Nearly 1,000 sign dog-friendly beach petition

A PETITION calling for “dedicated dog-friendly beaches” in the summer months has almost reached 1,000 signatures.

Current rules mean dog owners are not permitted to walk their pets while off the lead on any Jersey beaches between 10.30am and 6pm from 1 May until 30 September.
Horses are also not allowed on beaches during these times.

The petition, launched by Jen Salisbury, has over 900 signatures and calls for Jersey to emulate Guernsey’s guidelines and create “dog-friendly beaches where dogs can run freely all year round and close the popular beaches to dogs 24/7 during summer months”.

A similar petition in 2019 received more than 1,500 signatures.

At the time, ministers responded with: “The existing rules are fair and are reasonably generous to dog walkers.
They take account of the broad range of other reasons why both residents and tourists visit Jersey’s beautiful beaches.”

A social media post from this newspaper in April sparked online debate, with over 250 Islanders commenting to say whether they thought the current rules were justified.

While some argued that dog owners had before 10.30am, and after 6pm, to walk their dogs on the beach without a lead, others labelled it a “dated rule”.

If the petition reaches 1,000 signatures, government ministers will respond.
At 5,000 signatures, the matter will be considered for debate by the States Assembly.

The petition can be found at petitions.gov.je/petitions/200984