Animal Welfare

872. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans for Sulky racing (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34234/26]

893. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is considering strengthening the legislation and enforcement mechanisms relating to equine ownership and animal welfare, in light of ongoing concerns regarding horses being kept by persons without the proper facilities, resources or capacity to care for them adequately; the measures currently in place to preve…

897. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department maintains statistics on horse injuries, collapses or fatalities linked to sulky racing, including unofficial road racing events; if he will provide a breakdown by county for the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35141/26]

898. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether consideration has been given to introducing specific welfare standards governing the training and use of horses in sulky racing activities, including veterinary inspections, equipment standards and fitness-to-race requirements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35143/26]

907. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has examined the recommendations contained within the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 2026 to 2030 strategy regarding animal welfare reform; whether legislative or policy changes are under consideration arising from the strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matt…

908. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current number of authorised animal welfare inspectors operating nationally; whether consideration is being given to increasing resources for animal welfare enforcement in view of ongoing reports of animal cruelty and neglect; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35269/26]

909. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the actions being taken to strengthen penalties and enforcement measures under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 for persons convicted of serious animal cruelty offences; whether consideration is being given to mandatory lifetime bans on animal ownership in the most serious cases; and if he will make a statemen…

411. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of animal welfare complaints received by his Department, the number investigated, the number resulting in enforcement action, the number resulting in seizure of animals, and the number resulting in prosecution, by year from 2014 to 2025,; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33638/26]

412. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department maintains a central database of animal welfare complaints, inspections, enforcement actions, animal seizures, prosecutions and outcomes under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013; and if he will outline the data fields recorded. [33639/26]

413. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether a formal memorandum of understanding, protocol, guidance document, or operational agreement exists between his Department, An Garda Síochána, Local Authorities, Customs, and animal welfare organisations in relation to suspected animal cruelty or neglect cases; and if he will publish or summarise same. [33640/26…

414. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the 226 successful prosecutions under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 since March 2014 are recorded by offence type, animal type, county, prosecuting authority, penalty imposed, and whether animals were seized; and if he will provide a breakdown. [33641/26]

415. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether his Department has assessed the adequacy of current enforcement resources for animal welfare investigations, including authorised officers, veterinary support, inspection capacity and legal follow-through; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33642/26]

416. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the new animal welfare strategy due in Q2 2026 will include measurable targets for complaint handling, investigation timelines, seizure action, prosecution rates, data publication, and inter-agency cooperation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33643/26]

699. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the governance and oversight arrangements in place between his Department, An Garda Síochána, and other relevant Departments in relation to the recording, monitoring, classification, and enforcement of alleged animal cruelty offences, and whether any single Department or body holds overall responsibility for ensuring c…

700. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether the absence of centrally collated data on alleged animal cruelty offences is a matter of policy design, and whether any consideration has been given to introducing standardised national reporting mechanisms to support policy development in this area. [33288/26]

701. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine whether he can confirm which single body or Department has overall policy responsibility for ensuring consistency in the recording, classification, and monitoring of alleged animal cruelty offences across the State, and if no single body holds such responsibility, whether Government considers this a governance gap in t…

726. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will review correspondence (details supplied); the plans in place to introduce legislation to regulate the use of animal-drawn vehicles on public roads; if he will indicate whether any such measures would include a complete ban on sulky racing on public roads; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33064…

381. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department agrees on the need to legislate for a cap on the number of dogs a breeder can own and breed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31528/26]

382. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department agrees that action is urgently needed to improve and safeguard the welfare of dogs in dog breeding establishments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31529/26]

393. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of prosecutions for horse welfare offences from 2020 to 2025 and to date in 2026. [31793/26]

813. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration further to Parliamentary Question No. 474 of 12 February 2026, the number of investigations commenced in respect of the reported animal cruelty incidents recorded from Quarter 3 of 2024 to Quarter 4 of 2025; and for a breakdown of those incidents by status, including ongoing investigation, investigation concluded wi…

814. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of files relating to alleged animal cruelty incidents recorded from Quarter 3 of 2024 to Quarter 4 of 2025 that have been submitted by An Garda Síochána to the Director of Public Prosecutions; and if he will provide the number submitted in each quarter concerned. [29818/26]

815. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration further to the confirmation that 23 proceedings by way of charge or summons had been initiated in association with the relevant incidents as of 10 March 2026; if he will provide a breakdown of those proceedings by offence type, quarter, and present status. [29819/26]

816. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of animal cruelty-related proceedings arising from incidents recorded since Quarter 3 of 2024 which have, to date, resulted in conviction, acquittal, dismissal, strike-out, withdrawal, or remain pending, in tabular form. [29820/26]

817. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration for a breakdown of the animal cruelty incidents recorded from Quarter 3 of 2024 to Quarter 4 of 2025 under the ‘Cruelty/Neglect’ incident type on PULSE, by county, and Garda division. [29821/26]