Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The owner of the establishment had a conviction on 13 September 2012. It was not just an ordinary conviction for animal cruelty. He had not been kicking a dog. It was a conviction for cruelty to horses. In a separate response, the Minister told me last night that Shannonside Foods was given a conditional certificate to slaughter in July 2015, which is within the three-year period. The application was clearly made even earlier. A full licence was granted in February 2016. How did that happen? Where was the Department's due diligence in examining the application? Mr. Sheahan referred to credible people when talking about opening up another horse abattoir. Does he think that credible people would have a conviction for animal cruelty?