PART III

Licensing of Riding Establishments

26. —The Minister may by regulations under this section provide that this Part shall not apply to any class of riding establishment specified in the regulations (by reference to such matters, including the numbers of horses kept, as the Minister may consider appropriate), and this Part shall apply and have effect in accordance with the provisions of any regulations for the time being in force under this section.

27. —(1) References in this Part to the keeping of a riding establishment shall be construed as references to the carrying on of a business of keeping horses for either or both of the following purposes, that is to say, the purpose of their being let out on hire for riding or the purpose of their being used in providing, in return for payment, instruction in riding.

(2) For the purposes of this Part a person keeping a riding establishment shall be taken to keep it at the premises where the horses employed for the purposes of the business concerned are kept.

28. —(1) (a) Subject to the provisions of this Act, a person shall not keep a riding establishment except under and in accordance with a licence.

(b) Paragraph (a) of this subsection shall not apply—

(i) in relation to a person who kept a riding establishment immediately before the commencement of this Part, during the period of three months beginning on such commencement,

(ii) in relation to a person who acquires, by purchase or otherwise, a riding establishment the subject of a licence, during the period of three months beginning on the date of such acquisition, or

(iii) in relation to the personal representative of the holder of a licence, during the period of six months beginning on the date of the death of the holder.

(2) The Minister may, on application being made to him in that behalf and on payment to him of any appropriate fee (which shall accompany the application) for the time being standing prescribed under subsection (4) of this section grant or refuse to grant a licence to a person authorising the keeping of a riding establishment at the premises specified in the licence.

(3) (a) A licence shall be subject to such conditions (if any) as the Minister may think necessary or expedient for securing the objects of this Part and may impose at the time of the grant thereof or at any time thereafter and specify in the licence and the person who keeps a riding establishment shall comply with any conditions specified in the licence relating to the establishment.

(b) The Minister may, if he so thinks fit, amend or revoke a condition attached to a licence.

(4) The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, from time to time prescribe a fee which shall be paid to the Minister on an application for a licence.

(5) The Public Offices Fees Act, 1879, shall not apply in respect of any fees paid under this section.

(6) A person who contravenes subsection (1) or subsection (3) of this section shall be guilty of an offence.

29. —(1) In determining whether to grant or refuse to grant or revoke, as the case may be, a licence for the keeping of a riding establishment at any premises, the Minister shall in particular have regard to whether the person who is or will be keeping the establishment is, in the opinion of the Minister, suitable and qualified either by experience in the management of horses or otherwise to be the keeper of such an establishment and to the need for securing—

(a) that there will be available at all times, for horses, accommodation suitable as respects construction, size, number of occupants, lighting, ventilation, drainage, and cleanliness,

(b) that, in the case of horses maintained at grass, there will be maintained for them at all times during which they are so maintained adequate pasture and shelter,

(c) that horses will be adequately supplied with food, drink and (except, in the case of horses maintained at grass, so long as they are so maintained) bedding material, and will be adequately exercised and rested and (so far as necessary) visited at suitable intervals,

(d) that all reasonable precautions will be taken to prevent and control the spread among horses of infectious or contagious diseases,

(e) that appropriate steps will be taken for the protection of horses in case of fire,

(f) that horses will be maintained in a good state of health and that, in the case of a horse kept for the purpose of its being let out on hire for riding or a horse kept for the purpose of its being used in providing instruction in riding, the horse and any equipment to be supplied with it will be suitable for the purpose for which in that case it is kept,

(g) that adequate accommodation will be provided for forage, bedding, stable equipment and saddlery,

(h) that where horses are used for the purpose of providing in return for payment instruction in riding, the person giving the instruction shall have the necessary skill and ability for the purpose,

and shall specify such conditions in the licence, if granted by him, as appear to the Minister necessary or expedient in the particular case for securing all the objects specified in paragraphs (a) to (h) of this subsection.

(2) A licence may be granted with or without limitation on its period of validity.

(3) (a) Whenever the Minister proposes to refuse to grant a licence, he shall, before doing so, notify in writing the applicant for the licence of his intention and of the reasons therefor, and, if any representations are made by the applicant to the Minister within fourteen days after the date of the giving of the notification the Minister shall consider them.

