Countryside Alliance Ireland - love the countryside

Countryside Alliance Ireland  are delighted that Sinn Féin passed a motion at Saturday’s Ard Fheis not to ban coursing. This motion was tabled as a direct result of last year’s motion which had called on the party to ban coursing and fox hunting.

It is clearly evident that Sinn Féin acknowledges the support in rural Ireland for traditional rural occupations including hunting, fishing and hare coursing.

These beliefs confirm that field sports such as shooting, hunting and hare coursing promote the multifunctional use of farmland in which wildlife provides a resource for non-agricultural activities supporting sustainable development; and that country sports activity has a leading role to play in the management of wildlife and control of problem species. The passing of this motion ensured that an alternative motion placed in opposition fell.  

Lyall Plant Chief Executive Countryside Alliance Ireland said; “We have consistently made it clear that being fair and transparent shows in a positive way the benefits of hunting, fishing and hare coursing to our rural economies. We welcome a sensible conclusion to this debate to allow us and others to concentrate on the real crisis in our countryside, which sees farm incomes continue to tumble, rural services eroded and real hardship develop”. 

Lyall continued; “We do not expect everyone to support hunting, fishing and hare coursing but we do expect an open, honest, factual and evidence based debate where genuine concerns can be addressed. Sadly some seem unable to adopt this approach or bring any informed contribution to the proceedings.

However, with the passing of this motion we must not be complacent. We need to be even more vigilant and prepared to campaign against any future attacks on our rural way of life”.