Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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253. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of hares coursed in 2015 to 2016 and to date in 2017, by county; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42564/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The total number of courses run during the years in question were as follows: 8,811 during the 2014/15 season; 8,408 during the 2015/16 season and 8,278 during the 2016/17 season. To date in the 2017/18 season, four coursing meetings have been held and I am awaiting reports on these meetings.

A more detailed breakdown of the statistics is available on the website of the National Parks and Wildlife Service of my Department at

Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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254. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of staff assigned to monitor hare coursing in each of the years 2014 to 2016 and to date in 2017; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42565/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Of the total Departmental staff, 330 work in the area of natural heritage in the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department. In addition, my Department takes on about 70 seasonal staff during the year to assist the NPWS. Frontline conservation Rangers are deployed through a regional structure and assignments are determined in light of Departmental business needs and priorities.

Staffing levels across my Department are kept under regular review in line with emerging business needs and Government policy on public sector pay and staffing as advised by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. As well as managerial regionally based officers of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department, there are 68 NPWS conservation rangers stationed around the country.

My Department, in conjunction with the Public Appointments Service (PAS), recently created a Conservation Ranger Panel. 10 Rangers have been appointed to date from this panel with a further two expected before the end of the year. Any further appointments will be made across the country, taking account of financial resources to meet pay costs in the context of Government policy on public sector pay and staffing.

Within those staffing contexts, officials of my Department monitor compliance with the Wildlife Acts across the country on an on-going basis and carry out patrols and site visits to enforce the various provisions of these Acts, as required. Many of these officers carry out work in more than one county and are engaged in an extensive array of work under the Wildlife Acts, in relation to out National Parks and Reserves and in regard to our obligations under theBirds and Habitats Directives. They also investigate reports of breaches of the Acts including illegal snaring of badgers, habitat protection issues, as well as monitoring compliance at coursing events etc. Members of An Garda Síochána are also empowered under the Acts to investigate alleged offences and to prosecute if they see fit.

Where resources allow, local National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) conservation rangers and staff attend coursing meetings, on a spot-check basis, to monitor compliance with licences issued to the Irish Coursing Club and its affiliated clubs.During the 2016/17 coursing season, conservation rangers attended seventeen coursing meetings and the same number of meetings was monitored during the 2015/16 season. During the 2014/15 season, six meetings were monitored. While my Department does not have resources to provide 100% attendance at coursing meetings it endeavours to attend as many meetings as possible having regard to the various calls on its staffing complement. Since the 2017/18 coursing season began in the last two weeks, staff of NPWS have monitored 6 coursing events.