Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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349. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the position regarding the exclusion of greyhounds from the legislation requiring the compulsory micro-chipping of dogs travelling out of the country. [11556/15]

Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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350. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in the interests of transparency and animal welfare, if he will ensure that information is publicly available relating to the compulsory micro-chipping of greyhounds and the fact that they must be ear tattooed, given that this data is held by the Irish Coursing Club and the Irish Greyhound Board. [11557/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 349 and 350 together.

The Pet Passport (No. 2) Regulations 2014 and the Microchipping of Dogs Regulations 2015 apply to all breeds of dog.

Under the Pet Passport (No. 2) Regulations 2014, (S.I. No. 602 of 2014), any dog (including a greyhound) being moved off the island must be accompanied by a pet passport showing that it has been identified by a microchip or by a tattoo (where the tattoo was applied prior to 3 July 2011) and has been immunized against rabies. Additional requirements apply where dogs are being moved for commercial purposes.

The Microchipping of Dogs Regulations 2015 (SI No. 63 of 2015), which require that all dogs (including greyhounds) be identified by a microchip and registered on an authorised database, will take effect from 1 June 2015 for pups born after that date and from 31 March 2016 for all dogs regardless of age. The dog identification databases are subject to data protection legislation and will not be publicly available.