Tom Sheahan (Kerry South, Fine Gael)

I, more than anyone, want dung removed from roads in Killarney National Park for the benefit of parents, children and other visitors to the site. However, the Minister and his representatives in the National Parks and Wildlife Service in Killarney are taking a heavy-handed approach to the issue. Mr. David Muir who recently travelled from England was introduced as an equine expert but stated himself that he was an equine consultant as opposed to expert. No one is better placed to judge this issue than the experts who have been driving horses in Killarney National Park for up to 46 years.

Equine sanitary devices, otherwise known as dung catchers and nappies, have been used in other countries on four-wheel carriages but will not work on a two-wheel trap or side car. I suggest Mr. Muir, who introduced these devices to jarveys in Killarney, has a conflict of interest because he designed and produces them. Moreover, by his own admission, these devices only have an 80% success rate.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service has two sweepers in Muckross House in Killarney National Park. If their services were used more regularly than heretofore, the use of equine sanitary devices would not be necessary.

I ask the Minister to reconsider his decision in this matter. I will accept the expertise of those who have been driving horses for as many as 46 years before accepting the opinions of the Minister's staff in the National Parks and Wildlife Service who have probably never been on a horse. I have seen horses bolt. The devices, which are attached to the trap and tied to the breeches of the horse, will not work in the undulating topography of Killarney National Park and could interfere with the braking system on a two-wheel car.

I ask the Minister to refrain from taking a heavy-handed approach and not to lock out jarveys if they do not have equine sanitary devices attached on 8 June. Jarveys and horse drawn carriages have been used in Killarney National Park since 1929. Other issues pertaining to the Minister's portfolio need to be addressed with greater urgency than the matter we are discussing. While I want horse dung to be removed from the roads of Killarney National Park, this objective could be achieved if the park's management deployed its staff for sweeping duties on a regular basis rather than intermittently, as is the case at present.

I cannot stand idly by while the Minister seeks to introduce regulations, probably by means of ministerial order, to lock out jarveys who have been operating in Killarney National Park for 80 years. Men who have been driving horses for up to 46 years have informed me that equine sanitary devices could interfere with the braking system of a car. If a horse were to bolt, the safety of passengers, the driver and pedestrians in the national park would be placed in jeopardy. This issue can be addressed by using brushes fixed to the back of a tractor.

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