Danny Healy-Rae addressed a committee about the growing deer problem in Kerry, urging concentrated culls to protect road users and farmers. He challenged officials over withheld TB testing figures and recalled local fatal collisions to underline the urgency.
Immediate demand: Danny Healy-Rae told the committee that deer are causing serious harm to people on the roads and farmers through disease. He argued that managing deer is insufficient and called for decisive culling, even by large teams, to remove the threat in South Kerry.
Safety and fatalities: He recounted specific incidents, including a mother of three who died after swerving to avoid a deer, and other fatal and serious collisions. He said road safety must take priority and expressed frustration that authorities are not acting quickly enough in high‑risk counties like Kerry.
TB and testing data: He criticised witnesses and officials for refusing to disclose how many deer were tested, saying committee members are entitled to those figures. He stressed the connection between uncontrolled deer populations and the spread of bovine TB to farmers.
Concentrated culling and hunters: He backed the witnesses' explanation of concentrated culls as a rapid way to identify TB cases, eradicate infected local populations and provide practical outlets for hunters. He said ad hoc actions will not solve the problem and suggested large, coordinated operations may be necessary to restore safety and protect agriculture.
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Thank you very much, Comhairleach. I suppose the first thing, first of all, I want to welcome all the witnesses here and thank you for coming here and because it's very important and like has been said by all the members, the damage and the harm that deer are doing and first of all to people on the road and compromising safety. It's terrible but Chairman, I have to question the answer that we didn't get here last week because like we say, roads are the first thing and safety of people on the roads driving or whatever and then the damage and the hurt they're causing farmers with spreading TB and I ask the question here, see what percent of deer that were tested, you know, they said two percent were only of deer were affected with TB when they tested them but they wouldn't give us the figure and I'm hot about that because if they knew it was two percent they should know the amount of deer that they tested but they refuse point blank to give us that and we're elected members here inside to this committee and we're entitled to it. That shouldn't be heedfulness. It was hid deliberately, I would say to you Chairman, because we didn't get the answer. They failed to give it to the Department of Agriculture who wouldn't be there at all if it wasn't for the farmers. There'd be no need for a Department of Agriculture but I suppose Shane said something that's very, how to say, sinful to where I live in Kerry because we've an awful prevalence of deer and they have taken over completely in South Kerry particularly where the forest is hiding and you said well, you know, that could be better to have a concentration type calling like rather than doing a bit and coming back and I'd like you to expand a bit in that because that seems sensible to me. In actual fact, Chairman, I honestly think we won't deal with the problem that we have in Kilgarvin and South Kerry without bringing some big team. Maybe it has to be the army but if we have to make the road safer, the deer will have to be seen. Managing deer, I don't know what to actually mean by that but to me they have to be got rid of, they have to be shot and they have to be culled and that's it but just explain a bit of what you said about concentrated culling. Yes Deputy, concentrated culling we feel would have multiple positive impacts on the control of deer. For the likes of TB, when you're shooting and controlling a large amount of deer rapidly, it gives you a quick look at TB affected deer in the area. It also allows you then to expand your hunt area to keep going until you're free from TB. Now you have controlled the area and you should have harvested enough deer that you should have harvested TB affected deer. If you need to eradicate that area, you need to eradicate that area. You can't just leave a few because you think you're at a manageable population. If they have TB, you need to kill the deer and that's just it. The concentrated cull would also be more beneficial to hunters because with a concentrated cull you could land a temporary cull room in the area. Now that would give hunters their outlet. That would save them driving 100 miles with their three deer in the back of the jeep for 80 euros when they're spending 120 euros on these. I'm conscious of the clock. I suppose in relation to the RSE, I mean surely you must know that the problem that we have in Kerry, I mean have you any idea how serious it is and how dangerous the roads are? Sure, it was in the news and everything about the Macomb bypass and in several roads the problem that we have. Are they not really taking it serious? Deputy, thank you for the question. We do take it seriously and the data shows us it's less than one percent but in particular counties it is of a major concern in Kerry as we identified as one of those counties. We work very closely with Downing Kerry recently with the local road safety officer and we do work with the local authorities. Our job is to reduce research and to reduce education and awareness campaigns and as we've given an undertaking there, we have done campaigns and continue to do campaigns during rutting season but we have given an undertaking to look at the particular counties that are more affected to see whether there's local media campaigns we can do in conjunction with the local road safety officer. All right and just the previous speaker said here that he was glad that there was no fatalities. I can't agree with that because we know that we've had fatalities. A mother of three young children lost her life back at Ballydowning swerving from the ear. A man from Kinmare lost his life coming down Mull's Gap when he was coming into Muckras. He avoided the ear and hit a tree. I mean they're dead and I suppose dead people can't talk but he's fairly sure that that's what happened. Those two people and there are others that I can't bring to my mind and people seriously injured and young fellows going to work in the morning. It's not as if they were out at night but going to work in the morning and after paying for insurance and on the road and glad to be going to work and make flitters of their car and there's certain areas like Kilcommon. I mean it's not all along the main roads. It's in the way by roads that has three roads. It's happening. They hop out over to the out over there. So I can't see any real way of dealing with it. Only calling the almighty god chairman. It has been said in Europe that they're vermin. The sick deer are vermin. We can't touch the red deer and we that the national health we can't touch them but we still have to make our roads safe even with them. But they're treated as vermin now in Europe. Why should we be trying to spare them or save them? I mean deer management that word is alien to me. There has to be only one word to get rid of them and that's the gospel truth and I wouldn't want to hear in anyone's head. I appreciate wild animals but when they're causing mayhem on our roads. We know what he done with what's been done with fellows that wanted just to have two points and drive home on a country road. They're not even allowed to do that. So we should have zero tolerance of the deer on the road and he should get behind and be front and forward with getting rid of them completely out of the countryside for the safety of people's lives.
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