Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the point the Deputy has raised. We can certainly have a conversation with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in relation to any vets that it can provide. It is of paramount importance that we keep the welfare of the hares as our primary concern, and indeed the dogs as well. It is important to say that the EU Habitats Directive has found that the Irish hare is widespread and common, which is good to report, and none of the identified threats, such as the changing practices, is considered likely to impact on its conservation status in the foreseeable future. The future prospects of the hare were deemed favourable and that can only be a good thing. It is important that we monitor the trials. The number of rangers dropped to 60 from 72 at the end of 2018 owing to some retirements, promotions and exits, but the monitoring of these meetings allows the National Parks and Wildlife Service to be present for the release of hares after coursing, which would not have been the case with trials, and it is also important to note that 99.3% of hares are put back into the wild after coursing events, which is quite a high percentage.

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