Homeless people in a Queensland council area have been banned from owning pets in a major new crackdown, saying the costs to taxpayers would be too high.
City of Moreton Bay Mayor Peter Flannery proposed the new legislation to introduce the ban and it was passed unanimously by council on December 12.
Mayor Flannery said the council is taking action against homeless people camping in public areas after receiving ‘hundreds’ of complaints from locals.
He said the sharp increase in the number of homeless people in the council area had led to a sharp decline in public health, safety and services.
Moreton City Bay Council estimates there are currently around 200 homeless people in the district, of which around 30 are owned by dogs.
A council spokesman claimed numbers had increased by 90 per cent in the past decade.
“In the past two years, the number of referrals to the council from people sleeping rough has increased by 250 percent,” the spokesperson said. told the Courier Post.
‘We have received ongoing feedback from the community about the significant increase in illegal behavior in public places, including assaults, fighting and use of dangerous weapons, drug and alcohol abuse, dog attacks and fires which leave everyone, including people sleeping rough, with a major at risk.’
Homeless people will be banned from owning pets after a crackdown led by Moreton Bay City Mayor Peter Flannery
Mayor Peter Flannery (pictured) introduced the legislation which passed unanimously in council after receiving ‘hundreds’ of public safety complaints from residents
Mayor Flannery emphasized that it is not safe for homeless people to own dogs.
“Public safety concerns are increasing in some community parks and we have received hundreds of calls from residents and visitors expressing serious concerns,” he said in a statement.
He said the council had been “lenient” to homeless people on the issue in the past.
“These dogs are now attacking each other because they are uninhibited, they are attacking people, they are attacking other homeless people,” the mayor said. told the ABC.
“We have been a bit lenient, as with other policies around camping in public places, but we are getting to the point where the number of incidents outweighs the benefits.”
The Moreton City Bay Council spokesperson reiterated the mayor’s claim that keeping animals in public spaces was unsafe and against local laws.
“This is in accordance with our local laws for all members of our community,” she added. ‘All animals in public spaces must be kept under effective control at all times.’
The new rules completely ban homeless people from owning dogs and also include new guidelines around “camping in public spaces in caravans, camper vans and other vehicles equipped for camping purposes”, the spokesperson added.
Under the new laws, anyone camping in public areas and those sleeping in vans will no longer be allowed to keep pets. Failure to comply will result in a fine of $8,605
Council workers around Moreton Bay started handing out compliance notices on December 17 ordering homeless people to stop sleeping in vans.
The notices threaten fines of up to $8,065 for anyone who doesn’t follow the rules.
Homeless people who fail to stop keeping pets face the same fine.
A Brisbane woman, Shani, said she immediately noticed an abandoned dog that someone had left in a public park after the reports started circulating.
“I knew immediately he had been abandoned,” she said told YahooNews.
‘I rushed home to drop my dog off and then returned to check on him. He was still there. He had lost the leash that held him.”
Homeless advocates are now calling for changes to legislation that would allow people sleeping rough to apply for a pet permit.
Brisbane local Shani said she immediately noticed dogs being abandoned after compliance notices went into circulation on December 17
A petition started by local man Stephen Bartholomew hopes to overturn the ban and has already attracted more than 13,000 signatures.
It calls on homeless people in public spaces and people living in vans to be able to keep their pets by registering them with the relevant government authorities.
“When you have over 10,000 signatures supporting the amendments requested in this petition in less than 72 hours, it is VERY clear that the city, state and federal government need to work with the community, not just among themselves should be swept under the rug,” Mr. Bartholomew wrote on social media.
“These are very fair and reasonable requests for changes. So congregation, listen to what more than 10,000 people are asking. And make the changes.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Moreton City Bay Council for comment.