The mother of a one-year-old baby snatched from her arms by a savage pitbull in Mitcham last month has backed tough new measures to tackle the growing problem of dangerous dogs in London.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, announced he will come down hard on irresponsible dog owners in response to campaigning from Merton and Wandsworth’s London Assembly member, Richard Tracey.

Mr Tracey quizzed the Mayor following a spate of attacks in the area including last month’s incident where a pitbull hospitalised four residents, including 18-month-old Amir Santos, before being shot dead by armed police.

Amir’s mother, Sammy Hassan, 24, said: “As someone who has seen the effect of this problem with my own eyes, I fully support this. Something needs to be done.

“I’m struggling to move on with my life after what happened, and I’ll always support any action that might prevent another mother from going through what we’ve been through. “ Mr Johnson said a rise in the number of dogs being seized by police or abandoned by their owners was cause for concern, claiming the animals were often being used as weapons.

He said: “This is very worrying. People buy these dogs as puppies of breeds that tend to have a ferocious reputation and then abandon them when they get older.

“It is pretty sad from an animal welfare point of view and should be strongly discouraged.”

Mr Johnson made the remarks at the Mayor's Question Time, after Wandsworth and Merton’s London Assembly member, Richard Tracey, raised the issue.

Mr Tracey said: “I'm very pleased the Mayor sees this as a priority for London. More needs to be done to promote responsible dog ownership.

“If a person uses a dog as part of a specific crime or to intimidate people, then they should be charged appropriately.”

Mr Johnson said latest figures suggested about 800 dogs will have been seized by police by the end of the financial year next April.

This is compared with 481 in the last financial year and 173 in 2006 to 2007.

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