Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Risks have to be graded. When we debated the issue, the county manager and welfare body representatives appeared before the committee. We put a great deal of time into the urban horse issue one day and the thoroughbred representatives appeared the same day. They said if even if all the non-microchipped ponies were removed from the county, they would be imported as fast as they were removed. If there was, for example, a once-off disposal programme, it would not do what one would think it would do, because as quick as they were got rid of, more would come in. Am I correct in thinking that, relatively, that would be a high risk to the entire horse industry if one of these unregulated horses, which is not microchipped, came into contact with other horses?

Professor Wall mentioned viruses. Is organic matter needed for viruses to transmit animal to animal or can they be transmitted through dung and so on? What precautions are taken against virus transmission? I presume the highest risk is physical contact and risk is graded downwards from there.