Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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614. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the funding provided for the control of horses in Cork to date. [54808/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The Control of Horses Act 1996 (the Act) provides powers to local authorities, enabling them to control stray and wandering horses in their geographical areas. Enforcement of the Act is a matter for the relevant local authority, in this case Cork City and County Councils.

My Department provides funding to local authorities as a contribution towards the costs incurred by them in operation of the Act. Funding provided to Cork City and County Councils by my Department in this regard to date in 2023 is €5,925.

Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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615. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the funding provided to Cork City Council for the control of horses in 2022. [54830/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The Control of Horses (COH) Act 1996 (the Act) provides powers to local authorities, enabling them to control stray and wandering horses in their geographical areas. Enforcement of the Act is a matter for the relevant local authority, in this case Cork City Council.

My Department provides funding to local authorities as a contribution towards the costs incurred by them in operation of the Act. Funding provided to Cork City Council by my Department in this regard in 2022 was €1,875.

Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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616. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on the horse project for Cork. [54831/23]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department and I are fully committed to supporting sustainable, One Health, One Welfare initiatives in line with the Programme for Government and Working Together for Animal Welfare, Ireland's Animal Welfare Strategy 2021-2025 and continue to support a number of urban horse projects nationwide.

These projects can foster community leadership and education in responsible horse ownership for young people from disadvantaged communities or backgrounds.

Typically, support and arrangements for these projects are provided by the Local Authorities. The funding provided by my Department is paid through the Local Authorities to support these projects.

Through Cork City Council, my Department has in the past supported a Cork City Horse Project which was a collaborative initiative involving Cork City and County Councils and community stakeholders including the Traveller Visibility Group.

We welcome further submissions, through local authorities, for assistance in Cork in the context of our Urban Horse Projects scheme.

In October this year, my Department held a seminar dedicated to the promotion of such urban horse projects nationwide. The seminar encouraged collaboration and the exchange of ideas and best practices among local authorities and other stakeholders, with a view towards enabling more projects to be successfully established.