584. Deputy John Paul Phelan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if proposals to ban remotely controlled electronic shock collars on dogs will be subject to public consultation, or be referred to the relevant Oireachtas committee, in order to ensure full and inclusive engagement with relevant stakeholders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29583/24]

The Advisory Council on Companion Animal Welfare, which I established under an independent chair, as part of my Department's wider animal welfare strategy, advises me on animal welfare matters and considered the question of whether the use of remotely controlled electronic shock collars on dogs and cats ought to be banned in Ireland.

As part of this process, my Department held a public consultation, earlier this year, with the results available here: www.gov.ie/en/publication/e881c-animal-welfare/#use-of-remotely-controlled-electronic-shock-collars-in-dogs-and-cats-consultation-results.

Having evaluated and taken into consideration the responses to this consultation, I am moving forward to ban the use of these devices on animal welfare grounds. However, I am making provision for the phasing out of their use where they are currently in use with individually identifiable dogs.