Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)
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Tá fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. This morning, I want to raise the matter of the rehoming of horses which are seized under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013. I had my own Bill, the Animal Health and Welfare (Dogs) Bill, which passed Second Stage unanimously here. Unfortunately, the guillotine meant that it did not progress to Committee Stage yet.During the Second Stage debate I flagged to the Minister that it was pointed out to me after the drafting of my Bill that the same lacuna in the law applies to horses. Horses seized on welfare grounds must be retained by welfare organisations until court proceedings conclude. I asked the Minister to bring forward amendments to fix this lacuna at the same time as addressing the gaps I had pointed out in terms of dog welfare. The steering group set up to deal with the control of dogs and restricted breeds has accepted the need for my legislation. I presume it will bring forward its own legislation to address this. My concern is that it will not look at horses because it is working on a package of measures looking at dogs.

The reason I have tabled this Commencement matter is to flag once again to the Government that if we are going to close the gap and introduce legislation to deal with animal health and welfare, we need to get it right in one go. This means addressing the gaps in the re-homing of dogs and the re-homing of horses. I will give an example that has been in the newspapers multiple times. This is the case of a horse racer who had 35 counts of animal cruelty against her. The horses have been with a welfare organisation for a number of years. It has cost it €350,000 to keep the horses. They are thoroughbred racehorses that were in a state of neglect. They were taken in by the welfare organisation but it is that organisation which is footing the bill while the person tries to obfuscate and delay the court proceedings.

We all know the horse racing industry gets a huge amount of money from the public purse. When things go wrong in the industry it is the welfare organisations that must pick up the slack and clean up the mess left by the rogue operators. The bare minimum we should do is ensure that horses are re-homed as soon as possible and that people who engage in animal cruelty are not allowed to obfuscate and cause obstruction in the justice system. I look forward to hearing the response of the Minister of State.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Boylan for affording me the opportunity to speak on behalf of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, on this matter. I acknowledge the effort and commitment of the animal welfare organisations involved in the care, welfare and re-homing of horses, which often operate in challenging and stressful circumstances.

With regard to equine welfare, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has stressed in the past, and continues to stress, that it is the responsibility of horse owners to ensure the welfare of horses in their ownership and care and to dispose of them appropriately. The Animal Health and Welfare Act provides an up-to-date and modernised system for enforcing the welfare of all animals, including horses. The Act is wide-ranging legislation designed to meet many different situations regarding animal health and welfare and the programme for Government specifically commits to its continued robust enforcement. The Act provides for penalties on summary conviction of up to €5,000 and-or six months' imprisonment or, on indictment, a fine of up to €250,000 and-or imprisonment for up to five years. The Act also provides powers to disqualify people from owning or working with animals for a period, including, where appropriate, for the life of the person, as the court considers appropriate.

Prosecutions under the Act have been pursued following investigations by authorised officers of the Department, An Garda Síochána, with all gardaí being authorised officers under the Act, and authorised officers of the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, ISPCA, and the Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, DSPCA. These officers investigate matters relating to animal cruelty and neglect and, where the evidence supports such action, a file is prepared and the matter pursued through the courts. The Department works closely with these bodies and I take this opportunity to thank all those involved for their work in the field of equine welfare.

Section 42 of the Act allows authorised officers to serve an animal health and welfare notice in a range of circumstances set out in the Act, including where the welfare of an animal or animals is at risk. Section 44 of the Act sets out that where an animal health and welfare notice has not been complied with, the animal or animals subject to the notice may be seized, detained, sold, disposed of or destroyed. Therefore, this provision allows for the seizure and re-homing of equines following a breach of an animal health and welfare notice issued under section 42.

The main powers of enforcement under the Act are contained in section 38, which provides for extensive powers of inspection and investigation including, in appropriate circumstances, the seizure and detention of animals without the issuing of an animal health and welfare notice. I understand these are emergency situations. Section 38 does not provide for the disposal of seized animals. For horses seized under section 38, a decision on whether they can be re-homed is made by the courts at the conclusion of any legal proceedings. Senator Boylan spoke about the costs involved in this. Under section 38A of the Act, the Department and local authorities have the power to recoup costs associated with the upkeep of animals seized by authorised officers of these bodies. If these costs are not paid, the animals may then be disposed of. This means that in the case of horses seized by authorised officers of the Department or local authorities under section 38 where such costs are incurred and are not paid, the horses can be re-homed.

Department officials are aware that, on occasion, pending court cases, there may be a prolonged period of detention of equines where an animal has been seized under section 38 and a court case is pending. As with all legislation under its aegis, the Department keeps the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 under constant review and the provisions for the seizure, detention and disposal of animals, including for re-homing, will be considered in this light. This morning, I spoke to officials in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and asked them to take up the specific point Senator Boylan has raised. They are aware of it. I have asked them to look at it. The Senator has pointed out there may be a lacuna in section 38 versus section 44. Under section 44, animals can be re-homed whereas under section 38 this can only happen after a court case.

The increased emphasis on the re-homing of horses is being assisted greatly through the Department's funding to animal welfare organisations. In December 2022, the Minister announced record funding of more than €5.8 million to 99 organisations to assist their work in animal welfare. I am sure there are probably 100 at this point. A number of these are actively involved in rescuing and re-homing neglected horses. Separately, the Department continues to take a proactive approach in tackling urban horse welfare challenges through supporting the education of young people in the care and welfare of horses. This work is carried out in close collaboration with local authorities.

Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State for raising directly with the Department the particular point I am raising. Section 38 is the key issue. The example I have given is that horses seized, as with dogs, are held for very lengthy periods. This is not in the interests of the animal's welfare. As I have said, it carries a significant cost for the welfare organisations homing them. The Minister of State said that under section 38A, if the costs are not paid, the animals may be disposed of. In the case of horses, not a single case has been taken by any local authority under section 38A to recoup the costs incurred but not paid for homing any animal seized under section 38. I have confirmation of this from the Department. This is the nub of the problem. People who want to obstruct the course of justice are deliberately delaying court proceedings so these animals cannot be re-homed and the organisations looking after them are footing the bill. This is why it is section 38 that needs to be reformed. The control of dogs steering group report is an opportunity to address both of the gaps on horses and dogs.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Boylan for raising this issue. She has pointed out in a cogent way the issue with section 38. I will follow up on section 38A and I will ask the Department again to follow up with the local authorities on this. There may be a specific reason for it. I find that in the main those working in this area in local authorities do their job in a very deliberate and compassionate way.

Senator Boylan has spoken about the recoupment of costs. The steering group is up and running and I will ask the Department to look at it. The substance of what Senator Boylan is saying is that she wants section 38 examined to see whether we can find a mechanism whereby horses can be re-homed quickly. This is the essence of the matter. I will take it up with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Minister.