Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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Mr. Gleeson is correct. The person with the animals could be somebody in difficult circumstances such as an elderly person with other issues. I have come across it. We accept that. The Department must operate with the policy it is given and it must operate within the law. One thing that surprised me as we started looking at this two weeks ago was that a person with a conviction three years and one month ago could become an animal welfare officer or run an abattoir. That shocked me. If I had been convicted of serious animal cruelty three years and one month ago, because it was more than three years ago, I can apply for a licence to run a slaughterhouse, have animals in my care or become an animal welfare officer. Mr. Gleeson mentioned the corporate situation because a number of people are involved but that individual person performing the role of an animal welfare officer - and I am talking generally here because I do not want to zoom in on that particular case in Kildare - sounds bananas to be honest.