Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)

I move amendment No. 7:

In page 13, subsection (1)(b), lines 23 and 24, to delete all words from and including "that" in line 23 down to and including "suffering" in line 24 and substitute "appropriate to the animal species".

Subsection (1)(b) states:

having regard to the animal's nature, type, species, breed, development and environment, ensure that all buildings, gates, fences, hedges, boundary walls and other structures used to contain the animal are constructed and maintained in a manner that the animal is not caused injury or unnecessary suffering.

I have no difficulty with these provisions. However, the amendment arises from the fact that various forms of fencing may not be suitable for all species. For example, sheep netting would not be suitable for cattle just as barbed wire fencing would not be suitable for sheep. As it stands, a farmer who, in the course of loading cattle into a trailer, finds that one of them has injured itself on barbed wire fencing would be negligent under the legislation even though that type of wiring has been used for generations to contain cattle. I appreciate that the Minister may consider the amendment too broad, in which case I would have no difficulty if he were to come back to the issue on Report Stage.