Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I visited the Dublin Mountains with him and with the local Irish Farmers' Association, IFA, chairman Donie Anderson not so long ago and we discussed this issue. I know it is something on which the Deputy is a strong advocate. We have been working in government. Three Ministers have cross-departmental responsibility. Myself, the Minister of Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys, and the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy O'Brien, have put a work group together to try to address some of these issues. We are finalising legislation at the moment to improve enforcement. However, the Deputy is right; enforcement is a key part of it, and also respect. This means respect on the part of those who own dogs for other people and how their dogs interact with the environment, and also respect for the animals themselves and how we ensure the animals are cared for and properly looked after.

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