(b) Whenever the Minister proposes to revoke a licence, he shall, before doing so, notify the person keeping the riding establishment to which it relates of his intention and of the reasons therefor, and

(i) if any representations are made by the person within thirty days after the date of the giving of the notification the Minister shall consider them, and

(ii) if the person makes a request to the Minister, within seven days after the date of the giving of the notification, for the holding of an inquiry in relation to the matter,

the Minister shall cause an inquiry to be held (unless, as a result of the consideration of representations made to him, the Minister has decided not to revoke the licence).

(c) Where an inquiry is held under this subsection, the Minister shall not revoke the licence until he has considered the report of the person holding the inquiry.

(d) The Minister shall appoint a person who is a practising barrister of at least ten years' standing to hold any inquiry under this subsection and the person so appointed shall have power to take evidence on oath which he is hereby authorised to administer and shall make a report to the Minister of his findings at the inquiry.

(e) The Minister shall give to the person who requested the holding of the inquiry notice of the time and place of the holding of the inquiry and the person shall be entitled to appear at the inquiry personally or by counsel or solicitor and to adduce evidence.

(f) There shall be paid to a person holding an inquiry under this subsection such remuneration as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may fix.

(4) Whenever the Minister revokes a licence, he shall cause a statement of his reasons for doing so to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

30. —(1) An officer of the Minister duly authorised in that behalf by the Minister or a member of the Garda Síochána may enter and inspect at all reasonable times—

(a) premises where he has reason to believe a person is keeping a riding establishment,

(b) premises to which a licence relates, and

(c) premises in respect of which an application for a licence has been made and in relation to which the Minister has neither granted nor refused to grant the licence,

and

(i) may examine any horses thereon or any thing therein,

(ii) may require any person having in his possession or control any records or documents relating to the premises or the business carried on there to produce such records or other documents, and

(iii) may inspect, examine, copy or take extracts from them.

(2) Any person who wilfully obstructs or delays any person in the exercise of his powers under subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) An officer of the Minister performing functions under this Act shall be furnished with a certificate of his authorisation to perform those functions, and when entering on premises in the performance of those functions, shall, if so required, produce the certificate to the person who is keeping or proposes to keep a riding establishment at the premises or any other person holding a responsible position of management at the premises.

31. —(1) If a person—

(a) at a time when a horse is in such a condition that its riding would be likely to cause suffering to the horse, lets out the horse on hire or uses it for the purpose of providing, in return for payment, instruction in riding or for the purpose of demonstrating riding,

(b) supplies for a horse which is let out on hire by him for riding, equipment which is used in the course of the hiring and suffers, at the time it is supplied, from a defect of such a nature as to be apparent on inspection and as to be likely to cause suffering to the horse or an accident to the rider,

(c) fails to provide such curative care as may be suitable, if any, for a sick or injured horse which is kept by him with a view to its being let out on hire or used for a purpose mentioned in paragraph (a) of this subsection,

(d) with intent to avoid inspection under section 30 of this Act, conceals, or causes to be concealed, any horse maintained on the premises to which the inspection relates,

he shall be guilty of an offence under this Act.

(2) A person who for the purpose of obtaining the grant of a licence gives any information which he knows to be false (which in this subsection means false in a material particular) or makes a statement which he knows to be false or recklessly gives any information which is false or recklessly makes any statement which is false shall be guilty of an offence under this Act.

32. —A person guilty of an offence under this Act shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds together with, in the case of a continuing offence, a further fine of ten pounds for each day on which the offence is continued.

33. —(1) The Minister may from time to time, if he so thinks fit, by order transfer to the Board any function conferred on him by this Part or assign to the Board such functions (in addition to the functions conferred on it by this Act) in relation to the breeding, sale and export of horses, equitation and matters connected with the matters aforesaid as he thinks fit.

(2) The function in relation to officers of the Minister conferred on the Minister by section 30 of this Act shall, if it is transferred to the Board under this section, be deemed to be a function in relation to officers of the Board.

(3) The Minister may include in an order under this section such provisions as he thinks desirable or necessary in relation to matters ancillary to or arising out of the transfer or assignment to the Board under this section of functions or the performance by the Board of those functions, including provisions making any modifications or adaptations of this Part that are necessitated by a transfer of functions under this section.

(4) The Minister may by order revoke or amend an order under this section (including an order under this subsection).

34. —This Part of this Act shall come into operation on such day as the Minister may appoint by order.