Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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527. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the steps he is taking to fulfil the programme for Government commitment to recognise the importance of animal welfare and provide additional resources to monitor welfare standards by increasing the veterinary presence available on all live export consignments to third countries; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27512/21]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The Programme for Government contains an undertaking to provide additional funding to support animal welfare in the coming years to which I am fully committed. In this regard, in December 2020 I announced record funding of €3.2 million to 101 animal welfare organisations throughout the country.

The Department takes its responsibilities in the matter of animal welfare most seriously and exercises close oversight and deploys considerable resources in to the area of animal welfare in general, including in respect of animals being transported.

In 2020, a series of new measures was introduced in this area, in order to safeguard animal welfare during transport, including prohibiting transport in temperatures of 30°C or greater, increased space in lorries for young calves, and a requirement on drivers to re-train every three years instead of ten years. In addition, it was planned that Department veterinarians would accompany long-distance ship journeys of adult cattle to third countries; one such accompaniment did take place over the Christmas holiday season, but the resurgence of COVID-19 numbers in Ireland and Europe made such accompaniments hazardous. However it is planned to resume such accompaniments once this is deemed safe.

The animals welfare measures introduced in 2020 were further enhanced in 2021 with a minimum of 40kg bodyweight set for calves to be exported, and a ban introduced on animal transport to (or via) the Russian Federation and to Africa in July and August, and a ban on transport to (or via) the Russian Federation in December/January.