Athlone man criticises recent Dáil vote against potential foxhunting ban

Athlone animal rights activist Ruairi Ó Leocháin has criticised the Government's attitude to animal welfare in the country, after the Dáil's recent rejection of a proposal to ban foxhunting with dogs.

The rejection, spearheaded by Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger, would have prohibited the use of canines to hunt or flush out foxes and prohibit trapping or snaring of the foxes in order to kill them. It would not have outlawed the shooting of foxes on one’s land for the purpose of protecting livestock. But some 124 TDs voted against the ban, while 24 voted in favour.

That decision led to an online poll by Red C, at the request of the Stand With Badgers organisaton, of which Ó Leocháin was a founder member. The poll was carried out among 1,037 adults aged 18 and over, and the results showed a large majority against the Dáil's vote.

The poll showed that 73 per cent of those who responded believe that foxhunting with dogs should be banned, and that 68 per cent of people living in rural Ireland believe foxhunting with dogs should be banned.

“During recent public discussions, politicians and hunt supporters pushed the narrative that foxhunting with dogs is a rural pursuit. We can now clearly see that this is entirely inaccurate and bears no relation to the facts,” said Mr. Ó Leocháin, a schoolteacher in Ballinasloe.

The poll also indicated significant concern about how ethical animal welfare issues are handled in the Oireachtas with 72 per cent of those surveyed believing that TDs should be granted a free vote on animal welfare issues, rising to 84 per cent when 'don’t knows' are excluded. It further concluded that 60 per cent believe that enforcing party-line voting on ethical issues “erodes trust in politicians”.

“In my opinion, politicians should take heed, as trust is not a reputational concern but a form of political capital. When it declines, governments become harder to run, democracies become more fragile, and political outcomes become more volatile and less predictable,” said Mr Ó Leocháin.

Two in five voters, meanwhile, said that they are less likely to vote if legislation with strong public support is blocked or shut down.

“Again,” said the former Marist College student, “politicians should be concerned as they depend on voter participation to validate both their authority and the system they operate in. When a large share of voters signals that procedural obstruction reduces their willingness to vote, it indicates a serious risk to democratic consent and long-term governability.”

Stand with Badgers exists to defend animal welfare where it feels it is undermined, and Mr Ó Leocháin strongly believes that foxhunting with dogs needs to be stopped as soon as possible.

“Foxhunting with dogs is not a tradition,” he said. “It is a cruel and deliberate blood sport. Behind the public spectacle lies routine destruction with so-called 'protected' badgers being driven from their homes, and their setts blocked or dug out by terrier men to deny hunted foxes any chance of escape.

"Each hunt leaves a trail of damaged habitats and terrified wildlife. We believe that rural Ireland is tired of being falsely portrayed as supportive of this violence. Rural communities do not stand for foxhunting with dogs, and they reject the suffering it inflicts on wildlife and the countryside alike. The results of the survey suggest a clear disconnect between public opinion and political process on animal welfare, with strong support for both a ban on foxhunting with dogs and greater parliamentary independence on ethical issues.”