Duncan Smith (Dublin Fingal, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Can the Minister give a categorical guarantee that this is not happening today and that there are now vets in Shannonside every day, not just when the slaughter is happening? Regarding animal welfare, we are putting €95 million of taxpayers' money into the Horse and Greyhound Fund, with €76 million going into Horse Racing Ireland. Animal welfare is not just about animal welfare on the gallops, the paddocks, the stables or the racecourse. It is from cradle to the end but that has failed here. We do not know if there are other animal rights abuses. We cannot have confidence at all that this is the only place that is falling down. This is a massive issue given the amount of taxpayers' money going into this.

Anyone who watched the "Prime Time Investigates" programme last night will have had their stomachs turned by the practices they witnessed. We need a categorical guarantee that this is not happening today. We cannot wait for an investigation to conclude. This practice must stop now. We have called for the betting levy to be increased to provide funding for other sports and for a fairer allocation of taxpayers' money in this area. What is happening today only adds further power to those calls. We need higher standards across our equine industry.

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