Sir, - The report by Roddy O'Sullivan on the Control of Horses Act and its implementation in the case of Mr Martin Mongan is a very significant one (The Irish Times, July 26th).
We hear every day about the Celtic Tiger, the enormous budget surplus being generated and the need to direct at least a part of this to the socially disadvantaged.
In a number of areas around Dublin - Ballymun, Fettercairn, Cherry Orchard, to name a few - there is a traditional horse culture which goes back generations. Within this culture there is a love and genuine care for horses, which, among other things, gives young people a worthwhile occupation and diverts them from drugs.
In Ballymun, in particular, the local community is endeavouring to provide an adequate equestrian centre and animal sanctuary which will meet the requirements of the Control of Horses Act and, at the same time, provide occupation and proper training in animal husbandry for young people. For very obvious reasons, the necessary funding is not available locally and support from local politicians, with a few honourable exceptions, is, to say the least, half-hearted.
Surely, in the present state of State finances, funding should be provided for the establishment of these animal care centres, if the Government does not actually provide these centres itself. The cost in the present context is negligible; the rewards are huge.
In these disadvantaged areas, as in the Travellers' community, how can people possibly find the resources to meet the requirements of the Act? Why is the horse pound so far away from Dublin, making the cost of recovering horses virtually prohibitive? In these circumstances, the objective of the State would appear to be the eventual elimination of these horses - and that in a supposedly horse-loving country!
In other areas, much more money is being squandered on much less worthy and deserving projects. - Yours, etc., Domhnall Mc Cullough,
Healthfield Road, Terenure, Dublin 6.