Homeless people in a Queensland council area have been banned from owning pets in a major new crackdown because the cost to ratepayers was sai to be too great.
City of Moreton Bay Mayor Peter Flannery proposed the new legislation to bring in the ban and it was passed by a unanimous council vote on December 12.
Mayor Flannery said the council was taking action on homeless people camping in public areas after he received ‘hundreds’ of complaints from locals.
He said the sharp rise in the number of homeless people in the council area had led to a steep decline in public health, safety and amenity.
Moreton City Bay Council estimates there are currently around 200 homeless people in its district, with approximately 30 dogs owned by them.
A council spokesman claimed the number had grown by 90 per cent in the last 10 years.
‘In the last two years there has been a 250 per cent increase in referrals to council of people sleeping rough,’ the spokesman told the Courier Mail.
‘We’ve received ongoing community feedback about the significant increase in illegal behaviour in public places including assaults, fighting and use of dangerous weapons, drug and alcohol abuse, dog attacks and fire putting everyone, including people sleeping rough, at great risk.’
Mayor Flannery insisted it was not safe for homeless people to own dogs.
‘Concerns for public safety are mounting in some council parks and we have received hundreds of calls from residents and visitors citing serious concerns,’ he said in a statement.
He said the council had been ‘lenient’ in the past with homeless on the issue.
‘These dogs are now attacking each other because they’re unrestrained, they’re attacking people, they’re attacking other homeless people,’ the mayor told the ABC.
‘We’ve been a bit lenient, as we have with other camping in public places policies, but we’re getting to the point where the number of incidents is outweighing the benefits.’
The Moreton City Bay Council spokesman reiterated the Mayor’s claim that keeping animals in public spaces was unsafe and violated locals laws.
‘This is consistent with our local laws for all members of our community,’ they added. ‘All animals in public spaces must be kept under effective control at all times.’
The new rules completely ban the homeless from owning dogs and also include new guidelines around ‘public space camping in caravans, camper trailers and other vehicles equipped for the purposes of camping’, the spokesperson added.
Council workers around Moreton Bay began handing out compliance notices on December 17 which ordered homeless people to stop sleeping in vans.
The notices threaten fines of up to $8,065 for anybody who fails to comply.
Any homeless people who fail to stop keeping pets will face the same fine.
One Brisbane woman Shani said she immediately noticed an abandoned dog that someone had left in a public park after the notices started circulating.
‘I knew immediately he had been abandoned,’ she told YahooNews.
‘I rushed home to drop off my dog, then returned to check on him. He was still there. He had slipped the lead he’d been tied to.’
Homeless advocates are now calling for amendments to be made to the legislation which would allow people sleeping rough to apply for pet permits.
A petition, started by local man Stephen Bartholomew, hopes to reverse the ban and has already attracted more than 13,000 signatures.
It calls for homeless persons in public spaces and those living in vans to be able to keep their pets by registering them with relevant government agencies.
‘When you have over 10,000 signatures in less than 72 hours supporting the amendments requested within this petition, it’s VERY clear council, State, and federal government need to work with the community, not just sweep it under the carpet among each other,’ Mr Bartholomew wrote on social media.
‘These are very fair and reasonable amendment requests. So council, listen to what over 10,000 people are requesting. And make the amendments.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Moreton City Bay Council for comment.
