I must now deal with a postponed division relating to the motion regarding animal welfare. On Tuesday, 3 October 2017, on the question that amendment No. 2 to the motion be agreed to, a division was claimed and in accordance with Standing Order 70(2), that division must be taken now.
Animal Welfare: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]
The following motion was moved by Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan on Tuesday, 3 October 2017:
That Dáil Éireann:
recognises:
— the progress made since the introduction of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013;
— that, despite the progress, there are an increasing number of incidents and reports of animal mistreatment, cruelty and abuse; and
— that this rise in reported incidents of animal cruelty stems from neglect, poor regulations, lack of enforcement of current legislation, inadequate legislation and lack of sanctions for those responsible for these acts of cruelty;
acknowledges the substantial work of individuals, families, animal welfare groups and activists in highlighting these problems; and
calls for:
— the introduction of a comprehensive system of monitoring conditions in which animals are kept;
— robust regulations to protect animals from abuse, cruel treatment, neglect and poor living conditions;
— those accused of abuse or acts of cruelty to be held accountable for their actions;
— transparency in relation to anti-doping protocols, publishing details of testing and more out-of-competition unannounced testing; and
— a clear message from Government that cruelty to animals is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 2:
To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:
"notes that this Government does not tolerate any instances of animal cruelty;
acknowledges the significant progress made in updating animal welfare legislation in recent years, in particular with the introduction of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 which updated and modernised over one hundred years of previous legislation in this area;
notes the increased penalties set out in the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 in respect of animal welfare offences;
acknowledges the extensive system of welfare checks that are systematically carried out on farms and other locations each year;
notes the role of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s Animal Welfare Helpline in assisting the public’s reporting of instances of animal neglect;
acknowledges:
— the important role played by animal welfare charities; and
— that the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s contribution to animal welfare charities (in excess of €2.4 million paid in 2016) plays an important role in protecting animal welfare;
notes:
— the extended national animal welfare inspection capability through service agreements between the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and certain non governmental organisations whereby appropriately trained staff are assigned additional powers of inspection under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013; and
— the increased transparency and success in prosecutions taken in respect of animal welfare offences since the introduction of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013, with 34 successful prosecutions having been taken by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine head office under the Act and an additional 26 are currently ongoing, and additional prosecutions are taken at a regional level by An Garda Síochána (sometimes in conjunction with the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), local authorities and Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine regional offices;
acknowledges the strict approval process that exists for livestock vessels transporting live animals from Ireland;
notes the extensive review of procedures for regulatory control of greyhound racing by Bord na gCon (Irish Greyhound Board), including the development of new intelligence led testing that has now resulted in the Greyhound Industry Bill 2017, which has gone through the pre-legislative stage and will be prioritised for speedy passage through the Houses of the Oireachtas this session; and
recognises the significant progress made to date by Bord na gCon (Irish Greyhound Board) in the area of anti-doping, through its establishment of a scientific committee to implement the highest standards of deterrence against the minority of individuals who seek to gain advantage by cheating in the sport and its significant investment in laboratory equipment."
- (Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Amendment put:
The Dáil divided: Tá, 49; Níl, 43; Staon, 36.
Tá
- Bailey, Maria.
- Barrett, Seán.
- Breen, Pat.
- Brophy, Colm.
- Bruton, Richard.
- Byrne, Catherine.
- Canney, Seán.
- Carey, Joe.
- Collins, Michael.
- Corcoran Kennedy, Marcella.
- Creed, Michael.
- Daly, Jim.
- Doherty, Regina.
- Donohoe, Paschal.
- Doyle, Andrew.
- Durkan, Bernard J.
- English, Damien.
- Farrell, Alan.
- Fitzmaurice, Michael.
- Fitzpatrick, Peter.
- Flanagan, Charles.
- Griffin, Brendan.
- Halligan, John.
- Harris, Simon.
- Harty, Michael.
- Healy-Rae, Danny.
- Healy, Seamus.
- Humphreys, Heather.
- Kehoe, Paul.
- Lowry, Michael.
- McGrath, Finian.
- McGrath, Mattie.
- McHugh, Joe.
- McLoughlin, Tony.
- Madigan, Josepha.
- Mitchell O'Connor, Mary.
- Moran, Kevin Boxer.
- Murphy, Eoghan.
- Naughton, Hildegarde.
- Neville, Tom.
- Noonan, Michael.
- O'Connell, Kate.
- O'Donovan, Patrick.
- O'Dowd, Fergus.
- Phelan, John Paul.
- Rock, Noel.
- Ross, Shane.
- Stanton, David.
- Zappone, Katherine.
Níl
- Adams, Gerry.
- Barry, Mick.
- Boyd Barrett, Richard.
- Brady, John.
- Broughan, Thomas P.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Connolly, Catherine.
- Coppinger, Ruth.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Daly, Clare.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Ferris, Martin.
- Funchion, Kathleen.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Howlin, Brendan.
- Kenny, Gino.
- Kenny, Martin.
- McDonald, Mary Lou.
- Martin, Catherine.
- Munster, Imelda.
- Murphy, Catherine.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Nolan, Carol.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Caoláin, Caoimhghín.
- Ó Laoghaire, Donnchadh.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- O'Brien, Jonathan.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Sullivan, Jan.
- O'Sullivan, Maureen.
- Penrose, Willie.
- Pringle, Thomas.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Ryan, Brendan.
- Ryan, Eamon.
- Shortall, Róisín.
- Smith, Bríd.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Wallace, Mick.
Staon
- Aylward, Bobby.
- Brassil, John.
- Breathnach, Declan.
- Browne, James.
- Butler, Mary.
- Byrne, Thomas.
- Cahill, Jackie.
- Calleary, Dara.
- Casey, Pat.
- Cassells, Shane.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Chambers, Lisa.
- Cowen, Barry.
- Curran, John.
- Dooley, Timmy.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Haughey, Seán.
- Kelleher, Billy.
- Lahart, John.
- MacSharry, Marc.
- McConalogue, Charlie.
- McGrath, Michael.
- McGuinness, John.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Michael.
- Murphy O'Mahony, Margaret.
- O'Brien, Darragh.
- O'Callaghan, Jim.
- O'Dea, Willie.
- O'Loughlin, Fiona.
- O'Rourke, Frank.
- Rabbitte, Anne.
- Scanlon, Eamon.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Troy, Robert.
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Joe McHugh and Tony McLoughlin; Níl, Deputies Maureen O'Sullivan and Clare Daly.
Amendment declared carried.
As amendment No. 2 has been carried, I cannot put amendment No. 1.
Amendments Nos. 1 and 3 not moved.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.