Weymouth is not expected to be treated separately for the consultation over new dog orders.

Many in the town have lobbied to extend the time dogs are allowed to use the whole beach – claiming it will help boost tourism. Only a relatively small area at the Pavilion end is currently open to dogs around the year.

But Dorset councillors heard on Thursday that to treat the town independently of the rest of the county would only lead to delays in bringing in the new legislation.

Dorset Council is seeking to agree a temporary extension to all the existing dog-related Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) across the rural county before introducing what it hopes will be one order to cover the whole of the area.

But councillors on the place scrutiny committee, meeting on Thursday, were told that it was likely to be a difficult to get agreement with some areas seeking a complete ban on dogs on the beach, or public parks, and many people in Weymouth wanting to allow more access.

A public consultation on the proposals is expected to start in January and run for 12 weeks before going back to councillors for a final decision.

Dorset Council environmental protection manager Kerry Pitt-Kerby said that if Weymouth was to have a separate consultation it would set the process back by up to three months. He said it would be better for people in and around the town to simply take part in the cross-area consultation and make their points when it started in January.

But he warned that extending the time of dogs being allowed to exercise on the beach could affect judging for Blue Flag status.

Dorchester councillor David Taylor urged councillors to support the process of making the orders. He told the committee he had been blinded at the age of 22 by contracting toxicaris as a result of coming into contact with dog faeces and still had poor sight in one eye.

“This legislation is really important for public health and we should back it,” he said.

Cllr Jean Dunseith said she worried that whatever the council agreed it would be worthless unless the authority had enough enforcement officers to make it work. Cllr Roland Tarr, who represents rural parishes around Dorchester, said virtually all of his parish councils believed current dog enforcement was inadequate.

Cllr Val Pothecary said that the only way to kerb the activities of a small number of dog owners was to hit them in the pockets: “It’s unhelpful and it’s unhygienic. Responsible dog owners are upset as the rest of us at the irresponsible 5 per cent. We will need to get a few people in court to make a point,” she said.

The committee decided it was happy with the consultation exercise and the proposals in it.