Mattie McGrath: Ban Dangerous Sulky Racing on Public Roads
Mattie McGrath reintroduces a Bill to prohibit sulky racing on public roads unless explicit lawful permission is granted, citing a rise in dangerous, unregulated events that endanger the public, children and horses. He outlines incidents around Tipperary and across several counties, urges a national framework to replace inconsistent local bylaws, and calls on colleagues and Minister Heydon to support the legislation.
Mattie McGrath sets out a straightforward proposal: ban sulky racing on public roads except where explicit, lawful permission exists. The Bill would create a national, consistent framework, grant enforcement powers to local authorities and introduce penalties including fines up to 0,000 and, in serious cases, imprisonment.
McGrath lists recent incidents in Tipperary and elsewhere: a collapsed trotting horse, sulkies moving into oncoming traffic on the N62, and near-misses with motorists. He cites ISPCA images of severe equine injuries and describes cases of horses driven to exhaustion, abandoned, or left to die at the roadside.
The speech emphasises cruelty to horses and risks to the public, including children. McGrath stresses that this is not legitimate equine sport but unregulated, uninsured, high-speed racing alongside traffic. He praises ISPCA and local pounds for their work rescuing injured animals.
McGrath argues current law is a patchwork of inconsistent bylaws across Tipperary, Kilkenny, Limerick and Waterford. He asks the House to support the Bill, to amend if necessary, and not to delay action while dangerous practices continue. He notes recent indications that Minister Heydon may support the measure.
What the Bill would do
Mattie McGrath sets out a straightforward proposal: ban sulky racing on public roads except where explicit, lawful permission exists. The Bill would create a national, consistent framework, grant enforcement powers to local authorities and introduce penalties including fines up to 0,000 and, in serious cases, imprisonment.
Incidents and evidence
McGrath lists recent incidents in Tipperary and elsewhere: a collapsed trotting horse, sulkies moving into oncoming traffic on the N62, and near-misses with motorists. He cites ISPCA images of severe equine injuries and describes cases of horses driven to exhaustion, abandoned, or left to die at the roadside.
Animal welfare and public safety
The speech emphasises cruelty to horses and risks to the public, including children. McGrath stresses that this is not legitimate equine sport but unregulated, uninsured, high-speed racing alongside traffic. He praises ISPCA and local pounds for their work rescuing injured animals.
Legal gap and appeal to colleagues
McGrath argues current law is a patchwork of inconsistent bylaws across Tipperary, Kilkenny, Limerick and Waterford. He asks the House to support the Bill, to amend if necessary, and not to delay action while dangerous practices continue. He notes recent indications that Minister Heydon may support the measure.
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Transcript
I want to thank you, Comhairle, and indeed the Bill's office, and please the staff in my own office for preparation and submission of this Bill. That Lee be granted to introduce a Bill entitled to enact and prohibit sulky racing where no lawful, and I mean no lawful, permission has been granted. I am pleased to bring this legislation before the House once again. Its purpose is straightforward and utterly needed. To prohibit sulky racing on public roads, unless, and specifically unless, explicit permission has been granted, and a lawful permission has been there for that. As outlined in the briefing notes, sulky racing is an extremely dangerous activity. The practice places the public, young passengers, and the horses themselves in grave danger. The Bill is driven by the growing number of serious incidents occurring across the country, and particularly in my own county of Tipperary. In recent months, guarantee were called to the outskirts of Clonmel after a young trotting horse collapsed during an early morning sulky run. Another where a horse broke from its carriage and ran directly into oncoming traffic. Near-totalless motors narrowly avoided multi-vehicle collision when a group of sulkies took over, and I mean took over, both lanes of the N62 without warning. These events are becoming disturbingly frequent. For many incidents, it's a very busy shop, and a dance studio. There's often numbers of youths and their parents going in and out of the shop and into the dance studio. If the horse had ploughed into them, it would be horrific. It hit two cars. The briefing notes describe how children as young as 10 hitched horses to our ponies to light-weight cats and raced them down busy regional and national and primary roads. That is the reality we are dealing with. Unregulated, uninsured, high-speed racing on public roads, often alongside moving traffic, it is reckless and it is unsafe, and it is horribly cruel to the horses. It is the reality we have seen horses driven to exhaustion, abandoned on roadsides, and in some cases left to die where they fall. Images from the Irish Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, ISPCA, showed the horrific injuries. And I want to compliment them and all the different horse and dog pounds, the refugees, that try and do so much in this case. They can suffer torn ligaments, broken bones, and wounds inflicted by makeshift attacks. This is not sport, it is abidable cruelty. Let me be clear, I am not anti-sport, and I am not opposed to traditional equine culture. Tipperary is rightly proud of its world-class horse racing heritage. But what is happening on our roads is not legitimate equine activity. It is unlicensed, unlawful, and dangerous. It endangers motorists, pedestrians, the young people involved, and the animals themselves. And that is the fact of the matter. At present, the law is a patchwork of inconsistent local authority bylaws. Counties like Tipperary, Kilkenny, Limerick, and Waterford all have different bylaws, creating a complete lack of an inconsistent approach. The bill seeks to correct them by establishing a national, united framework. It grants local authorities the powers they need to enforce the law. And it provides for meaningful penalties, including fines of up to €5,000, and in most serious cases, imprisonment. The bill does not interfere with off-road saltkey racing. And they have that in many countries, and it is run very lucratively. Off-road, on sand-based paths, is organised by legitimate equine sport. What it does is address growing dangerous practices of unlicensed, unlawful saltkey racing on public roads. A practice that has already caused serious injury, and will continue to do so unless we act. I do not claim that the bill is perfect, but I do hope that all sides of the House will support it here. We've heard many soundings recently from Minister Hayden, which does threaten justice, agriculture, and local authority. Minister Hayden has been making noises that he would support it. So now, I hope, the last time I introduced it here, twice, it wasn't supported, that we will come together, take this piece of legislation, amend it if necessary, but do something now. Don't be like passing, like we did for the scooters, a law in the name of some dead person who was killed. Please act, and for the sake of cruelty to the animals, and safety to the public. I commend the bill to the House. Thank you very much. Thank you.