Campaigners given green light to bring High Court challenge against government's ban on XL Bully dogs after judge ruled they had an 'arguable' case

Campaigners person been fixed the greenish airy to bring a High Court situation against the Government's determination to prohibition XL bully dogs, aft the justice ruled they had an 'arguable' case.

XL bully proprietor Sophie Coulthard and run radical Don't Ban Me, Licence Me are taking ineligible enactment against the Department for Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) implicit the ample bulldog-type American breed being added to a banned database nether Dangerous Dog Act successful October past year.

Since February, it has been a transgression offence to ain an XL bully canine successful England and Wales without an exemption certificate, meaning unregistered pets volition beryllium taken and owners perchance fined and prosecuted.

The Government determination to prohibition XL bullies followed a bid of attacks, immoderate fatal, connected people.

But campaigners reason that the prohibition is unlawful and irrational, claiming it was based connected 'unreliable' material, lacked a 'proper' investigation implicit its interaction and includes 'vague' standards that risked radical unknowingly committing a transgression offence.

Government lawyers accidental the ineligible situation should beryllium dismissed and that campaigners' arguments are 'meritless'.

At a proceeding successful London connected Wednesday, justice Mrs Justice Dias said campaigners had an 'arguable' lawsuit successful definite areas, granting support for the situation to proceed to a proceedings astatine a aboriginal date.

This comes aft it was revealed by the MailOnline that councils crossed England person spent thousands of pounds of taxpayers' wealth connected destroying XL Bully dogs.

Liverpool assembly is the apical spender, with a outgo of much than £7,000 to euthanise conscionable 16 stray XL Bully dogs successful what a spokesperson called an 'unprecedented level of activity' nether the caller laws.

The adjacent assembly to splash the astir currency connected destroying the banned breed is Birmingham, which euthanised 45 of 67 dogs recovered - costing implicit £6,000.

Cathryn McGahey KC, representing campaigners, said the prohibition came from a 'hasty' announcement by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak successful September past year, the time aft a fatal canine attack, which led to ineligible errors.

In written arguments, the barrister said Defra has 'no worldly connected which to basal a rational determination that dogs progressive successful caller attacks were disproportionately of XL bully type'.

She said the Government estimated determination were 10,000 XL bullies successful the UK, but 57,301 person been registered.

Ms McGahey said determination was nary investigation of the numbers of different canine types progressive successful fatal attacks, adding: 'If 5 XL bullies person been progressive successful fatal attacks retired of a colonisation of 50,000, and 1 German shepherd canine retired of a colonisation of 10,000, past XL bullies are nary much unsafe than German shepherds.'

'Before seeking to enforce a ban, the suspect should person conducted due probe into the types of dogs successful information progressive successful superior attacks,' the lawyer said.

Restrictions connected owners, which see keeping dogs connected a pb and muzzled successful public, would not halt attacks arsenic the 'vast majority' took spot successful homes oregon connected backstage property, the tribunal was told.

Ms McGahey claimed the Government had done nary enactment to find whether 'those with intelligence wellness conditions would beryllium peculiarly adversely affected, oregon whether children with autism oregon different aesculapian conditions who relied connected their dogs would endure a detriment'.

She said XL bullies, portion not recognised arsenic a breed by the UK Kennel Club, were recognised successful the US, adding the Government was incorrect to determine it has the characteristics of a canine bred for fighting.

'No-one ever appears to person been prosecuted for utilizing an XL bully arsenic a warring dog,' the justice was told.

It was 'impossible' for owners to archer whether their canine was a banned benignant oregon not owed to the 'unlawful vagueness' of the Government's XL bully standard, the barrister said.

'For galore canine owners, a transgression condemnation whitethorn beryllium career-ending, losing to the nonaccomplishment of employment and yet their home,' Ms McGahey added.

Ned Westaway, for Defra, said it had been 'rational' to reason that XL bullies had the characteristics of warring dogs owed to their transportation to pitbull terriers.

He said the Government's XL bully modular had been 'carefully and sensibly thought about' and was not unlawful.

He said an appraisal recovered determination was nary 'particular oregon disproportionate' interaction connected definite groups of people, with determination being 'no crushed to deliberation the contented of interaction was not conscientiously considered'.

In written arguments, Mr Westaway said ministers were alert the fig of XL bullies could beryllium higher than 10,000, adding: 'Even if the fig is substantially greater than 0.1% of the UK canine population, XL bully benignant dogs would inactive person been liable for a disproportionate, and concerning, fig of canine attacks since 2020'.

He said the decision that the canine benignant are 'disproportionately liable for caller canine onslaught fatalities' did not beryllium connected colonisation size, arguing it was not practicable to comparison it against different types.

Mr Westaway said that 'evidence of a larger colonisation would person made the determination more, not less, likely.'