Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Paul Murphy for the question.

The Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010 sets out a framework for the regulation of dog-breeding establishments, requiring local authorities to establish and maintain registers of such establishments in their areas and prohibiting the operation of unregistered ones. Section 15 of the Act provides that the Minister may issue guidelines in regard to the operation of these establishments. The current guidelines have been in place since 2012 and are being revised. A public consultation process took place in 2017 and a consultation summary report, which provides a summary of submissions received and sets out the next steps, has now been published on my Department's website.

While the focus is currently on developing the revised guidelines, broader issues relating to dog welfare were also raised in the course of the public consultation, including the need to amend the Dog Breeding Establishments Act. Amendments to the legislation, if necessary, will be progressed once the guidelines are finalised. I expect to have the new guidelines ready for my approval in second quarter of this year.

More generally, the enforcement of animal welfare standards for all animals, including dogs, is a matter for the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine under the Animal Health and Welfare Acts. Both Departments work closely with each other to ensure a co-ordinated approach is taken in this area.

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