Dog owners banned from using long leads

Dog owners are facing £1,000 fines if they take their pets to the park on long leads. The ban on leads longer than two metres (6ft 5in) applies to dozens of parks and open spaces. Bosses at Tameside council, in Greater Manchester, say they have brought in the measure to reduce dog fouling.

The council says owners are more likely to clean up after their pets if they are on a short lead. But the move was slammed as 'ridiculous' by dog owners, charities and pressure groups, which also questioned how wardens will be able to police the ban.



Dylan Sharpe, campaign director of Big Brother Watch - part of the Taxpayers' Alliance campaign group - said: "This proposal is completely barking mad - only a local authority would even think of fining people £1,000 because of the length of their dog lead. This is just the latest in a steady stream of potty policies that try to criminalise and fine innocent dog walkers."

Tameside is the first local authority in Greater Manchester to bring in the rule and introduced it despite many retractable leads being between five and eight metres in length. The Kennel Club, Britain's biggest organisation dedicated to dog welfare, labelled the rules as 'completely arbitrary' and 'unnecessary'.