Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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1229.To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if, in relation to the news that just four out of 200 events in relation to hare coursing have been monitored in the past five years, given that in those four events alone, his Department’s inspection reports state that ten hares were killed, five ‘hit’ by dogs and one injured greyhound was euthanised, he agrees that this shows how important it is for his Department to regularly attend and inspect these events (details supplied); and his Department’s plan for how this will happen.[34258/24]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Coursing is regulated under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958, chiefly by the Irish Coursing Club (ICC), subject to the general control and direction of Rásaíocht Con Éireann. Hare coursing is managed and regulated by the Irish Coursing Club, which consists of 89 affiliated clubs from Ireland and Northern Ireland, all of whom are governed by the ICC’s rules and regulations.

A monitoring committee on coursing is in place, comprising officials from my Department, the ICC and the NPWS, to monitor developments in coursing and, in that regard, the situation is kept under constant review to ensure that coursing is run in a controlled manner. The committee meets annually to review the previous coursing season and consider any matters arising. It is important that those involved in coursing operate in accordance with the regulatory framework and that the welfare of both hares and greyhounds is at the forefront at all times.

Whilst my Department carries out routine animal welfare inspections each year, fulfilling statutory obligations and where necessary, responding to welfare concerns as they arise, my Department does not routinely attend coursing meetings to carry out animal welfare inspections, as the activity is licensed by NPWS and a private veterinary practitioner must be present.

The Department would clarify however that a particular veterinary inspection report that recorded that ten hares were killed was a clerical error - the actual position was that there were no hare deaths at that coursing event in 2020 and the record retained in the Regional Veterinary Office has been amended.

Any reports of welfare issues received by my Department, including breaches of the animal welfare legislation, are acted upon and investigated.

My Department operates a confidential animal welfare helpline through which members of the public can report incidents of animal cruelty or neglect for investigation.

The dedicated e-mail address and Helpline in place for reporting suspected cases of animal welfare are:

Helpline Phone No: 01 607 2379. Email address - animalwelfare@agriculture.gov.ie