Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I know it is not part of the lairage but there would be an obvious expectation and understanding that the building was part of the slaughter chain. If that was the first point where the horses come in, surely somebody in the Department, during the lifetime of this horrendous operation, should have checked? Ultimately, two bodies are responsible for this - Shannonside Foods and the Department, as the regulator and overseer of this area. Nobody in the lifetime of the operation checked. Three women who knew nothing about farming and did not have veterinary degrees had enough common sense to suspect there was a problem. Is Mr. Sheahan telling me that nobody in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine thought at any stage to have a look in that building?