My letter to the local press on the Councils 'Dog Squad'. It was picked up by both papers, probably because they can't believe it either:
After nearly treading in dog poo while out at Highbury Barn this weekend I was reminded of the Councils 'dog squad' and the incredible amount of money, nearly quarter of a million pounds, being spent on a 12 weeks trial.
I fear that this is money down the drain and I do actually wonder how the council is managing to spend such a large amount of money in such a short space of time.
As a vet I know that the problems of anti-social behaviour with dogs and irresponsible pet ownership go far beyond the unpleasant issue of dog poo and that to address this properly we need to go beyond the superficial.
I can't help but think that with £240,000 it should have been possible to put in place a programme for a year and beyond, extra dog wardens, an education programme and a programme to start to tackle irresponsible breeding, which in the end would have been far more successful at tackling the dog poo menace and much more beside.
The council have obviously realised that tackling dog poo is a vote winner, however I very much doubt that Islington residents will fall for what appears to be nothing more than an expensive stunt.
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