I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Dog Welfare (Amendment) Bill. I thank Deputy Whitmore for putting it together and bringing it before the Dáil. At its core, the Bill seeks to close serious gaps in the Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010, which is outdated legislation, and place welfare, not commercial-scale breeding, at the centre of how we regulate these establishments. For too long, the absence of a cap on the number of breeding females has created the conditions for large-scale puppy farms, where animals are treated as units on a conveyor belt rather than living beings with needs and instincts and the right to basic care and welfare. Sinn Féin has been very clear that the current regime is being abused, albeit by a minority of operators. Without a statutory limit, establishments can accumulate very large numbers of breeding bitches with no realistic capacity to provide proper welfare. A cap of 30 breeding bitches is necessary to end the worst excesses of intensive dog breeding operations. As has been noted, without proper regulation and staffing levels, no individual or small operator can manage the welfare of 30 females and their many pups, never mind the far higher numbers we know exist in some facilities around the State. This Bill both acknowledges that reality and seeks to remediate it. We also strongly support raising the breeding age. Allowing pups to be bred from six months old is entirely inappropriate. They should be left to mature. We want to see the minimum breeding age increased to 15 months. Furthermore, pups must be allowed to remain with their mothers for at least ten weeks. The current practice where pups are separated after only a few weeks in order to bring the bitch back into breeding condition is harmful to both mother and pup. A statutory ten-week mother and pup period is a basic welfare requirement and long overdue. The introduction of a staff-to-bitch ratio of 1:10 is also welcome and without that clear staffing requirement, welfare obligations cannot be enforced in any meaningful way. Proper oversight, staffing and inspection regimes are needed if we are to be in any way serious about ending cruelty and exploitation. I want to address the issue of surgical artificial insemination. The changes to the code of professional conduct for veterinary practitioners have already recognised the welfare concerns involved. However, the continued exemption for greyhounds is not justified. The same welfare standards should apply to all dogs and Sinn Féin believes the law must reflect that. We have seen it in the last Government, which was dubbed the kick-the-can-down-the-road Government, and it is unfortunate to see that, despite the new injection of Independent Deputies into the Government benches, this is continuing. We saw it with wind turbine regulations last week and we see it with this piece of legislation this week, where the can is kicked down the road. I understand the points the Minister of State outlined in his speech to allow that discursive element to take place but we need to grapple with this issue now. This Government is 11 months ar an bhfód and we need to get to grips with this. I ask the Minister of State to allow this to go ahead.

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