Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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67. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if she will report on the working being carried out by the stakeholders’ group on control of dogs issues; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26514/24]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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My Department has policy and legislative responsibility for the Control of Dogs Acts and the Dog Breeding Establishments Act. In March 2024 I announced the establishment of a high level stakeholder group to consider and make recommendations to strengthen policy in relation to these issues.

The group is independently chaired by retired Deputy Garda Commissioner Mr. John Twomey and is comprised of members with a broad range of expertise. The group have been tasked with considering the policy and legislative matters under the remit of my Department, specifically the Dog Control Acts and the Dog Breeding Establishments Act.

The work of the stakeholder group is complex in nature requiring full consideration of all aspects of both pieces of legislation under the remit of my Department and this will take some time. However, in view of recent events, I have asked the Chair to prioritise the issue of Restricted Dogs and this will be the first issue to be considered by the stakeholder group at its next meeting to be held later this month. I expect the group to revert to me with recommendations on the matter as soon as possible once they have considered all issues arising.

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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68. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if she is satisfied that local authorities are sufficiently resourced to enforce the legislation in relation to dog control legislation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26378/24]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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My Department has overall policy responsibility for the Control of Dogs Acts 1986 to 2014. Local Authorities have responsibility for all operational matters under the Control of Dogs Acts.

Under the Control of Dogs Acts local authorities have the power to issue dog licenses, appoint dog wardens, provide dog shelters, seize dogs, impose on-the-spot fines and take court proceedings against dog owners, where appropriate.

My Department does not provide any funding to local authorities in respect of their work in the implementation of the legislative code relating to the control of dogs. Income to support Local Authority Dog Control is sourced in a number of ways, primarily through license fees and Local Authority own resources, with a nominal amount from fixed charge notices. Section 15 of the Control of Dogs Act stipulates that a local authority must employ at least one dog warden.

My Department publishes annual statistics in respect of a range of the dog control responsibilities of local authorities. Information including the number of dog wardens, by county and in tabular form, is available on the dog control statistics page on gov.ie: (www.gov.ie/en/collection/879d4c-dog-control-statistics/). The 2023 dog control statistics have been requested from local authorities and will be published on gov.ie once available.