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Hunt ban legislation will be published "as soon as possible"
14 January 2010
Environment Minister, John Gormley, will publish legislation to ban the Ward Union "as soon as possible". The Minister made the statement in response to a Dail question from pro-hunting Fine Gael TD, Shane McEntee. "I continue to believe that this particular hunting practice should cease for animal welfare and public safety reasons," the Green Party leader told the Meath TD. You can read the full text of the Dail question and answer below.
ACTION ALERT Please email "I support the banning of the Ward Union" to minister@environ.ie If you live in Shane McEntee's constituency, please remind him that you are one of the majority of Meath residents who want the Ward Union banned. Contact him at shane.mcentee@finegael.ie or Tel: 01 6184447
Dail Question and Answer
Shane McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael): I am delighted to get a chance to speak on this subject, which I honestly did not think would arise again. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Gormley, and I had some heated debates about stag hunting two or three years ago. The Minister insisted that certain regulations be put into place. For example, it is now necessary for three officials from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to monitor stag hunting. The Minister is aware that this system has worked well. Has he received any complaints about anything going wrong in this regard? While I accept that every party has its own programme for Government, I do not understand why the hunt is being targeted. Attempts are being made to ban a sporting activity that has contributed a great deal to this country. The Ward Union Hunt has been in existence for 155 years, which makes it 30 years older than the GAA. People like Paul Carberry, Philip Carberry, Nina Carberry, Peter John Carberry, Ross Geraghty, Barry Geraghty, Robbie Power, Adrian Maguire and Norman Williamson, who are household names in this country, are among the progeny of the Ward Union Hunt. New names like Andrew Duff, Charles Greene, Keith Donohue, Megan Carberry and Donie Fahy are also among the progeny of the hunt, as are horse trainers like Noel Meade, Tommy Carberry, John Carr, Gordon Elliott, Tony Martin, Pat Rooney, Kieran Cromwell, James Halpin and Ronan O’Dwyer. The Ward Union Hunt is the last stag hunt in the world. It is an iconic representation of rural life in Ireland. It has in excess of 200 members, more than 170 of whom ride out. Its premises, including its kennels, are regularly inspected by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, which ensures the health of the pack and the deer is maintained. An official report has confirmed that hunting does not affect the short-term or long-term health of mature male deer. The hunt provides an essential knackery service, including a collection facility for fallen stock, to local farmers. The knackery is licensed by the Department, which visits it every day. The Ward Union Hunt raises between €50,000 and €100,000 for charity every year, even in bad times. The hunt maintains a carefully monitored breeding programme to protect and preserve the Irish red deer. It has been suggested that the hunt should be allocated funding to preserve and guarantee this aspect of Ireland’s heritage. It is estimated that the hunt contributes up to €1.6 million to the Exchequer every year. It costs the hunt approximately €6,700 per annum to keep a horse. That money is spent in the local area, benefitting vets, farriers, feed merchants and saddlers, etc. The hunt directly employs four full-time staff. The Minister, Deputy Gormley, has made it a personal mission to target the Ward Union Hunt. In all his years in government, however, he has never taken the time to sit down with representatives of the hunt. Why is this the case? It is certainly not for the want of opportunity. Every rural Deputy in this House understands the importance of hunting and rural sports for local communities. Hunting is worth €111 million to the Exchequer every year. If it is not the case that the Minister is trying to rush an amendment through the House, why have the members of the Ward Union Hunt received a letter requesting a regulatory impact analysis? I suggest that has been done in advance of the introduction of legislation banning stag hunting. Why would the Minister ask for the opinion of the only remaining stag hunt in the world, when he has already guaranteed his party that a ban will happen? He has added insult to injury. The Minister’s letter of last week asked for a reply by Friday, 13 December 2009, but there is no such date. Perhaps someone will rectify that. The Minister seems to be obsessed with the plight of the red deer in Leinster, but why is the same courtesy not being afforded to the red deer in Connacht? Can the Minister confirm that a number of complaints have been received by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, to the effect that authorised officers from the Department are involved in the commercial exploitation of wildlife in the west? I have it on very good authority that red deer in Connacht are being hunted and shot for up to €5,000 per head. This is well known to the Minister and the proof of it is in his Department. Why has a commencement date not been set for section 36 of the Wildlife Act during the past nine years? Such a commencement date would preclude any citizen from engaging in the commercial exploitation of wildlife without a licence, but a date has never been set. This means that anybody can host hunting parties for profit in Ireland. With things the way they are, I do not know why the Minister is doing this. What he did two years ago