Location of horses seized in Waterford being kept secret for ‘security reasons’

Waterford City and County Council will not disclose where horses seized in the county are being kept for “security reasons”, a council meeting has heard.

Sinn Féin councillor Joeanne Bailey made an enquiry in relation to the Control of Horses Bye-Laws at the council’s June plenary meeting.

Cllr Bailey said: “Just on the enforcement side of it, I had a case a couple of years ago.

“A person rang in saying there was a horse out on the road and it was tied up and in distress. A person had to come from Limerick to look at that horse.

“Do we actually have someone on Waterford council now that can come out to phone calls from the public or is it still the case that we outsource that job from Waterford to a different county?

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“Where does that horse actually go when they are collected?”

In response, Gabriel Hynes, Director of Services at Waterford City and County Council, said that a contractor from outside the county is still undertaking the work.

Mr Hynes said: “We have procured nationally a contractor that will work with the gardaí.

“Just in relation to the location of the contractor, it can take a bit of time for that contractor to come down. It’s a specialised job as well.

“Not anyone can collect a horse that’s running in a public open area so we will engage with the contractor, the contractor will turn up and the gardaí may be required to assist as well.”

He added that Waterford City and County Council would not disclose where the horses are kept after being seized.

“The location of where that horse is kept I’m not going to disclose. Obviously, for security reasons, we don’t give that out,” Mr Hynes stated.