I assure the Deputy that animal welfare is a high priority for my Department and considerable resources and funding are provided to address the issue. The Programme for Government includes an undertaking to provide additional funding in support of animal welfare in the coming years to which I am fully committed. Animal welfare organisations are allocated funding on the basis of clear criteria, including the requirement for each organisation to be registered with the Charities' Regulator, and to submit up-to-date accounts.
The organisation in question has a strong record with a broad reach in rescuing, rehabilitating and re-homing animals and employs a number of trained inspectors. As a recognition of this, the following amounts have been awarded from 2018 to 2022 (central + regional branches):
2018 - €490,000
2019 - €532,000
2020 - €576,000
2021 - €668,500
2022 - No payments to date