Controversial suggestions to keep dogs on leads - and exclude them - in some areas across Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth might now be dropped after much public anger

Controversial suggestions to keep dogs on leads - and exclude them - in some areas across Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth might now be dropped after much public anger.

Warwick District Council (WDC) said the ideas were only early suggestions to update its dog control orders.

But due to the reaction by many dog walkers, WDC said any further public consultation will not take place.

The Licensing and Regulatory Committee last night (Monday September 21) agreed to go back to the statutory consultants to ask their views on maintaining the dog orders as they currently stand.

The committee agreed on July 8 that a pre-consultation on the renewal of the district’s Public Spaces Protection Orders in relation to Dog Control Orders could be undertaken with stakeholders prior to a public consultation taking place.

Some suggestions, which were made public, included keeping dogs on leads and even excluding them from parts of the parks in Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth, which caused a great deal of public anger.

A spokesperson for WDC said: "The purpose of this pre-consultation was to inform the drafting of the revised orders before going out to public consultation; the suggestions consulted on during this phase were exactly that, and not final proposals.

"Unfortunately, these pre-consultation suggestions were placed in to the public domain and have, as a result, caused a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding."

Cllr Judy Falp, portfolio holder for health and community protection, said: “As part of the legislation, in order to vary or amend any Dog Control Orders, we must undertake a full and fair public consultation.

“At this time, due to the level of public feeling regarding the pre-consultation suggestions, we feel that we are unable to undertake a fair consultation in which all of the facts are known.

“As a result, the Licensing and Regulatory Committee met on Monday September 21 and agreed to go back to the statutory consultants to ask their views on maintaining the dog orders as they currently stand.

"Their views will then be fed back to the committee to make a final decision at their meeting in October.”

Further information on Dog Control Orders and Public Spaces Protection Orders can be found at www.warwickdc.gov.uk/pspos