The Green Party has called on the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, Mr Higgins, to reverse his decision to issue a deer hunting licence to the Ward Union Staghounds.
A party spokesman, Mr Gerry Boland, said the issuing of the licence was "the most bizarre and illogical decision the Minister has made while in office". The Ward Union, the only stag hunt in the State, has been hunting illegally since 1989, Mr Boland said.
The licence runs to the end of the hunting season, March 31st, and is conditional on the appointment of an independent monitor for the hunt.
Mr Tony Gregory TD said this condition was worthless as monitoring was virtually impossible.