has worked very well and he knows that, although I did not like it at the time. The Ward Union Hunt was the first to admit the new regulations put in place by the Minister and the people he appointed have worked very well. As a Deputy, I will oppose this. It took the Labour Party in England 600 hours in the Houses of Parliament to get its anti-hunting ban through. It took it ten hours to get approval for the invasion of Afghanistan. If it takes 600 hours in this House, I will do everything to protect rural life in Ireland. John Gormley (Minister, Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government; Dublin South East, Green Party): I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The renewed programme for Government includes a commitment to ban the practice of stag hunting. I should explain that under existing wildlife legislation I can, as Minister, issue a licence for the hunting of deer by a pack of hounds. As the Deputy is no doubt aware, there is now only one hunt club in the State which continues to hunt deer using a pack of hounds and horses. I have issued a licence to this hunt club to hunt deer with a pack of hounds for the 2009-2010 season which ends on 31 March 2010. However, I continue to believe that this particular hunting practice should cease for animal welfare and public safety reasons. I believe a large proportion of the public consider such activity is no longer acceptable. The Deputy may recall an incident a few years ago when a deer pursued by a pack of hounds entered a school yard during the school day. I find an incident like this totally intolerable. Since then, there have been other public safety incidents involving deer in flight leaping through hedges onto public roads. Therefore, I recently obtained Government approval to the drafting of legislation to prohibit the hunting of deer by a pack of stag hounds. This legislation will not have any implications for other activities such as fox-hunting, hare coursing or the shooting of deer. This new legislation will also allow for regulations to control recreational activities, to address invasive species and to increase the penalties under the Wildlife Acts. There is a need to regulate certain recreational activities in ecologically sensitive areas. This is in response to a judgment of the European Court of Justice which found that Ireland had failed to transpose adequately Article 6(2) of the habitats directive in the field of recreational activities. Certain, currently unregulated activities, such as the use of quad-bikes, scramblers or jet-skis in inappropriate locations, have resulted in serious ecological damage, including degradation and erosion of upland habitats and the destruction of the breeding sites of protected water birds. This problem must be urgently addressed if Ireland hopes to avoid further litigation at the European Court of Justice and the imposition of heavy fines. I refer to what are termed “invasive alien species”. These are plants and animals which, if released to the wild either by accident or on purpose, have the potential to cause substantial economic damage as well as damage the natural biodiversity of the country. Examples we all know include the grey squirrel, muntjac deer, zebra mussel and the African pondweed, which is choking Lough Corrib. Increased powers are required to enable us to take the necessary steps to regulate the import, sale and dispersal of these undesirable animal and plant invasive species and to take appropriate steps, if possible, to eradicate them or minimise the threat that they pose. The legislation will increase the maximum fines that could be imposed on a person following a conviction for an offence under the Wildlife Act. The penalties were last increased in 2000. For example, the current maximum fine of £500 will be increased to €1,000 while the £50,000 will increase to €100,000. It is my intention to publish the legislation as soon as possible. The Facts About Carted Deer Hunting Carted deer hunting is a cruel “sport” which causes horrific suffering to defenceless red deer. It subjects the deer - captive bred specifically for the abuse - to a distressing ordeal, leaving them exhausted, injured and severely at risk of dying from heart failure. The red deer used are taken from a herd which is privately owned by the Ward Union hunt. This hunt is based in Dunshaughlin, County Meath. Every Tuesday and Friday between November and mid-March, two deer (stags or hinds) are taken out in a cart to a hunt location. They have their antlers sawn off to prevent injuries being caused to the dogs and the manhandlers who wrestle them to the ground at the end of each hunt.
One deer is turned out of the trailer, and forced to run. The other is kept as a spare in case the first deer is caught too soon. During the hunt, the deer is at risk of sustaining injuries as it frantically tries to outrun the horseback riders and the pack of dogs. Being in unfamiliar terrain, the deer has an extremely hazardous route ahead. Crashing through hedges, over walls, across busy public roads and even into lakes and rivers, the terrified creature does everything it can to stay ahead. A Department of Agriculture Veterinary Inspector who monitored a Ward Union hunt wrote: “One stag was seen attempting to jump a very high fence and getting his front leg caught on a top strand of barbed wire and hanging, thus suspended, for some seconds before his struggles and/or weight tore him free.” He also outlined how a stag “having run at least 8 miles in 90 minutes showed extreme physical distress, panting through its mouth and with a lather of white foam around its muzzle.” Reported fatalities highlighted how one deer died of an aneurism while another was “accidentally” choked to death during capture.
