State Papers: Haughey the hunter agreed to exemption for otters

Charles Haughey agreed to the proposed ban on hunting otters which resulted in licences being suspended in 1990. Photo: Domnick Walsh

Charles Haughey may have enjoyed a reputation as a lover of rural pursuits but there was an exception when it came to otter hunting.

The late taoiseach was known to enjoy countryside activities like hunting and shooting but he readily agreed to a proposal by his Fianna Fáil colleague, Brendan Daly, to prohibit the hunting of otters in 1990.

Although otters were a protected species since 1976, a small number of licences were issued annually to allow for the hunting of them.

Four hunts located in the south-west were granted licences each year to hunt otter between April and October – the Bridge Valley, Bride View and Cork City Otter Hunts all based in Co. Cork and the Desmond Otter Hunt in Co. Limerick.

In February 1990, Mr Daly, the then Minister of State for Finance, notified the Taoiseach that he had to make a decision on the “vexed question” of whether to grant licences to hunt otters for another season.

The Clare TD told Mr Haughey he and his predecessors had been under considerable pressure to discontinue the use of licences for otter hunting, even though the number of animals killed each year was “not large.” Nine otters were killed during hunts in 1989.

Recognising that Ireland might be in breach of the State’s obligations under the Bern Convention on Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, Mr Daly said he felt the licences should not be issued.

“The otter is not a pest like the fox. It is therefore difficult to argue in favour of the practice of hunting,” said Mr Daly.

Mr Haughey agreed to the proposed ban which resulted in licences being suspended in 1990. Ten years later, it became a criminal offence to hunt or kill an otter.

In 2019, three men were fined a total of €1,100 for illegally killing an otter at Ballynatray Estate in Co. Waterford.