023

Police Scotland on 11 January 2023

These meetings revealed concern about the UK Government decision to introduce new safeguards for XL Bully dogs in England and Wales and caution about doing so in Scotland.

However the Scottish Government has now been left with little choice given the failure of the UK Government to ensure XL Bully dog owners living in England and Wales cannot evade the new safeguards through selling or otherwise disposing of their dogs in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-24491

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the First Minister’s announcement on 11 January 2024 that it will, in essence, replicate in Scotland the legislation that exists in England and Wales on XL bully dogs, how it will monitor the efficacy of any proposed regulations.

Question reference: S6W-24479

Asked by: Christine Grahame, MSP for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it made of how many XL bully dogs there were in Scotland before (a) the UK Government’s announcement on 31 October 2023 of the changes to the Dangerous Dogs Act that ban XL bully dogs in England and Wales and (b) the First Minister’s announcement on 11 January 2024 that the Scottish Government it will, in essence, replicate in Scotland the legislation that exists in England and Wales.

The number of XL Bully dogs in the UK and Scotland is unknown and estimates vary significantly.

During the House of Commons scrutiny of the new safeguards in England and Wales, many expert witnesses highlighted the challenges of estimating numbers as XL Bully dogs are not a recognised breed of dog. Those witnesses were concerned about how many of these dogs may be registered as crossbreeds on veterinary practice management systems and pointed towards seeing various estimates of the number of XL Bully dogs, ranging from 50,000 to 150,000 in England and Wales.

If there were 50,000 XL Bully dogs in England and Wales, this may suggest an estimated population of 5,000 XL Bully dogs in Scotland. This figure carries a considerable degree of uncertainty.

Chamber and committees