First Smithfield horse fair under new rules takes place on Sunday Dublin

The first Smithfield horse fair to be organised under new bylaws will take place on Sunday.

Horse owners have until noon today to apply in person at Dublin City Council's offices for a casual trading licence to bring a horse to Sunday's fair. Online applications closed at 8pm last night. Licences cost €10 a horse.

Dublin City Council says the new laws passed at a council meeting in January will ensure "the orderly running and management of the horse fair, the safety of all persons attending and the welfare of animals".

The council has for years sought the closure of the market which has been condemned by the Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, but has been blocked by an ancient market right of horse traders to hold their sales on the land.

Problems with the market, which is held on the Smithfield Plaza surrounded by apartment blocks and busy roads, came to a head in March last year when two men were shot and another was injured with a slash hook.