Tipperary councillors defer motions seeking to restrict sulky racing for further review
Two motions in Tipperary calling for restrictions on the use of sulkies have been deferred to a meeting of the council’s strategic policy committee.
Labour Party councillor Michael Brennan tabled a motion calling on the council to prepare draft by-laws to address the usage of sulkies on public roads across Tipperary, banning the use of sulkies on all public roads across the county, as well as giving more powers to gardaí to seize animals and prosecute anyone found to be breaking the law.
Cllr Brennan’s motion said that under the by-laws proof of suitable land for keeping a horse should be required, and that proof of ownership for a horse also be required.
Meanwhile councillors Liam Browne, Niall Dennehy and Richie Molloy tabled a similar motion calling on the council to ask Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien to bring in comprehensive national legislation governing the use of sulkies on public roads.
The legislation would include a sulky road use licence, as well as proof of insurance, and the creation of a national sulky horse register.
The two motions come after a horse was killed in Clonmel in a sulky accident in March, sparking widespread outrage at the incident.
At the April meeting of Tipperary County Council, the two motions came before councillors to be discussed.
Proposing his motion, Cllr Brennan said that the motion was needed to improve animal welfare standards across the county.
Sinn Féin councillor David Dunne proposed that both Cllr Brennan and councillors Browne, Dennehy and Molloy’s motions be dealt with together, and moved to the council’s environment strategic policy committee (SPC), where they could be thrashed out in more detail.
"These motions need primary legislation, and I think we should bring all the stakeholders in to the SPC,” Cllr Dunne said.
"Sulky culture is not just in relation to the traveller community, because there’s a number of people in my hometown that have sulkies and there’s a group of what they call ‘urban cowboys’ in Dublin and in Limerick – this is a national issue and I think it needs to be dealt with by national policy,” he said.
The Sinn Féin councillor added that council had been trying for several years to address concerns about sulkies on public roads, and said that the members should take their time and ensure they get it right.
"For the first time in a long number of years, we’ve been asking to deal with this issue, and we have buy-in from the community that’s mainly involved in it,” Cllr Dunne said.
Several other councillors backed Cllr Dunne’s call, including councillors Kieran Bourke, Pat English, Micheál Anglim and Phyll Bugler, who asked that the next meeting of the environment SPC be brought forward to deal with the motion in a timely manner.
In response to the calls, Cllr Brennan said he was happy for his motion to be dealt with at the SPC, however Cashel-based councillor Liam Browne said that he wished for his motion to be debated at plenary level, not at the SPC.
"I understand why some councillors believe that the two motions are so similar that they should go the same way, but I think some clarification has to go into what’s being said about it,” Cllr Browne said.
"The organisation of a sulky race is banned in Ireland, but the participation in a sulky race is not banned, so if you find people racing on a road, you have to find the organiser of the race to prosecute them, so my motion asks for sulky racing on roads to be banned in Ireland.
"We got a response from members of the travelling community who said this motion was attacking part of their culture, but I don’t believe sulky racing is culture, it’s a hobby, and I don’t think that anybody should be allowed to have a hobby running out on the road which puts people in danger,” Cllr Browne said.
The councillor, who is based in Cashel, said that there were trotters clubs and harness racing clubs for people who still wished to engage in sulky racing, but said that it should be done on a track, not on public roads.
"I’m not asking for sulky racing to be banned, apart from that I want it banned off public roads, but if a lad wants to jaunt down the road on a sulky, make sure he’s safe, make sure the passengers are safe, and make sure we can see them and make sure that if they cause damage, as they did in Clonmel, that they pay for it,” Cllr Browne said.
After further debate from councillors, it was agreed that Cllr Browne’s motion would also be deferred to the SPC to strengthen the wording before a letter is sent to the Transport Minister.