Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

There is undoubtedly a problem with the legislation and regulations as they stand, both in terms of the absence of enforcement and the manner in which they are drafted. It is evidenced by the fact that Ireland is leading the race to the bottom regarding conditions on puppy farms. It is why Ireland is the puppy-farming capital of Europe.

An issue I wish to raise is the enforcement of the regulations as they currently exist. This means proper inspections. The "Panorama" documentary shows there had been inspections by Cavan County Council at the farm in question and that it deemed that everything was fine. There is a case for properly resourced independent inspectors — for example, from the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, ISPCA. There is a problem in accessing, through freedom of information requests, data on the inspections that have been carried out. Repeatedly, various groups, including the ISPCA, have been denied information, obtainable through freedom of information requests, on quite spurious grounds. More fundamentally, there is need to crack down on and eliminate industrial-style breeding. In Victoria in Australia, for example, the maximum number of breeding bitches allowed is ten. It could be fewer. As in Victoria, we could ensure that licence numbers are advertised in third-party sales.

See this speech in context