THERE HAS been a mixed reception for the announcement by Green Party Minister for the Environment John Gormley that he is to make a number of changes to the controversial Dog Breeding Establishments Bill before it goes to a vote next week.
“Substantial progress has been made,” said Independent TD Michael Lowry, whose support for the Government was seen to be in jeopardy. “We’ll have to await publication of the amendments next week to get a clear picture of the full impact of the changes he is making.
“There’s room for further refinement and I want to thank the Minister for the level of co-operation that now exists, compared to two weeks ago,” Mr Lowry said.
Another Independent who generally supports the Government, Kerry South TD Jackie Healy-Rae said: “I really can’t comment because I don’t know what the final story is going to be: when the amendments are published, I will comment then.” Fianna Fáil backbencher and former junior minister Máire Hoctor said lobbying by herself and party colleagues had now “brought about a set of acceptable amendments”.
She welcomed the Minister’s undertaking in the Dáil yesterday that the Greyhound Board would not be regulated by the dog breeding legislation but by way of an amendment to the Greyhound Industry Act 1958.
However, Tipperary South TD Mattie McGrath, who recently lost the Fianna Fáil whip over staghunting legislation, said: “I still intend voting against the Bill next week.” The Minister had made “a dog’s dinner” of the issue.
Although he had not had the opportunity of studying the proposed changes in great detail, Mr McGrath said it was clear to him they were “insufficient”.
Labour local government spokesman Ciarán Lynch said: “I have listened very intently to Minister Gormley’s speech in the House today. His speech clearly indicates that significant amendments must now be made to the Bill. The amendments that he had indicated to make when the Bill proceeds to its next stage on Thursday of next week reflect some of the concerns that have been raised by the Labour Party and I am glad that the Minister even at this late hour has adapted his position.”
However, Fine Gael environment spokesman Phil Hogan said it was clear Mr Gormley was going to “force through” his original proposals on January 1st, 2011, if the Greyhound Act amendment process was unsatisfactory.
“Minister Gormley has announced that if Fianna Fáil backbenchers and Independent deputies do not kowtow to his animal welfare agenda, his proposals in the dog breeding legislation will come into effect on January 1st 2011,” Mr Hogan said.
Deputy Máire Hoctor welcomed the Minister’s decision to exempt greyhounds and hunting dogs, for the time being at least, from being microchipped for purposes of identification.
“The microchip would appear to be an unnecessary item for identification particularly when the tattoo embossed on the ear, with the DNA recorded, is a tried and tested means of traceability,” the Tipperary North TD said.
A spokesman for Mr Gormley and his party said: “We set out to establish good standards for all dogs and this approach allows us to achieve the same result by slightly different means.”
A spokesman for Rural Ireland Says Enough (Rise) said the Minister had “finally seen the light” on the greyhound issue, but that the “minimal” amendments for hunt kennels “fall far short of what is required”.
Speaking at the second stage reading of the Bill yesterday, Mr Gormley said that in order to accommodate the “legitimate concerns” of the Irish Greyhound Board (IGB) it was proposed that the welfare of IGB-registered greyhounds would be addressed through the amended 1958 Act instead of the 2009 Dog Breeding Establishments Bill.