Following a meeting with Horse Care Ireland Marian Harkin has once again called on Minister Coveney to take decisive action to support the Irish horse sector.

She said:- “I have written to the Minister on several occasions in the past few months seeking his support to find solutions to the current crisis facing the horse industry and while the Minister has put a helpline in place this is a minimal response. It won’t solve the current problem of stray and malnourished horses which pose a real danger to the Irish horse industry as a whole as well as being an animal welfare and public safety issue.

“Horse Care Ireland is supporting the non thoroughbred horse sector. They are engaging in a new way with a strategic perspective and they believe that the development of the Irish horse industry outside the elite sport and thoroughbred sector has not been adequately supported. There have been mistakes made on all sides, a laise faire attitude by the State and poor breeding decisions by some in the industry and any long lasting solutions will require cooperation from all sides.

“There are a number of factors which constitute the problem, the most immediate being the animal welfare issue and the need to find short term solutions as well as strategically planning for the future of the industry. Horse Care Ireland is taking a balanced view of the situation and they can and want to be part of the solution.

“At an EU level I am going to make enquiries in regard to the Belgian request for a derogation from EU legislation which would assist them in solving a problem similar to the one we have in Ireland i.e. a surplus of horses with no economic value. There are short and long term solutions needed here and they need to be pursued in a systematic way. I am once again calling on the Minister to work with organisations like Horse Care Ireland to find sustainable solutions”, Marian Harkin MEP concluded.