Amending the Dog Breeding Establishments Act has been on the legislative programme since autumn 2020. Nearly six years since policy change in this area was first considered by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, all that has emerged is a general scheme that has not even been published. The changes currently outlined appear remarkably limited. The most significant oversight in these proposals, and one that cannot be overstated, is the complete absence of a cap on the number of breeding females permitted within a dog breeding establishment. Without such a cap, Ireland risks continuing its long-standing international reputation for industrial-scale puppy farming. Once again, we appear to be legislating in a way that accommodates and legitimises industrial-scale breeding operations rather than phasing them out. There is no place in the modern animal welfare framework for puppy farms. I think everybody would be agreed on that. Any meaningful amendment to the Dog Breeding Establishments Act should begin the work of dismantling this model rather than entrenching it.

A number of weeks ago, four greyhounds were removed from a property in Parteen in County Clare by Greyhound Racing Ireland. Anyone who saw the video of the condition the four dogs were in would have been dismayed and upset at what they saw. The conditions were absolutely shocking. It now seems that the Parteen greyhounds have been returned to their former owners - the Shanakyle syndicate - and are back in those terrible conditions. I believe Greyhound Racing Ireland lied when it stated that they had been surrendered and would be re-homed as family pets. I found out that Shanakyle Valley raced on Wednesday of last week. He is the black greyhound that was shown in the video with no water in his bowl. He appeared to be particularly depressed. Of course, Greyhound Racing Ireland finds it acceptable that such sociable, sensitive and intelligent beings would live in solitary confinement in tiny cages, some without water and one with a cruel anti-bark muzzle so that it could not drink or pant. It is no surprise that these awful conditions are acceptable to Greyhound Racing Ireland given that it thinks surgical artificial insemination is okay. In addition, thousands of greyhounds are killed every year if they cannot run fast enough, hundreds die from injuries on the track and countless others are exported for breeding and hunting. This is an industry that our taxes are funding to the tune of almost €20 million every year. There have to be stronger welfare protections for greyhounds in Ireland and the greyhound racing industry has to be accountable for the vast sums of money it gets. There has to be clear transparency in how it operates and it needs to have a business plan so that the taxpayer can see where the money goes. It cannot be acceptable that the greyhound industry stands and waits with its hand out for the cheque for the transfer from the taxpayer with no transparency and no accountability.