Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of complaints that were received by him regarding horse breeding associations or societies that have a right to issue passports for horses in the past two years; the nature of these complaints; the investigations set up by him to investigate such complaints; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13309/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Matters between horse breeding associations or societies that have a right to issue passports for horses and my Department are confidential and it would be inappropriate to comment on individual cases. However, the policy of my Department is to immediately investigate all written complaints, including, where appropriate, by the Special Investigation Unit of my Department.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will list all of the horse breeding associations and societies that have the right to issue passports; the controls imposed by his Department on these societies; if any of these societies have been suspended in the past two years from issuing passports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13310/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The list of Passport Issuing Organisations approved to issue equine passports in respect of equines eligible for entry in studbooks is as follows:

Weatherby’s Ireland GSB Limited

Horse Sport Ireland

Irish Pony Society

Connemara Pony Breeder’s Society

Irish Piebald & Skewbald Association

Kerry Bog Pony Co-op Society

Irish Appaloosa Association

Warmblood Studbook of Ireland

The Passport Issuing Organisations approved to issue passports for equines which are ineligible for entry into one of the studbooks are Horse Sport Ireland, Horse Passport Agency Ltd and Irish Piebald & Skewbald Association.

The Passport Issuing Organisation operate under the provisions set out in EU and national legislation including Commission Regulation 504/2008 and S.I. No. 357 of 2011 - European Communities (Equine) Regulations 2011 (as amended).

The Department revoked approvals granted to one Passport Issuing Organisations in 2012.