Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chair and committee members. Last August, I wrote to this committee requesting that as part of these hearings, we invite people from My Lovely Horse Rescue to appear before the committee because I have had dealings with the group locally in Cork. I see the unbelievable work being done, to be fair, and it is very good the committee invited the group to appear before it because these are very important issues that need to be discussed and highlighted. I thank the organisation for the work it has done in Cork. It was instrumental and successful in getting the pound, which had left Cork city to move to Longford, back to Cork. I have been regularly contacted by people who are very upset by the conditions in which they have seen horses being kept. The neglect and abuse are horrific. I sometimes get photographs and, to be honest, they are so horrific they cannot be believed.

We are against the clock. There is one garda in Cork, who works on this matter. She is brilliant but she is the only garda I have met, or the only person working in the local authority or Department, who actually understands the law and the way it should be implemented. When I contact this garda she is on top of it, but if she is not on duty there is no one else to go to and I have to ring around as a result. We have the Control of Horses Act. The Garda are dealing with the owners, which was discussed earlier. I mean no disrespect, but it should not be up to My Lovely Horse Rescue to train hundreds of gardaí who come out of Templemore every year in what they should be taught. Templemore is a training college for gardaí. It should be doing its job. I have raised this matter locally at joint policing committee meetings with Cork City Council, the superintendent and the chief superintendent in Cork.

The representatives made a point about enforcement and responsibility. That is key. We have to make people accountable. They said the Act is good. Much of the time legislation is bad, but what we have is good legislation that is not being implemented or enforced. One of the proposals I am making is that the committee write to the Minister for Justice-----