In a suppressed 1997 document (only obtained by ICABS in Autumn 2003), another Department of Agriculture Veterinary Inspector concluded that the deerhunt was “inhumane”. Yet, no action was taken to stop the hunt which, we contend, is in breach of the 1911 Protection of Animals Act. ICABS continues to call for a complete ban on this barbarism which surely should have no place in a civilised society. We have appealed to the Minister for Agriculture, who is well aware of the cruelty involved, to follow the example of her counterparts in Northern Ireland who outlawed a similar hunt, the County Down Staghounds, in 1997. It was ruled that the deer used by that carted deer hunt were domestic animals and thus covered by animal welfare legislation.
Video: Carted deer hunting cruelty
View More Videos exposing the cruelty of carted deer hunting and other blood sports.
How can I help end this blood sport?
Please appeal to Minister John Gormley (he licenses the Ward Union deerhunt under the Wildlife Act) and Minister Brendan Smith (he is responsible for animal welfare and the Protection of Animals Act) to end carted deer hunting.
Minister John Gormley
Email: minister@environ.ie
Minister Brendan Smith
Email: minister@agriculture.gov.ie
The cruelty of carted deer hunting
The following list conveys just some of the cruelty of carted deer hunting and the suffering caused to the deer.
"The transportation of the stags in the cart is inhumane in its manner and in the design of the cart. The enlargement of the stags is inhumane in that they are ejected suddenly into a strange environment and alone. A stag which has been hunted previously appears, before the hunt starts, to be distressed and aware that he is about to be hunted again. Stags being hunted appear to be terrified of the hounds. A stag is aware when he is being hunted and continues to flee even when the hounds are far behind. Stags are sometimes wounded or injured during hunts by physical incidents or by the hounds. Stags are terrified by people and motor vehicles during the hunt. Stags are apparently distressed and exhausted towards the end of hunts and will hide and lie down at this stage. At the end of the hunt the fact that a man can catch and hold him would seem to be adequate evidence of physical exhaustion by the stag. The handling of the stag when taken at the end of a hunt must be terrifying and stressful to the animal." (Kane Report)
"Nervousness of stags in the cart prior to hunts was variable...with some appearing very nervous or stressed. At one hunt it was notable that of the two stags in the cart, one which had been hunted previously was showing body tremors, excessive salivation and panting."
"A farmer who saw, at very close range, the stag at bay on 7th February told me that it was bleeding from one leg; also I was informed by Hunt staff that some stags are given antibiotic treatment after hunts if they have injuries such as wounds or swollen limbs." (Kane Report)
"On two hunts on which the route of the stag was traced well on a half inch map, it was calculated that one stag had run at least 8 miles and the other at least 12 miles." (Kane Report)
"A stag which has been hunted before is, presumably, aware that he is about to be followed by hounds and runs from fear: indeed it is notable that the stag runs although the hounds are not yet on his trail. In the early stages of the hunt the stag runs constantly but as the hunt progresses he may stop running and hide or even lie down and it is at this stage that the hounds may catch up with him." (Kane Report)
"A major hazard encountered by stags is barbed wire. One stag was seen attempting to jump a very fence and getting his front leg caught on a top strand of barbed wire and hanging, thus suspended, for some seconds before his struggles and/or weight tore him free." (Kane Report)
"Stags are frightened by people and motor vehicles when they cross public roads, which they frequently do during hunts.
"A stag observed, down to 30 yards range through binoculars, having run at least 8 miles in 90 minutes showed extreme physical distress, panting through its mouth and with a lather of white foam around its muzzle." (Kane Report)
"I was informed by two eye-witnesses that hounds, although chary of a stag at bay, will attempt to bite him." (Kane Report)
"Stags are hunted until about 9 years of age at which time they may get "stiff" or fail in condition and I was told that they are then sold or exchanged with commercial deer farms or slaughtered for venison." (Kane Report)
"Domesticated Red Deer are obviously completely unfit for a prolonged chase by hounds. A recent scientific report in England has concluded that wild Red Deer are physiologically unable for a prolonged chase by hounds." (Kane Report)
More information about carted deer hunting
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