Mary Ann O'Brien (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, for attending. I want him to imagine that he is getting severe stomach pains and losing weight fast, and he stops eating and has no energy. The sun hurts his skin, he is losing co-ordination and he is struggling to breath. Now he is going blind and, worst of all, he cannot tell anybody or communicate how bad he is feeling. That is how a horse feels after it has eaten ragwort.

A horse need not eat much ragwort. Horses can eat a tiny amount and within a couple of days, as the Minister of State will be aware, it damages their liver. There is no way an expert or a veterinarian can tell whether horses have this condition.

We have had a nice summer and we are back after our break. I was luck as I got to visit Kerry, Roscommon, the west and Waterford. I have never seen such a summer of ragwort. If we were harvesting ragwort, or if we could do something with it to make money, we would be making a fortune.

I am here because I am passionate about the horse industry in Ireland, particularly the sport horse industry. Goffs bloodstock sales are on this evening. It is the biggest sale of the year. The thoroughbred racing industry is of significant importance. We are best in class globally at that industry.

Obviously, cows get affected by eating this noxious weed as well. I do not want to step on the toes of farmers living around me but there are some for whom it is merely a joke. They are not bothering to spray it or pull it. What is the Minister thinking of doing about this problem? Will he introduce legislation that will include a preventive measure that would really hurt those who are ignoring it and letting their land?