Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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159. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will confirm or deny that hares were sick and dying in the compound of Cashel Coursing Club leading up to the weekend of 10 October 2015; if this was the reason the meeting had to be called off; if it is the case that hares were sick and dying, if post mortems were carried out to determine the cause of the deaths; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36852/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Under the provisions of the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958, the regulation of coursing is chiefly a matter for the Irish Coursing Club (ICC), subject to the general control and direction of Bord na gCon, which is the statutory body with responsibility for the improvement and development of the greyhound industry, greyhound racing and coursing.

The question raised by the Deputy is an operational matter for ICC. Nonetheless my Department has made enquiries and the ICC has indicated that Cashel Coursing Clubpostponed its meeting due to unsuitable ground conditions. It has also confirmed that all the hares in the care of Cashel Coursing Clubfor that event were certified healthy prior to their release.

A monitoring committee on Coursing, comprising officials from my Department, the ICC and the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), carefully monitors developments in coursing. A review of the outcome of the most recent season indicates that 99.4% of hares were released back to the wild at the conclusion of the 2014/2015 coursing season.