City council ‘squandering’ funds by spending €1k a day seizing horses

Limerick City Council has been accused of “squandering” State funds by spending up to €1,000 a day on seizing stray horses illegally kept in the city.

The former mayor of Limerick, Cllr John Gilligan (Ind), said the bylaws must be reviewed as the money being spent could be put to better uses. “Even JP McManus doesn’t have five acres in the city to keep a horse,” he said.

In order to keep a horse in the city, the owner must have five acres of land, a horse passport, and the horse must also be micro-chipped. If these conditions are met, a licence is then granted by the council, but this is rare, the local authority said.