Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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160. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the regulations in place regarding the seizure of animals when in co-operation with An Garda Síochána his Department officials make seizures of horses; his views that at the particular seizure of 29 horses as part of Operation Storm on 27 February 2016, there was a serious breach in guidelines and regulations by the non-segregated transport of sexually mature males and females, breeding stallions not being kept separate while being transported and animals of significantly different sizes not being transported separately; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4820/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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On 17th February 2016 29 horses were seized from the wetlands Kilkenny as part of an An Garda Síochána led multiagency operation. Following inspection, it was established that 27 of the horses were not identified in accordance with national and EU legislation. The equines referred to were seized pursuant to Regulation 26(2) (v) of the European Communities (Identification of Equidae) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 62 of 2016) (as amended), which provides that equines may be seized where an authorised officer had reasonable grounds for believing that an offence was being committed under this legislation. This legislation also provides that Notices of the seizure and detention of any equines must be issued, providing the owner/keeper of the animals with an opportunity to reclaim the seized animals on production of the required documentation within 5 days. These procedures were fully complied with by the Department in this case.

The animals were handled and transported under veterinary supervision and in compliance with Council Regulation (EC) No 1 2005, Protection of Animals during Transport and Related Operations. Stallions were separated from the females in the group during Transport. With regards different sizes of animals, the Regulation provides that animals do not need to be handled and transported separated if they have been raised in compatible groups, are accustomed to each other, and where separation will cause distress.

I should emphasise that the horse meat issues which were uncovered in 2013 highlighted the importance of the proper identification of equine animals to the protection of the integrity of the food chain. In this regard, it is essential that equine animals are identified in accordance with legislation in order to ensure that only those animals that are eligible to be slaughtered for human consumption are included in the food chain. It is also important that all owners fully comply with equine identification legislation so that equines can be traced in the event of an outbreak of disease.