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Peredur Owen Griffiths, who represents Plaid Cymru, is one of four regional Senedd Members serving the South Wales East region.
It was distressing to hear there had been yet another dog attack in Penyrheol. The victim on this occasion was a five-month-old baby who was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
This was the third serious dog attack in 18 months, with the previous two incidents resulting in fatalities. I spoke to a news crew from Newyddion on the weekend of the incident to air my concerns.
There is much anxiety within the close-knit community of Penyrheol about the spate of serious incidents involving dogs locally. My Plaid Cymru colleagues have been part of a project to increase community safety.
A meeting, which I attended, was called just a few days prior to the latest incident by Penyrheol councillor Steve Skivens which involved representatives of animal welfare organisations, dog handlers and trainers, as well as officers from Gwent Police.
The meeting provided a chance to discuss how the law is being applied to dog owners whose pets are a menace to the local community as well as hear what proactive initiatives are being deployed elsewhere to protect the public from dangerous dogs.
I was particularly interested in hearing an officer from Gwent Police talk about a scheme in the North Wales Police area called LEAD, which aims to tackle the menace of out-of-control dogs. How successful or not that initiative is remains to be seen but it struck me that there is something of a piecemeal approach to tackling dangerous dogs in Wales.
The following week I had the opportunity to put this matter to the Labour-run Welsh Government in plenary as I feel there should be a pan-Wales approach to tackling dangerous dogs or indeed irresponsible dog ownership, as this is often the root cause of incidents.
Earlier this week, I called upon the Rural Affairs Minister to consider rolling out a public information campaign to educate people about what is acceptable and what is not when it comes to dog behaviour to make it more likely that early warning signs will be taken heed of. People should also be told the most appropriate place to make a complaint for lower-level incidents.
I fully intend to keep raising this matter in the Senedd and I know that Plaid Cymru colleagues will continue to work within their community to bring people and organisations together with the aim of improving people’s safety. In partnership with other bodies, working in support of the police, I hope we can reach a point where community safety is significantly increased and dog attacks become much less likely to occur.
The issue of the dog racing track was raised in the Senedd prior to the Easter recess. It was surprising to see a rival politician speak in favour of retaining racing at the sole dog track that exists in Wales when the testimonies about the mistreatment of greyhounds are substantial and disturbing.
One thing is sure, the Plaid Cymru Senedd Members I have been speaking to are unequivocal in our opposition to greyhound racing in Wales and are fully behind the animal welfare charities that have been pushing for a ban.
I have seen some of the victims of racing when their owners came to a Senedd event and it was heart-breaking to see how they have been maimed.
I am hoping that Wales will be able to lead the way in the UK by putting a stop to dog racing, thus ending the misery of the animals that are seriously injured or worse every year.
A consultation will be launched by the Welsh Government on greyhound racing later this year. I urge everyone who agrees that it is time to bring an end to it to take part and make their feelings known loud and clear.
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